Search Results for:

SUB POP

Cover of Microminiature Love by Michael Yonkers Band.

Michael Yonkers Band

Microminiature Love

Sub Pop

    Originally recorded in 1968 and slated for release on Sire Records, "Microminiature Love" languished unreleased, until a limited edition vinyl pressing last year. It's creator, Michael Yonkers, is a legendary figure of Minneapolis music-lore who modified his own guitars and effects. The songs defy immediate categorization, but in them you'll hear shades of Pere Ubu, the howl of Iggy, the blunt primitivism of the Godz and the seeds of countless other underground heroes. The original seven-song album is accompanied on this CD edition by six bonus tracks circa 1968.

    FORMAT INFORMATION

    LP Info: This LP includes the original seven song album
    plus a download coupon for the entire LP plus six
    bonus tracks circa 1968 (‘The Clock Is Running’,
    ‘My House’, ‘Hush Hush’, ‘Sold America’, ‘The
    Thunder Speaks’, ‘Scat Jam’).

    [ + ]
    [ - ]
    Cover of The Aberrant Years by Feedtime.

    Feedtime

    The Aberrant Years

    Sub Pop

      Sub Pop finally realise their goal of releasing feedtime (the ‘f’ is lowercase), a longtime staff favourite and a heavy influence on the label’s early artistes (notably Mudhoney).

      A vintage blues swagger via roots rock and the late 70s that didn't come from an established clique. A pure strain of rock and roll with a relentless mechanical propulsion. It was the perfect symbiosis of syncopation - minimalist rock that carried a thunderous atmosphere of reckless intoxication and intense personal pain but with a self-assured ease amongst the chaos.

      ‘the Aberrant years’ collects the entire output of feedtime’s 1978-1989 line up, including their self-titled debut, ‘shovel’, ‘Cooper S’ and ‘suction’, plus gobs of rare bonus tracks and extensive liner notes by band biographer Leon O’Regan in a full-colour booklet.

      This is perfect sound and pure art. Avant-garde pub-rock. All hail the concrete urban blues.

      Disc 1 - ‘feedtime’ (December 1985).
      Feedtime’s Debut Album.
      Two Tracks From 1985’s ‘Why March When You Can Riot?!’.

      Disc 2 - ‘shovel’ (January 1987).
      The Second Feedtime Album Carried The Band To An International Audience.

      Disc 3 - ‘Cooper S’ (May 1988).
      On Feedtime’s 1988 Covers Album, ‘Cooper S’, The Band Take On Their Influences, Including The Beach Boys, The Rolling Stones, Lee Hazlewood, The Stooges, Slade, An EE Cummings Poem, The Easybeats, And An Intense Reworking Of The Animals’ ‘We’ve Gotta Get Out Of This Place’.

      Disc 4 - ‘suction’ (September 1989).
      The Fourth Album Builds The Cacophony And Intensity Of Earlier Material Into A Broader Sound. Tracks Such As ‘Pumping A Line’ Show The Band In Full Flight And Perfectly Capture The Minimal Essence Of Feedtime. Blues Was Also At The Fore, With Dominic And Peter From The Backsliders Providing Steel-guitar And Vocals On ‘I’ll Be Rested’.



      [ + ]
      [ - ]
      Cover of Give Up by The Postal Service.

      The Postal Service

      Give Up

      Sub Pop

      The Postal Service is Ben Gibbard from Death Cab For Cutie and Jimmy Tamborello from DNTEL and what a smart record this is. Bedroom electronics combine with proper songs like a weirded-out Lightning Seeds or even New Order. In fact, there's an oddly 80s feel to this sound, so dated it sounds uniquely futuristic! Sad, pretty, poppy songs, Sarah Records but without the guitars. If you liked the Field Mice, you'll love this.

      [ + ]
      [ - ]
      Cover of Sculptor by Luluc.

      Luluc

      Sculptor

      Sub Pop

        We spray our hair into submission, upright to attention. Marching to no orders, imagination has no borders. Well lucky that.”  

        “Me and Jasper,” from Luluc’s third album Sculptor, is a confident challenge to small-town insularity, lilting yet vigilant, and championed by a defiant guitar solo from the band’s friend J Mascis. It’s a reflection on a common pitfall of adolescence: limitless possibility battling constant obstruction. “My own experiences as a teen were often fraught” says songwriter and vocalist Zoe Randell. “The small town I grew up in provided a great study in gossip, scandal, character assassination, and the willingness of people to go along with it.” It’s a song about fighting for agency on an album that is in many ways about volition, potential, and how people can navigate difficulties and opportunities to create different paths.  

        Sculptor can be consumed loud, because while Luluc's music is at times masterful in it’s minimalism, it is anything but quiet in impact. There’s a turning point people experience when hearing Luluc. Janet Weiss of Sleater-Kinney says “it’s music that, once you hear it, you can’t live without it.” The National’s Matt Berninger said that for months, Passerby was “the only album I wanted to listen to.” “What first hits is that voice,” writes Peter Blackstock (No Depression), “a peaceful serenity that reaches deep into the heart.” When NPR’s Bob Boilen named 2014’s Passerby his album of the year, he wrote: “I've listened to this record by Australia's Luluc more than any other this year. These songs feel like they've always been.” Legendary producer Joe Boyd, who discovered Nick Drake, told BBC radio he exclaimed “Who the hell is this?!” when he first heard Luluc’s debut, Dear Hamlyn.

         That gripping quality pulses through Sculptor. Randell writes with more experimentation and possibility. “Broadly speaking, with these new songs I was interested in the difficulties that life can throw at us - what we can do with them, how they can shape us, and what say we have,” she explains. Sonically, the band have broadened their palette. Multi-instrumentalist, singer, and producer Steve Hassett mastered a spectrum of instruments to fully realize the album’s expansive and daring vision. Randell and Hassett did nearly all of the writing, recording, and producing themselves, but their vision is far from insular. In addition to Mascis, Sculptor features contributions from Aaron Dessner (The National, and producer of Passerby), Jim White of Dirty Three, Matt Eccles, and Dave Nelson. Recording took place in Luluc’s new Brooklyn studio, which they built themselves.  

        That everyone has control of their own story is at the core of Sculptor. For Hassett, it’s illuminated by the last line of the album: “The most beautiful, serene sculpture my hands could make, could trace, could break.” “All of the songs are playing with those ideas,” he says. “Life is something you get, and you can get sidetracked for years and even destroy it, or you can remember that you've got some control over your life.” But listeners of Sculptor may yield some of that control, even if for a short time, to the mastery of the music itself.

        FORMAT INFORMATION

        Coloured LP Info: Loser edition Violet/Maroon coloured vinyl

        [ + ]
        [ - ]
        Cover of Moodie by Yuno.

        Yuno

        Moodie

        Sub Pop

          Yuno – aka 27-year-old Carlton Joseph Moodie – is in a New York state of mind. He was born there in the Bronx, but from the age of nine months spent his entire life in Florida, and particularly Jacksonville. He's dreamed of returning to New York to live ever since. New York is what inspires his creative streak, even though he's only visited the big city four times. “I plan to move here one day,” he says defiantly, from a cafe in New York. The exotic lure of bright lights, brighter city, is one of the most relatable of tales, and it certainly makes a lot of sense once you've wrapped your ears around Moodie – Yuno's first EP, released via Sub Pop. Moodie is such a New York record. It veers from Tame Impala psych-pop to wonky Vampire Weekend college rock via backpacker hip-hop and, well, Len's “Steal My Sunshine.” It's a collection of songs that chimes with pop's increasing lack of concern for genre. It's the opposite of tribal, as multi-cultural and diverse as a ride on the New York City subway, across all five boroughs. It can't be attributed to one particular origin of sound or vision.  Yuno writes all his music alone at home, self-producing and engineering, playing all the instruments. “I don't really go anywhere in Jacksonville,” he says, drowsily. “I don't drive. I spend a lot of time in my bedroom.” The six-song collection thus sounds like a collage of bedroom posters. “So Slow,” for instance, would be a Washed Out flyer sat next to a piece of Kid Cudi artwork, whereas “Why For” with its squealing Wavves guitars would probably be represented by a big weed sticker or some Sleigh Bells ticket stubs. It's deeply creative and visual.

          Sub Pop found Yuno via Ish Butler of Shabazz Palaces, who A&Rs for the label. He stumbled on Yuno on Soundcloud and kept a keen eye on him. Like Ish, Yuno is encouraged by the genre-bending age we're in, citing Lil Uzi Vert and Young Thug as sources of influence. The EP's title clearly relates to his surname, but it's also channeling the emotional variety of the tracks. “It covers all the different feelings you have at the end of a relationship,” he notes. “Sometimes you're really happy to be moving on, other times you're really upset to see something go.”  New York, however, was the major muse. “Being here really changed things for me,” he says. “It feels like my pace here. All these things are in one place in New York. There's so much to experience.” Moodie is written from the perspective of being back in Jacksonville, missing the Big Apple. And while it plays out like longing, it's not all doom and gloom. Yuno's major hope is to make music that fills people with happiness. “That will make me happy,” he says, with a light laugh.

          FORMAT INFORMATION

          Coloured LP Info: Loser edition white vinyl.

          [ + ]
          [ - ]
          Cover of Hope Downs by Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever.

          Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever

          Hope Downs

          Sub Pop

            It's rare that a band's debut album sounds as confident and self-assured as Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever's Hope Downs. To say that the first full-length from the Melbourne quintet improves on their buzz-building EPs from the last few years would be an understatement: the promise those early releases hinted at is fully realized here, with ten songs of urgent, passionate guitar pop that elicit warm memories of bands past, from the Go-Betweens' jangle to the charmingly lo-fi trappings of New Zealand's Flying Nun label. But don't mistake Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever for nostalgists: Hope Downs is the sound of a band finding its own collective voice.

            The hard-hitting debut album is a testament to Rolling Blackouts C.F.’s tight-knit and hard-working bonafides. Prior to forming the band in 2013, singers/guitarists Fran Keaney, Tom Russo, and Joe White had played together in various garage bands, dating back to high school. When Rolling Blackouts C.F. started, with Joe Russo [Tom’s brother] on bass, Marcel [Tussie, Joe White's then-housemate] on drums, the chemistry was immediate. After a split EP with You Yangs (another Russo brother's band), released in the form of a frisbee, they self-released Talk Tight in 2015, which Sydney-based record label Ivy League gave a wider release the following year. Talk Tight garnered plaudits from critics, including legendary rock scribe Robert Christgau. In 2017, Sub Pop released The French Press EP, bringing the band's chugging and tuneful non-linear indie rock to the rest of the world as they settled into their sound with remarkable ease.

            Hope Downs was largely written over the past year in the band's Melbourne rehearsal room where their previous releases were also written and recorded. The band's core trio of songwriters hunkered down and wrote as the chaos of the world outside unavoidably seeped into the songwriting process. "We were feeling like we were in a moment where the sands were shifting and the world was getting a lot weirder. There was a general sense that things were coming apart at the seams and people around us were too,” Russo explains. The album title, taken from the name of a vast open cut mine in the middle of Australia, refers to the feeling of “standing at the edge of the void of the big unknown, and finding something to hold on to.”

            With the help of engineer/producer Liam Judson and his portable setup, the band recorded Hope Downs live, and co-produced ten guitar pop gems over the course of two weeks in Northern New South Wales during the winter of 2017. Hope Downs possesses a robust full-band sound that's all the more impressive considering the band's avoidance of traditional recording studios. If you loved Talk Tight and The French Press, you certainly won't be disappointed here—but you might also be surprised at how the band’s sound has grown. There's a richness and weight to these songs that was previously only hinted at, from the skyscraping chorus of “Sister's Jeans” to the thrilling climax of album closer “The Hammer.”

            Hope Downs is as much about the people that populate the world around us—their stories, perspectives, and hopes in the face of disillusionment—as it is about the state of things at large. It's a record that focuses on finding the bright spots at a time when cynicism all too often feels like the natural state. Rolling Blackouts C.F. are here to remind us to keep our feet on the ground—and Hope Downs is as delicious a taste of terra firma as you're going to get from a rock band right now.

            FORMAT INFORMATION

            Coloured LP Info: Loser edition marbled blue vinyl.

            [ + ]
            [ - ]
            Cover of Their Prime by Jo Passed.

            Jo Passed

            Their Prime

            Sub Pop

              The nicest thing anyone has ever – ever – said to Jo Hirabayashi, frontman of Jo Passed, is that his band's debut album sounds like “fucked-up Beatles”. Titled Their Prime, the LP does sound like fucked-up Beatles. It sounds like, somewhere across an ‘80s universe, Lennon and McCartney discovered Can and Neu!, and maybe a little Sonic Youth and XTC along the way. Opening with “Left,” it demonstrates that timeless knack for dreamy melodies – chord progressions that sound like they were created in a land far far away. Lyrically, however, it's imbued with a philosophical longing for answers to questions that have resurfaced for the first time since the explosion of counterculture in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

              Their Prime is a record about identity and the loss of time that happens as a direct consequence of being in the city with nowhere to rent, no time outside of employment and no realistic expectations to live up to. It encompasses that fear of being beyond the glory years, the most creatively fruitful period of one’s life. Those years were lost to contemporary struggles for working relationships, home, identity and space. “It's me owning my worst nightmare,” he admits. “A lot of the Jo Passed project has been about confronting fears. I was afraid to move away from Vancouver to Montreal on my own. Afraid to leave musical relationships I had. Afraid to bare the full responsibility of a project. I've been putting out records and not ones anyone's necessarily heard. Being open about those fears is a good way of dealing with them. You end up at this point where you hit 30 and you're like, 'Oh what happened? Am I done? Did I not activate my main creative energy?' It's a ridiculous idea but 30 feels a little like 1000 in rock n roll terms.” You can hear the frustrations and the jitters in the crashing loud-and-quiet motifs throughout the album's twelve tracks, which offer up a patchwork quilt of sound, similar to Faust's IV or Fugazi's Red Medicine.

              [ + ]
              [ - ]
              Cover of Return Of The Frog Queen by Jeremy Enigk.

              Jeremy Enigk

              Return Of The Frog Queen

              Sub Pop

                Jeremy Enigk performed with legendary indie rock band Sunny Day Real Estate from 1993 to 2000. He was their singer, songwriter, and one of their guitarists. In 1996, following Sunny Day Real Estate’s first breakup (which lasted from 1995 to 1997), Enigk released his first solo album, Return of the Frog Queen.

                Return of the Frog Queen represents a major shift from the sound of Sunny Day Real Estate. The album features a 21-piece orchestra backing Enigk as he performs striking, dramatic, chamber-pop compositions that demonstrate the full breadth of Enigk’s talents as a singer, musician, and songwriter. The album was produced by Greg Williamson, who also produced Sunny Day Real Estate’s 1998 comeback album, How it Feels to Be Something On.

                Return of the Frog Queen has been out of print since its original 1996 pressing. This reissue includes the original album, remastered in 2018, plus digital bonus tracks from Enigk’s 1996 live session on Seattle radio station The End.

                FORMAT INFORMATION

                Coloured LP Info: Initial pressing is purple vinyl.

                Coloured LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                [ + ]
                [ - ]
                Cover of Incineration Ceremony by Thomas Andrew Doyle.

                Thomas Andrew Doyle

                Incineration Ceremony

                Sub Pop

                  THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2018 EXCLUSIVE, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

                  [ + ]
                  [ - ]
                  Cover of Forth Wanderers by Forth Wanderers.

                  Forth Wanderers

                  Forth Wanderers

                  Sub Pop

                    Forth Wanderers employ a tin-can-telephone style of composition which they use even when living in the same area code. Since first collaborating in 2013 as Montclair, New Jersey high schoolers, guitarist and songwriter Ben Guterl and vocalist Ava Trilling have passed songs back and forth like pen pals. Guterl will devise an instrumental skeleton before sending it to vocalist Ava Trilling who pens the lyrics based off the melody. The duo then gather alongside guitarist Duke Greene, bassist Noah Schifrin, and drummer Zach Lorelli to expand upon the demo. It’s a patient and practiced writing system that has carried the quintet through two EPs (2013’s Mahogany and 2016’s Slop) and one LP (2014’s Tough Love). Forth Wanderers, the group’s sophomore record and Sub Pop debut, is the groups’ most comprehensive and assured statement yet.

                    Now living in Ohio and New York respectively, Guterl and Trilling have evolved their separate but collaborative writing process. “The only way I can really write is by myself in my room with a notebook, listening to the song over and over again,” Trilling says. “I’ve never sat down to write a story, I write the song as it unfolds.” Since her lyrics are often embedded with intimate truths from her life, the private writing experience often leads to intense self-reflection.

                    On Forth Wanderers these introspections include meditations on relationships, discovery, and finding oneself adrift. Despite the inherent heaviness of those themes, Forth Wanderers feels joyous, a rock record bursting with heart. Take “Not for Me,” a romping track about “the ambivalence of love.” Trilling’s confession of “I can’t feel the earth beneath my feet/Flowers bloom but not for me” resists feeling like a dreary, pitying complaint; instead, as her bandmates bolster her melancholy with interlocking harmonic intricacies, she soars with self-actualization. Opener “Nevermine,” is a surge of confidence inspired by an ex-lover who is still captivated by her image. “I don’t think I know who you are anymore/And I think I knew who I was before,” she jabs with relish. On “Ages Ago” Trilling paints the image of a constantly-shifting enigmatic lover. “I wasn’t sure who they were, they changed constantly (hence the metaphor describing the “grey coat” and cutting their hair just to “stay afloat”),” she says. “I wasn’t going to wait any longer to find out.”

                    Recorded over five days by friend and audio engineer Cameron Konner at his Philadelphia home studio, Forth Wanderers amplifies the heartfelt sentiments of their earlier works into massive anthems. Guterl and Greene’s guitars have never sounded sharper, Schifrin and Lorelli’s terse rhythm section is restless, and Trilling sounds more self-assured than ever. These are exuberant, profound songs driven by tightly bound melodies and a loving attention to detail.

                    STAFF COMMENTS

                    Barry says: Encompassing the spirit of languid college-rock, laid back and full of mellow guitar strums and cleverly penned rhythmic flourishes and those stunning harmonies make this an enthralling and rewarding whole. A superb debut.

                    FORMAT INFORMATION

                    Coloured LP Info: Orange coloured Loser edition.

                    Coloured LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                    [ + ]
                    [ - ]
                    Cover of The Other by King Tuff.

                    King Tuff

                    The Other

                    Sub Pop

                      When asked to describe the title track from his new record, Kyle Thomas—aka King Tuff—takes a deep breath. “It’s a song about hitting rock bottom,” he says. “I didn't even know what I wanted to do anymore, but I still had this urge, like there was this possibility of something else I could be doing… and then I just followed that possibility. To me, that’s what songwriting, and art in general, is about. You’re chasing something. ‘The Other’ is basically where songs come from. It’s the hidden world. It’s the invisible hand that guides you whenever you make something. It’s the thing I had to rediscover to bring me back to making music again in a way that felt true and good.” After years of non-stop touring, culminating in a particularly arduous stint in support of 2014’s Black Moon Spell, Thomas found himself back in Los Angeles experiencing the flipside of the ultimate rock and roll cliche. “I had literally been on tour for years,” recalls Thomas. “It was exhausting, physically and mentally. I’m essentially playing this character of King Tuff, this crazy party monster, and I don’t even drink or do drugs. It had become a weird persona, which people seemed to want from me, but it was no longer me. I just felt like it had gotten away from me.” The ten tracks that make up The Other represent a kind of psychic evolution for King Tuff. No less hooky than previous records, the new songs ditch the goofy rock-and-roll bacchanalia narratives of earlier records in favor of expansive arrangements, a diversity of instrumentation, and lyrics that straddle the fence between painful ruminations and a childlike, creative energy untarnished by cynicism. The soulful and cosmic new direction is apparent from the album’s first moments: introduced by the gentle ringing of a chime, acoustic guitar, and warm organ tones, “The Other” is a narrative of redemption born of creativity. As Thomas sings about being stuck in traffic, directionless, with no particular reason to be alive, he hears the call of “the other,” a kind of siren song that, instead of leading towards destruction, draws the narrator towards a creative rebirth. Elsewhere, tracks like “Thru the Cracks” and “Psycho Star” balance psychedelia with day-glo pop hooks. “The universe is probably an illusion, but isn’t it so beautifully bizarre?” he asks on “Psycho Star,” providing one of the record’s central tenets. At a time when everything in the world feels so deeply spoiled and the concept of making meaning out of the void seems both pointless and impossible, why not try? Thomas self-produced the record, as he did his 2007 debut, Was Dead, but on a far grander scale. He recorded it at The Pine Room, the home studio Thomas built to work on the record, and playing every instrument aside from drums and saxophone. He pulled Shawn Everett (War On Drugs, Alabama Shakes) in to assist with the mixing process. While it would be easy to think of The Other as a kind of reinvention for King Tuff, Thomas views the entire experience of the record as a kind of reset that’s not totally removed from what he’s done in the past. “I can’t help but sound like me,” he says. “It’s just that this time I let the songs lead me where they wanted to go, instead of trying to push them into a certain zone. King Tuff was always just supposed to be me. When I started doing this as a teenager, it was whatever I wanted it to be. King Tuff was never supposed to be just one thing. It was supposed to be everything.”

                      STAFF COMMENTS

                      Barry says: A bleak but unbelievably addictive journey into the mind of King Tuff, through the euphoric highs and crushing lows, acoustic balladry and stoned musings. Simmering, heartfelt and absolutely worth every minute. Think the honest acoustic innocence of Daniel Johnston with Jeff Tweedy's perfectly emotive production, and you're somewhere close.

                      FORMAT INFORMATION

                      Coloured LP Info: Loser edition coloured vinyl.

                      [ + ]
                      [ - ]
                      Cover of Vessel by Frankie Cosmos.

                      Frankie Cosmos

                      Vessel

                      Sub Pop

                      New York-native songwriter Greta Kline has shared a bounty of her innermost thoughts and experiences via the massive number of songs she has released since 2011. Like many of her peers, Kline’s prolific output was initially born from the ease of bedroom recording and self-releasing offered by digital technology and the internet. But, as she’s grown as a writer and performer, devising more complex albums and playing to larger audiences, Kline has begun to make her mark on modern independent music. Her newest record, Vessel, is the 52nd release from Kline and the third studio album by her indie pop outfit Frankie Cosmos. On it, Kline explores all of the changes that have come in her life as a result of the music she has shared with the world, as well as the parts of her life that have remained irrevocable.

                       Frankie Cosmos has taken several different shapes since their first full-band album, 2014’s Zentropy, erupted in New York’s DIY music scene. For Vessel the band’s lineup comprises multi-instrumentalists David Maine, Lauren Martin, Luke Pyenson, and Kline. The album’s 18 tracks employ a range of instrumentations and recording methods not found on the band’s prior albums, while maintaining the succinctly sincere nature of Kline’s songwriting. The album’s opening track, “Caramelize,” serves as the thematic overture for Vessel, alluding to topics like dependency, growth, and love, which reemerge throughout the record. Although many of the scenarios and personalities written about on Vessel are familiar territory for Frankie Cosmos, Kline brings a freshly nuanced point of view, and a desire to constantly question the latent meaning of her experiences. Kline’s dissonant lyrics pair with the band’s driving, jangly grooves to create striking moments of musical chemistry.
                      Vessel’s 34-minute run time is exactly double the length of Frankie Cosmos’ breakout record, Zentropy, and it is an enormous leap forward. Typically, albums by artists at a similar stage in their careers are written with the weight of knowing that someone is on the other end listening. Yet, despite being fully aware of their ever-growing audience, Kline and band have written Vessel with a clarity not muddled by the fear of anyone’s expectations. Vessel’s unique sensibility, esoteric narratives, and reveling energy lace it comfortably in Kline’s ongoing musical auto-biography.

                       Vessel was recorded in Binghamton, New York with Hunter Davidsohn, the producer and engineer who helped craft Zentropy and Next Thing, and at Gravesend Recordings in Brooklyn with Carlos Hernandez and Julian Fader. It features contributions from Alex Bailey (formerly of Warehouse, and now part of the live configuration of Frankie Cosmos), Vishal Narang (of Airhead DC), and singer/songwriter Anna McClellan, all of whom have played on bills with Frankie Cosmos and collaborated on-stage with the band. The final mixes were done by Davidsohn, and the album was mastered by Josh Bonati. 


                      STAFF COMMENTS

                      Barry says: Inventive chord progressions, hummable choruses and an innate understanding of melody, Kline is amongst the most bafflingly capable and intensely talented songwriters out there. Highly recommended.

                      FORMAT INFORMATION

                      Coloured LP Info: Loser Indies Only Vinyl Colour = Translucent Blue!

                      [ + ]
                      [ - ]
                      Cover of Wincing The Night Away by The Shins.

                      The Shins

                      Wincing The Night Away

                      Sub Pop

                      It could be said that The Shins’ third album, ‘Wincing The Night Away’, was one of the most heavily anticipated record of 2007. Post ‘Garden State’ notoriety, the band have reached beyond their indie-darling status to something approaching mainstream recognition.

                      FORMAT INFORMATION

                      Coloured LP Info: Indies exclusive silver vinyl.

                      [ + ]
                      [ - ]
                      Cover of Jericho Sirens by Hot Snakes.

                      Hot Snakes

                      Jericho Sirens

                      Sub Pop

                        After a 14-year hiatus from the studio, Hot Snakes have triumphantly kicked down the door back into our lives with their new album, Jericho Sirens. And amid the mania of non-stop political rhetoric, doom-and-gloom prognostications and omnipresent technology, it’s not a moment too soon.

                         Hot Snakes formed in 2000, after the release of their first record, Automatic Midnight. They were John Reis, Jason Kourkounis, Rick Froberg and Gar Wood. The band’s sound represented a return to the unrealized past of its members. This time, their musics would be direct, undraped and rock ‘n’ roll while still maintaining the dense and turbulent character of the members’ previous work. That year, Hot Snakes found their live sound and established themselves as primo, down-stroke warlords. They followed with a pair of great albums – 2002’s Suicide Invoice, with drummer Jason Kourkounis, and 2004’s Audit in Progress, with Mario Rubalcaba on drums – that broadened the band’s sound while pleasing many a fan. However, the band eventually spiraled downward into a mid-life punk crisis, and by 2005 they had stopped performing.

                        BUT! 2011 saw the return of Hot Snakes, with a string of festival shows. Both drummers performed with the band on the songs which they recorded, and the group discussed writing new material. After an additional 6 years of discussions, Hot Snakes returned to the studio in 2017 to commence recording, and the results are, finally, revealed in Jericho Sirens.

                        Musically, Jericho Sirens incorporates the most extreme fringes of the Hot Snakes sound (the vein-bulging, 78-second “Why Don’t It Sink In?” the pounding downstrokes of “Having Another?”), while staying true to longstanding influences such as the Wipers, Dead Moon and Suicide on propulsive tracks such as “Six Wave Hold-Down,” one of the first written for the project during a New Year’s Eve 2017 session in Philadelphia. Other moments like the choruses of “Jericho Sirens” and “Psychoactive” nod to classic-rock titans such as AC/DC and Ozzy Osbourne, with Froberg admitting, “I’m as much a hesher as I am anything else, that’s for sure.” For Reis, reactivating his creative partnership with Froberg was one of the most rewarding aspects of the process: “Our perspectives are similar. Our tastes are similar. We work really well together. And what more is there to say? Rick totally outdid himself on this record, vocally and lyrically.”

                        Jericho Sirens was recorded in short bursts over the past year in Philadelphia and San Diego, with assistance from longtime bassist Gar Wood. Kourkounis and Rubalcaba, both of whom drummed on prior Hot Snakes releases but never on the same one, contributed throughout.


                        FORMAT INFORMATION

                        Coloured LP Info: White vinyl edition.

                        Indies Exclusive LP Info: Limited "Loser Edition" on black vinyl.
                        (Yes it's confusing!)

                        [ + ]
                        [ - ]
                        Cover of Moaning by Moaning.

                        Moaning

                        Moaning

                        Sub Pop

                        Moaning is a band defined by its duality. The abrasive, post punk trio comprised of Sean Solomon, Pascal Stevenson, and Andrew MacKelvie, began nearly a decade after they met in L.A.’s DIY music scene. Their debut album comes born out of the member’s experiences with love and distress, creating a sound uniquely dark and sincere. Although the band is just breaking out of their infancy, Moaning’s sleek and cavernous tone emphasizes the turmoil of the era they were born into. One where the endless possibility for art and creation is met with the fear and doubt of an uncertain future.

                        The trio began regularly frequenting DIY institutions like The Smell and Pehrspace, eventually selling out dozens of their own shows at both venues with their first few bands. Solomon recalls, after a brief hiatus from playing together, Moaning’s conception came when he sent Stevenson and MacKelvie the first demo for “Don’t Go,” setting the tone for the impulsive songwriting that would follow.

                        The three fleshed out Solomon’s primitive recordings, adding in MacKelvie’s heavy syncopated drumming, and Stevenson’s melodic driving bass and synth parts, capturing each member’s personality in their sparse and fuzzed out tracks. Like many of their previous collaborative projects, Moaning forces pain up against pleasure, using the complexity of personal heartbreak to inform the band’s conflicted sound. The band eventually landed on the apt moniker Moaning, admiring the ambiguity the name held and hoping to reference both an intimate wail and an anguished scream

                        STAFF COMMENTS

                        Laura says: Sub Pop really are on a roll at the moment! LA band Moaning bring us some doomy, abrasive guitar tunes, with skittering drums and rumbling fluid bass lines that nod to early 80s post punk. Add to that dead-pan vocals and big hooks and they've got me sold!

                        FORMAT INFORMATION

                        Coloured LP Info: Limited Coloured LP

                        [ + ]
                        [ - ]
                        Cover of Loma by Loma.

                        Loma

                        Loma

                        Sub Pop

                        Loma's enigmatic debut feels beautifully adrift in time and space.  It's an album that takes you to a place you've never been, with a rare confidence in the strength of its own vision. Though it was recorded off a dirt road in rural Texas, there's no hint of country here: from the first airy notes of "Who Is Speaking?" to the decaying choir of "Black Willow," Loma create a hypnotic world of their own, where rustling leaves, fuzzed-out basses, panting dogs, prepared pianos, and a wilderness of percussion form a backdrop for Emily Cross's translucent voice.  

                        She's a steady, clear-eyed presence throughout, even among the heart-pounding pulses of "Relay Runner", the skittering drums of "Dark Oscillations" and the galloping release of "Joy"; in sparer songs like "Shadow Relief" and the haunting "I Don't Want Children," she's a fearless ally, swimming calmly with you against a powerful undertow.
                        Loma is inviting but also beautifully self-contained, like a dream that stays with you all day. There's something here for lovers of Nina Nastasia or Broadcast, but also Linda Thompson, or The Silver Apples—even early Pink Floyd. But most of all, this arresting and mysterious album marks the arrival of a band whose first steps already feel timeless.  Loma was recorded by the group at Dandy Sounds Studios in Dripping Springs, Texas and mastered by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound. 


                        STAFF COMMENTS

                        Laura says: Gorgeous songs that sway between slow, sparse atmospherics and more dynamic, motorik explorations, with Emily's vocals adding a sort of sweet melancholy to proceedings.

                        FORMAT INFORMATION

                        Indies Exclusive LP Info: Loser edition clear vinyl

                        [ + ]
                        [ - ]
                        Cover of Full Circle Nightmare by Kyle Craft.

                        Kyle Craft

                        Full Circle Nightmare

                        Sub Pop

                          Ever since his debut album Dolls of Highland was released on Sub Pop in 2016, Kyle Craft has been a critic's dream. Based in Portland, he serves up all the observational, storytelling talent with none of the attitude that so often comes with male singer-songwriter territory. “I've found my place,” he says. “I'm not one of those people that approaches music for anyone other than myself. My favorite part about music is when it's just me and a notebook.” Speaking of, his second forthcoming album Full Circle Nightmare is entirely autobiographical. Sonically, thematically, lyrically, it's a huge leap forward from his 2016 release.

                           The title Full Circle Nightmare refers to a moment where Craft saw his life for what it is and told himself to be satisfied. “But that's nightmarish to me,” he laughs. He described his debut record as: “like walking down this long hall of bizarre characters and surreal experiences, moving through the spider web of love and loss.” This album is when you get to the end of that hallway, turn around and see all the stuff you've been through, then walk through the door, close it and start a new chapter in an even crazier hallway. A straight-up rollicking rock'n'roll album, it traverses all the different nuances of the genre; from the bluegrass twang of 'Exile Rag,’ to the gothic style of 'Gold Calf Moan,' it's a timeless piece that could exist in any of the past five decades.
                          In terms of contemporary peers, Craft likes to stay in his own lane. He's an old soul who sticks to his tried and tested influences. Social media is not his game - it's just not interesting to him. He's not fussed about preaching his politics or discussing the status quo either. “I don't really like writing a time piece. I don't wanna get trapped in the 'Donald Trump era of Kyle Craft,' you know? I'm a very off-the-grid sort of person. As much as I am traveling across this giant place sometimes I just feel so outside of it. Also, I'm not necessarily a stand-up citizen so it's hard for me to say: here's Kyle Craft's America, ladies and gentlemen.”

                          The ironic thing is that Full Circle Nightmare sounds exactly like Kyle Craft's America. That is what he's built for us: the story of one man's trials and tribulations to find his passion and voice for art and creativity in this vast opportunistic country. Where did he find it? Among the historic riches of America's most honest sounds.


                          STAFF COMMENTS

                          Barry says: Sliding guitars, tinkling pianos and the percussive sound of saloon doors opening in a hurry, tastefully hinting at classic Americana anthems, but tempering them with a melodic and progressive sensibility rarely heard in classic country rock.

                          FORMAT INFORMATION

                          Indies Exclusive LP Info: Indies Exclusive Loser edition coloured vinyl.

                          Indies Exclusive LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                          [ + ]
                          [ - ]
                          Cover of LiE by Mudhoney.

                          Mudhoney

                          LiE

                          Sub Pop

                            Recorded live during their 2016 European tour at shows in Germany, Croatia, Sweden, Austria, Norway, and Slovenia LiE is the first unlimited-edition, non-bootleg live Mudhoney album to date. 2018 marks Mudhoney’s 30th anniversary, and this Jan. 19 release is a fitting start to a year that will also see the release of a new Mudhoney full-length. This album’s 11 tracks span the band’s storied career, and include their live cover of Roxy Music’s “Editions of You.” Available on LP and through digital service providers (N/A on CD).

                            [ + ]
                            [ - ]
                            Cover of Automatic Midnight by Hot Snakes.

                            Hot Snakes

                            Automatic Midnight

                            Sub Pop

                              Automatic Midnight, Hot Snakes’ first studio album, originally came out in 2000. Both the band and the album began as a side project for John Reis in June 1999, during time off from his main band Rocket From the Crypt. Reis wrote and recorded a batch of songs in San Diego with Delta 72 drummer Jason Kourkounis. To provide vocals for the tracks Reis called in Rick Froberg, whom he had played with in Pitchfork and Drive Like Jehu from 1986 to 1995. Most of the material from these sessions was used to create Automatic Midnight, which became the first release for Reis' newly formed Swami Records label. The band’s sound represented a return to the unrealized past of its members: direct, undraped and rock ‘n’ roll while still maintaining the dense and turbulent character of the members’ previous work. In April or May of 2000, Hot Snakes added bassist Gar Wood, found their live sound and established themselves as primo, down-stroke warlords. 




                              [ + ]
                              [ - ]
                              Cover of Suicide Invoice by Hot Snakes.

                              Hot Snakes

                              Suicide Invoice

                              Sub Pop

                                Suicide Invoice is Hot Snakes' second album, and was originally released in 2002. It was recorded at San Diego’s Drag Racist Studios in 2002 with engineer Ben Moore. The album exhibits Hot Snakes’ slightly larger palate in mood and dissonance. People enjoyed the shows and listening to the recorded music. But, strain from controversy and fame would reveal cracks in the seemingly impenetrable hide of Hot Snakes. A year after the album’s release, drummer Jason Kourkounis left to focus on other music.





                                [ + ]
                                [ - ]
                                Cover of Audit In Progress by Hot Snakes.

                                Hot Snakes

                                Audit In Progress

                                Sub Pop

                                  Audit in Progress is Hot Snakes' third studio album, originally released in 2004. The band recorded the album with new drummer Mario Rubalcaba at San Diego’s Big Fish Recording with engineer Ben Moore. An increased attraction to dissonance surfaced on Audit in Progress. The album was well-received by critics and fans and was named "best punk album" at the 2005 San Diego Music Awards. More shows were played and enjoyed and the band visited many cities all over the world. By 2005, the band spiraled into a mid-life punk crisis and stopped performing.

                                  [ + ]
                                  [ - ]
                                  Cover of U-Men by U-Men.

                                  U-Men

                                  U-Men

                                  Sub Pop

                                    “The U-Men are one of the best bands I’ve ever seen. They were hypnotic, frenetic, powerful and compelling. It was impossible to resist getting sucked into their weird, darkly absurd world. They effortlessly blended The Sonics, Link Wray, Pere Ubu, and Captain Beefheart. Their shows were loose-limbed, drunken dance parties and no two shows were alike. The U-Men were avant-garage explorers and, most importantly, they fucking rocked. I was lucky enough to live in their hometown and I saw them every chance I could.

                                    “From 1983 to 1987, the U-Men were the undisputed kings of the Seattle Underground. No one else came close. They ruled a bleak backwater landscape populated by maybe 200 people. They were the only band that could unify the disparate sub-subcultures and get all 200 of those people to fill a room. Anglophilic, dress-dark Goths; neo-psych MDA acolytes; skate punks who shit in bathtubs at parties; Mod vigilantes who tormented the homeless with pellet guns; college kids who thought college kids were lame; Industrial Artistes; some random guy with a moustache; and eccentrics who insisted that they couldn’t be pigeonholed: all coalesced around the U-Men.

                                    “Sub Pop co-founder, Bruce Pavitt released the first record by the U-Men, a 4-song 12” EP on Bombshelter Records. By the time they had recorded songs for another record, Bruce was too broke to release it on his proto-Sub Pop label, so he hooked them up with Gerard Cosloy at Homestead Records. This was a big deal. Homestead had a heavy rep at the time with recent releases by Foetus, Nick Cave, Sonic Youth, and Big Black. I was sure that the release of their second 12”, Stop Spinning, would propel the U-Men into the ranks of those Homestead acts and the worldwide underground would get hip to Seattle’s finest. Following the departure of bassist Jim Tillman (replaced by Tom Hazelmyer of Amphetamine Reptile Records, and then Tony Ransome), the band recorded two fantastic singles, and recorded their one full-length album, ‘Step On A Bug’, for Black Label, which was run out of Fallout Records. They became increasingly disenchanted with the direction the Seattle underground was heading and called it quits in 1989.

                                    “The U-Men had nothing to do with Grunge. They were their own unique thing. I loved them and I still miss them. I remember thinking at the time that most of their recordings were a little soft and didn’t capture the power of the band live. Now, thirty years later, their records sound great to me and we are lucky that they exist. I’m stoked that Sub Pop complied these long out-of-print records and scrounged up some unreleased songs so that everyone has a chance to take a trip back to old weird Seattle.” - Mark Arm, Seattle, August 2017

                                    FORMAT INFORMATION

                                    2xCD Info: This double CD collects the entire studio-recorded output of the U-Men, remastered, plus five unreleased songs, with 16 pages of photos, liner notes and interviews with the band. Executive produced by Jack Endino.

                                    3xLP Box Set Info: This 3xLP box set collects the entire studio-recorded output of the U-Men, remastered, plus five unreleased songs, with 16 pages of photos, liner notes and interviews with the band. Executive produced by Jack Endino.

                                    [ + ]
                                    [ - ]
                                    Cover of Up In It by Afghan Whigs.

                                    Afghan Whigs

                                    Up In It

                                    Sub Pop

                                      'Though the Afghan Whigs were still about a year away from hitting the peak of their powers in the studio, their second album, 1990's "Up in It", was a major improvement over their self-released debut, and it was their first recording to suggest that they would mature into one of the best American rock bands of the 1990s. As a songwriter, Greg Dulli was starting to really get in touch with his self-loathing, and "Retarded," "White Trash Party," and "I Know Your Little Secret" offer a powerful and sometimes disturbing look into one man's obsessions. Just as importantly, the band had finally learned to make the most of their musical muscle; Greg Dulli's nicotine-laced growl merged 'heavy-alternative' bellow with a soul man's sense of phrasing, while the guitars of Dulli and Rick McCollum and the rhythm section of John Curley and Steve Earle managed to combine bruising power with a remarkable sense of drama and dynamics.'

                                      [ + ]
                                      [ - ]
                                      Cover of Congregation - Vinyl Reissue by The Afghan Whigs.

                                      The Afghan Whigs

                                      Congregation - Vinyl Reissue

                                      Sub Pop

                                        1992’s ‘Congregation’, The Afghan Whigs’ third album, finds the Whigs’ soul and psychedelic influences shining through and helped define the band’s sound for years to come. ‘Congregation’ has been out of print on vinyl since its original pressing sold out many years ago - now re-cut onto double vinyl.

                                        FORMAT INFORMATION

                                        2xColoured LP Info: Loser Edition coloured vinyl format only available to independent retailers. 180g vinyl with a digital download card.

                                        [ + ]
                                        [ - ]
                                        Cover of Up In It - Vinyl Reissue by The Afghan Whigs.

                                        The Afghan Whigs

                                        Up In It - Vinyl Reissue

                                        Sub Pop

                                          ‘Up In It’ is The Afghan Whigs’ second full length and their Sub Pop debut. The 1990 album, recorded by legendary producer Jack Endino, was critically acclaimed and garnered strong college radio airplay. It has been out of print on vinyl for over 25 years.

                                          FORMAT INFORMATION

                                          Coloured LP Info: Loser Edition coloured vinyl format only available to independent retailers. 180g vinyl with a digital download card.

                                          [ + ]
                                          [ - ]
                                          Cover of Uptown Avondale - Vinyl Reissue by The Afghan Whigs.

                                          The Afghan Whigs

                                          Uptown Avondale - Vinyl Reissue

                                          Sub Pop

                                            ‘Uptown Avondale’, released shortly after ‘Congregation’, features The Afghan Whigs paying tribute to their soul music influences by performing covers of Stax and Motown classics. This LP pressing is the first time ‘Uptown Avondale’ has been fully released on vinyl (its only previous vinyl pressing was a short European run in 1992).

                                            FORMAT INFORMATION

                                            Coloured LP Info: Loser Edition coloured vinyl format only available to independent retailers. 180g vinyl with a digital download card.

                                            [ + ]
                                            [ - ]
                                            Cover of Losing by Bully.

                                            Bully

                                            Losing

                                            Sub Pop

                                            In rock - as in life - change is unavoidable, often painful, but ultimately necessary, and Alicia Bognanno and her band Bully have dealt with a lot of it since their debut record Feels Like hit in 2015. Now with a new label and another couple years worth of life experience, the 12 new songs on Losing feel like perfect anthems for a generation still learning to harness the power of resistance.

                                            With a vocal style that is as pretty as it is powerful, and emotionally resonant lyrics, Alicia channels the loss of innocence and reveals a raw honesty in songs that are distinctly hers. I love Bully the way I love Sebadoh, Dinosaur Jr and the Breeders. Their sound takes me back to the stripped down and thoughtfully engineered songs that haunt me long after they’re gone and never get old. Another good reason to be with Sub Pop, who have always been associated with music that is built to last. I feel like all my best work has been born of heartbreak and upheaval; maybe most musicians feel that way.

                                            “The title of the record –Losing – kind of says it all,” Alicia says. “After being on the road so long and coming back to Nashville we all had a lot of changes going on in our personal lives that we were trying to deal with / adjust to and that was really the motivation for this one.” “Feel the Same” is about being stuck in the claustrophobia of a manic state of mind. It’s Alicia’s favorite song to scream.

                                            “Seeing It,” she says, is about the unique anxiety and vigilance about personal safety that comes with being a woman: “Such a blurring place to be / stuck in your own body.” Lately Alicia has been lending her voice as an advocate for gun control, women's rights and speaking out in support of animal rights. In some ways my generation were in a bubble in the 90s; I never gave any thought to what Bill Clinton was up to, for instance – but in 2017, Losing sounds like a personal and necessary call to arms to me; we need rock n roll now more than ever.

                                            FORMAT INFORMATION

                                            Coloured LP Info: Limited edition indies only 'Loser' vinyl edition.

                                            [ + ]
                                            [ - ]
                                            Cover of Cry Cry Cry by Wolf Parade.

                                            Wolf Parade

                                            Cry Cry Cry

                                            Sub Pop

                                            The soaring choruses, rousing anthems, sprawling guitars and chaotic keys that make up Wolf Parade are on proud display over the course of Cry Cry Cry, the band’s thunderous first album in seven years.

                                            That unique combination of sounds and influences, spearheaded by electric co-frontmen Spencer Krug and Dan Boeckner—a complex yet relatable, energetic brew of glam, prog, synth-rock, and satisfying discomfort—helped define 2000s indie rock with three critically celebrated albums, and propelled a growing Wolf Parade fandom even after the band went on a then-indefinite hiatus in 2010.

                                            The album is their first to be produced by Pacific Northwest legend John Goodmanson (Bikini Kill, Sleater-Kinney, Unwound) at Robert Lang Studios outside of Seattle, and is accompanied by a renewed focus and the creativity of a band that took their time getting exactly where they needed to be. It’s also a homecoming to Sub Pop, which released all three of the band’s previous albums.

                                            “The band itself is almost a fifth member of the band, something more or at least different than the sum of its parts,” says Krug. “We don't know who or what is responsible for our sound, it's just something that naturally and consistently comes from this particular combo of musicians.”

                                            “Once we got back together, I was playing guitar, writing and singing in a way that I only do while I'm in Wolf Parade,” says Dan Boeckner, who shares primary lyrical and singing duties with Spencer. “It’s just something that I can't access without the other three people in the room.”

                                            In the time apart, the band scattered geographically and focused on family and other work--Spencer on his solo project Moonface, Dan on his bands Handsome Furs, Operators, and Divine Fits (with Spoon’s Britt Daniel), and Dante De Caro on records with Carey Mercer’s Frog Eyes and Blackout Beach. And that time allowed for an even stronger, tighter band to emerge.

                                            Eventually, Spencer, Dante, and Arlen found themselves all back living on remote Vancouver Island, accompanied by a population density less than that of Alaska, and the tranquility that leads to creative emanations like a government-sponsored bathtub race. With Dan on the same coast in Northern California, discussions began about picking things up where they left off.

                                            “All of our albums are always a reaction to our last one,” says Arlen. “Expo 86 (2010) was about as sparse as we get, which is usually still pretty dense, and this time we wanted to make the palette a little larger.” Adds Dante, “Expo was a real rock record. We just sort of banged it out, which was kind of the point.” Cry Cry Cry, on the other hand, is more deliberate in its arrangements and embrace of the studio process. “If a part was going on for too long it would get lopped, you know?” says Dan. “That being said, there are two very long songs on the record and I don't think it would be a Wolf Parade record if it didn't have some kind of prog epic.”

                                            “I think we're actually a better band than we were when we stopped playing music together,” says Arlen. “A little bit more life experience for everybody, and people having made a bunch of records on their own.”

                                            The result of this new consciousness is songs like “Valley Boy,” a Bowie-inflected anthem for which Spencer wrote lyrics after Leonard Cohen died the day before the 2016 election (“The radio’s been playing all your songs, talking about the way you slipped away up the stairs, did you know that it was all gonna go wrong?”). “You’re Dreaming,” also influenced by the election and the spinning shock that followed, is driving, urgent power pop that draws from artists like Tom Petty and what Dan calls one of his “default languages” for writing music. The swirly, synth-heavy crescendo of “Artificial Life” takes on the struggle of artists and at-risk communities (“If the flood should ever come, we’ll be last in the lifeboat”).

                                            The album carries a sense of uprising that is not unrelated to Wolf Parade’s renewed determination to drive the band forward in uncertain times. Welcome to Cry Cry Cry.

                                            All right
                                            Let’s fight
                                            Let’s rage against the night

                                            - “Lazarus Online” (Spencer Krug)

                                            STAFF COMMENTS

                                            Barry says: Poppy, snarling odes to love and life, filtered through Wolf Parade's unmistakable style. In parts minimalistic before launching into roaring rock anthems. Undoubtedly brilliant, and finally out!

                                            FORMAT INFORMATION

                                            Coloured LP Info: White vinyl Loser edition.

                                            [ + ]
                                            [ - ]
                                            Cover of Strange Peace by Metz.

                                            Metz

                                            Strange Peace

                                            Sub Pop

                                             Since releasing their self-titled debut record in 2012, which The New Yorker called, “One of the year’s best albums…a punishing, noisy, exhilarating thing,” the Toronto-based 3-piece METZ have garnered international acclaim as one of the most electrifying and forceful live acts, touring widely and extensively, playing hundreds of shows each year around the world.

                                            Now, Alex Edkins (guitar, vocals), along with Hayden Menzies (drums), and Chris Slorach (bass) unleash their highly-anticipated third full-length album, Strange Peace, an emphatic but artful hammer swing to the status quo.

                                            "The best punk isn't an assault as much as it's a challenge — to what's normal, to what's comfortable, or simply to what's expected. Teetering on the edge of perpetual implosion,” NPR wrote in their glowing review of METZ’s 2015 second album, II.

                                            Strange Peace was recorded in Chicago, live off the floor to tape with Steve Albini. The result is a distinct artistic maturation into new and alarming territory, frantically pushing past where the band has gone before, while capturing the notorious intensity of their live show. The trio continued to assemble the album (including home recordings, additional instrumentation) in their hometown, adding the finishing touches with longtime collaborator, engineer and mixer, Graham Walsh.  

                                            Strange Peace isn’t merely a collection of eleven uninhibited and urgent songs. It’s also a kind of sonic venting, a truculent social commentary that bludgeons and provokes, excites and unsettles. With all the pleasurable tension and anxiety of a fever dream, Strange Peace is equal parts challenging and accessible. It is this implausible balancing act, moving from one end of the musical spectrum to the other, that only a band of METZ’s power and capacity can maintain: discordant and melodic, powerful and controlled, meticulous and instinctive, subtle and complex, precise and reckless, wholehearted and merciless, brutal and optimistic, terrifying and fun.

                                            “Their whiplash of distortion is made with precision, a contained chaos. But you would never talk about them like that. Because METZ are not something you study or analyze,” wrote Liisa Ladouceur in Exclaim! “They are something you feel: a transfer of energy, pure and simple.” In other words: to feel something, fiercely and intensely, but together, not alone.

                                            STAFF COMMENTS

                                            Barry says: Rawkous, punky snarling rock, infused with the energy of political upheaval, and produced with a fine-tuned and perfect balance between melodicism and raw lo-fi energy. A fist-pumper to the end. Turn it up and get going!

                                            FORMAT INFORMATION

                                            Coloured LP Info: The Loser Edition is indies only and is mint coloured vinyl.

                                            Coloured LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                            [ + ]
                                            [ - ]
                                            Cover of Light Information by Chad VanGaalen.

                                            Chad VanGaalen

                                            Light Information

                                            Sub Pop

                                              Nobody cared about their old heads, because the new ones work just fine now, don't they?.... they have the same size mouth and eyes.

                                              The song “Old Heads” is a sci-fi space anthem to technology that constantly replaces itself, proving both necessary and unnecessary at the same time. It’s also a jangly pop gem, a trip through the fantastical that is ultimately warm and relatable. 

                                              For an album that’s about “not feeling comfortable with really anything,” as VanGaalen says, Light Information is nonetheless a vivid, welcoming journey through future worlds and relentless memories. The rich soundscapes and sometimes jarring imagery could only come from the mind of a creative polymath--an accomplished visual artist, animator, director, and producer, VanGaalen has scored television shows, designed puppet characters for Adult Swim, directed videos for Shabazz Palaces, Strand of Oaks, METZ, Dan Deacon, and The Head and the Heart, and produced records for Women, Alvvays, and others.

                                              While alienation has always been a theme of VanGaalen’s music, Light Information draws on a new kind of wisdom--and anxiety--gained as he watches his kids growing up. “Being a parent has given me a sort of alternate perspective, worrying about exposure to a new type of consciousness that's happening through the internet,” he says. Throughout the dark-wave reverb of Light Information are stories of paranoia, disembodiment, and isolation--but there’s also playfulness, empathy, and intimacy.

                                              The product of six years’ work, going back even before 2014’s Shrink Dust, Light Information emerged from the experimental instruments that fill VanGaalen’s Calgary garage studio. As always, VanGaalen wrote, played, and produced all of the music on Light Information (save Ryan Bourne’s bass part on “Mystery Elementals” and vocals on “Static Shape” from his young daughters Ezzy and Pip), and designed the cover art.

                                              [ + ]
                                              [ - ]
                                              Cover of Beast Epic by Iron & Wine.

                                              Iron & Wine

                                              Beast Epic

                                              Sub Pop

                                              "I must confess that I’ve always shied away from album introductions citing the usual "dancing to architecture" cop out. Speaking to their own work is uncomfortable for many artists, but I’ve made a new album called Beast Epic which is important to me and I wanted to take a moment to talk about why. I’ve been releasing music for about fifteen years now and I feel very blessed to have put out five other full lengths, many EPs and singles, a few collaborations with people much more talented than myself, and made contributions to numerous movie scores and soundtracks. This is my sixth collection of new Iron & Wine material and I’m happy to say that it’s my fourth for Sub Pop Records.

                                              It’s a warm and serendipitous time to be reuniting with my Seattle friends because I feel there’s a certain kinship between this new collection of songs and my earliest material, which Sub Pop was kind enough to release. In hindsight, both The Creek Drank the Cradle (2002) and Our Endless Numbered Days (2004) epitomize a reflective and confessional songwriting style (although done with my own ferocious commitment to understatement, of course.) I have been and always will be fascinated by the way time asserts itself on our bodies and our hearts. The ferris wheel keeps spinning and we’re constantly approaching, leaving or returning to something totally unexpected or startlingly familiar. The rite of passage is an image I've returned to often because I feel we’re all constantly in some stage of transition. Beast Epic is saturated with this idea but in a different way simply because each time I return to the theme I’ve collected new experiences to draw from. Where the older songs painted a picture of youth moving wide-eyed into adulthood’s violent pleasures and disappointments, this collection speaks to the beauty and pain of growing up after you’ve already grown up. For me, that experience has been more generous in its gifts and darker in its tragedies.

                                              The sound of Beast Epic harks back to previous work, in a way, as well. By employing the old discipline of recording everything live and doing minimal overdubbing, I feel like it wears both its achievements and its imperfections on its sleeve. Over the years, I’ve enjoyed experimenting with different genres, sonics and songwriting styles and all that traveled distance is evident in the feel and the arrangements here, but the muscles seemed to have relaxed and been allowed to effortlessly do what they do best.

                                              I’ve been fortunate to get to play with some very talented musicians over the years who are both uniquely intuitive and also expressive in exciting ways. This group was no different. We spent about two weeks recording and mixing but mostly laughing at The Loft in Chicago.

                                              To be honest, I’ve named this record BEAST EPIC mostly because it sounds really fucking cool! However, with that said and perhaps to be completely honest, “a story where animals talk and act like people” sounds like the perfect description for the life of any of us. If not that, then it’s at least perfect for any group of songs I’ve ever tried to make. I hope you enjoy it." - Iron & Wine

                                              [ + ]
                                              [ - ]
                                              Cover of Talk Tight by Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever.

                                              Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever

                                              Talk Tight

                                              Sub Pop

                                              Talk Tight is Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever’s first release, and it was originally released on CD in March of 2016 on Ivy League Records in the band’s home country of Australia. Talk Tight – a mini-album, or extended EP, if you will – garnered the band critical acclaim in their home country and in the US, where Pitchfork gave the record an 8.0 and described it like so:
                                              Seven rip-roaring tracks that move by their own logic, any one of which could be a single and all of which leave you wanting more in the best way possible... Listening to these seven tunes, you can easily trace a national lineage: the relentlessness of Radio Birdman, the pop literacy of the Go-Betweens, the rambunctious energy of the Easybeats, and the belief—shared with Courtney Barnett—that guitars are not just crucial to the message but might very well be the message themselves.

                                              This release is the first time Talk Tight has been available worldwide, and the first time it is available on vinyl anywhere. The band released their Sub Pop debut, The French Press EP, in March of 2017, and they are currently working on their first full-length album.

                                              FORMAT INFORMATION

                                              Coloured LP Info: Indies exclusive, Loser Edition mint coloured vinyl.

                                              Coloured LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                              LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                              [ + ]
                                              [ - ]
                                              Cover of I'll Take Care Of You by Mark Lanegan.

                                              Mark Lanegan

                                              I'll Take Care Of You

                                              Sub Pop

                                                ‘I’ll Take Care Of You’ is the fourth solo album by former Screaming Trees vocalist Mark Lanegan. It features Lanegan’s interpretation of songs from a wide variety of songwriters, including Tim Rose, Tim Hardin, Booker T. Jones and Buck Owens. ‘I’ll Take Care Of You’ also includes the traditional song ‘Little Sadie’.

                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Quazarz Vs The Jealous Machines by Shabazz Palaces.

                                                Shabazz Palaces

                                                Quazarz Vs The Jealous Machines

                                                Sub Pop

                                                "Quazarz Vs The Jealous Machines" is one of two new albums by interstellar hip hop enigma Shabazz Palaces - aka Ishmael Butler (who, in another galaxy, performs in Digable Planets) - and Tendai Maraire. "Quazarz Vs The Jealous Machines" and its simultaneously released companion "Quazarz: Born On A Gangster Star" were both produced by Knife Knights (i.b e.b.) and mixed by Blood. We've loved Shabazz Palaces here at Piccadilly ever since Michael Riley would burst into the shop at the start of a weekend shift exclaiming - "WAT A SATADEE MAARNIN!!" - instructing us of the delights of this cosmic-rap poster boy. Occupying the same interstellar recesses as Dean Blunt / Hype Williams, Earl Sweatshirt and, (tenuously) to perhaps Ratking; this is the true new school folks, abandoning hip-hop and rap's tried traditions, ditching all that's come before it for something completely new and invigorating, more in common with Burnt Friedman and Mark Ernestus than the ghosts of rap music's past. Still gritty and streetwise, but unfathomably futuristic and wrapped in celestial space dust, the album works as a whole journey, beautifully sequenced and elegantly constructed. Essential music for the right now. Recommended.

                                                STAFF COMMENTS

                                                Barry says: Crisp futuristic hip-hop beats, clicking trap snares and stellar production make this duo of outings a forward-facing and revolutionary take on the ol' hip-hop game. Part 'hop, part 'tron and fully embracing the future, this is but one half of todays hip-hop revolution.

                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                Coloured LP Info: Loser Edition LP available to independent retailers
                                                pressed on silver vinyl.

                                                Coloured LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Quazarz: Born On A Gangster Star by Shabazz Palaces.

                                                Shabazz Palaces

                                                Quazarz: Born On A Gangster Star

                                                Sub Pop

                                                Twinned with "Quazarz Vs The Jealous Machines", this companion album from Shabaz Palaces also shines and growns under the crushing weight of the future. Imbued with the energy and ideas from all the creative embers floating in the atmosphere like fireflies, Shabazz Palaces recorded this entire album over the course of two weeks with Blood in Seattle. New gear and new equipment disintegrated comfort zones into dust and a new path appeared in the rubble - aurally evident thoughout this painfully visionary album. "Born on a Gangster Star"  continues the intrepid and unfathomable quest through cosmic-rap, a genre that SP is practically inventing. The beats wobble and ricocheting as if unaffected by gravity, while Palaces' vocals are hushed, ushered and delivered with a biting effeciently which has had me previously drawing comparisons to Dean Blunt / Hype Williams and Earl Sweatshirt. Appearing here, in body or in spirit, are Julian Casablancas, Thundercat, Darrius Willrich, Gamble and Huff, Loud Eyes Lou, Thaddillac, Ahmir, Jon Kirby, Sunny Levine, and Blood. This, my friends, is the sound of the near future. 

                                                STAFF COMMENTS

                                                Barry says: Yet another outing from Shabazz & Co. on the same week! Expect more of the same forward-facing electronic futurism, crisp percussives and swooning cosmic synthplay, all topped with some truly mindblowing lyrical tomfoolery. Brilliant stuff.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Bob´s Burgers Music Album by Bob's Burgers.

                                                Bob's Burgers

                                                Bob´s Burgers Music Album

                                                Sub Pop

                                                ‘Bob’s Burgers’ premiered on the Fox Network January 2011 and quickly became one of the most watched series on television. After enjoying the highest-rated new season premiere of the 2010-11 season, ‘Bob’s Burgers’ quickly settled into an average viewership of over 4 million per episode. The show has won an Emmy award and been nominated five times, including a current nomination for Outstanding Animated Program. It has inspired many popular spinoff items, including a recent, best-selling cookbook. With the seventh season winning top ratings once again last fall, ‘Bob’s Burgers’ cultural influence only grows.

                                                Now comes ‘The Bob’s Burgers Music Album’, featuring 107 songs from the first 107 episodes, plus five special cover versions of songs from the show. Originally broadcast within the episodes - and often in abbreviated form - these songs appear here in their freestanding glory for the first time. ‘The Bob’s Burgers Music Album’ is sure to be a cherished souvenir for millions of fans and a top gift item.

                                                The album features the main cast members - Bob (H. Jon Benjamin) and Linda (John Roberts) and their children Tina (Dan Mintz), Gene (Eugene Mirman) and Louise (Kristen Schaal) - singing original songs that build on the show’s unique sense of humour.

                                                Also featured are many of the show’s recurring and special guests, from comedians like Aziz Ansari, Sarah Silverman, Kevin Kline, Bill Hader, Zack Galifianakis and Fred Armisen, to musical guests Cyndi Lauper and Carly Simon.

                                                Includes five never-aired ‘Bob’s Buskers’ cover versions of songs from the show performed by St. Vincent, The National, Låpsley and Stephin Merritt of Magnetic Fields.

                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                LP Box Set Info: Deluxe 3 LP + 7” box set includes a hardbound lyric / art book, a sheet-music book, three original posters, a six-piece sticker pack and a patch.

                                                FREE SHIPPING This item has FREE UK shipping!

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of In Spades by Afghan Whigs.

                                                Afghan Whigs

                                                In Spades

                                                Sub Pop

                                                “Divination/Cleromancy/Comes the card that I refused to see” – The Afghan Whigs, “Oriole”  

                                                “Cleromancy” isn’t a word one normally finds in rock lyrics. Then again, In Spades – the new album by The Afghan Whigs, from which the new song “Oriole” hails – is defined only by its own mystical inner logic. The term means to divine, in a supernatural manner, a prediction of destiny from the random casting of lots: the throwing of dice, picking a card from a deck. From its evocative cover art to the troubled spirits haunting its halls, In Spades casts a spell that challenges the listener to unpack its dark metaphors and spectral imagery.  

                                                On the one hand, In Spades is as quintessentially Afghan Whigs as anything the group has ever done – fulfilling its original mandate to explore the missing link between howling Midwestern punk like Die Kreuzen and Hüsker Dü, The Temptations’ psychedelic soul symphonies, and the expansive hard-rock tapestries of Led Zeppelin and Lynyrd Skynyrd. At the same time, this new record continues to push beyond anything in the Whigs’ previous repertoire – another trademark, along with the explosive group dynamic captured on the recording.  

                                                Indeed, the chemistry of the lineup – Dulli, guitarists Dave Rosser and Jon Skibic, drummer Patrick Keeler, multi-instrumentalist Rick Nelson, and Whigs co-founder/bassist John Curley – set the tone for In Spades’ creation. When it came to follow up the band’s triumphant return to recording – Do To the Beast (Sub Pop 2014), which was the band’s first ever Top 40 album, – the die was cast. “This is the first time since Black Love [the Whigs’ 1996 noir masterpiece] that we’ve done a full-blown band album,” Dulli says.  

                                                The joys, sorrows, and upheavals of innocence and experience echo throughout In Spades: it powerfully documents where The Afghan Whigs have been, and where they might go next. For Dulli and Curley, it’s a journey that, since their origins as one of the first Sub Pop acts to be signed from outside the label’s Pacific Northwest base, has spanned decades. Dulli notes they were barely in their twenties when they first started the band, and yet here they are, fulfilling dreams long held and frequently realized. “Having a break from the Whigs helped me remember what made it so rewarding,” Curley says. “Over the course of a lifetime, there are constants, and there’s also change. You see who’s dropped off the vine – who’s going in reverse, and who’s still by your side. It’s interesting to see where life takes you, and where it doesn’t. That’s the journey and it hasn’t stopped.”

                                                STAFF COMMENTS

                                                Barry says: Encompassing aspects of stoner, psych and indie-rock, Afghan Whigs have always veered towards the art-rock end of the spectrum, but this is their most direct and cohesive offering yet. Heavy but highly melodic, full of anthemic highs and measured restraint. A brilliantly formed tornado of rock and/or roll.

                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                Coloured LP Info: Indies exclusive, Loser Edition white vinyl.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of The French Press by Rolling Blackouts C.F..

                                                Rolling Blackouts C.F.

                                                The French Press

                                                Sub Pop

                                                In early 2016, the release of ‘Talk Tight’ put Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever on the map with glowing reviews from SPIN, Stereogum and Pitchfork, praising them as stand outs even among the fertile landscape of Melbourne music. Chock full of snappy riffs, spritely drumming and quick-witted wordplay, ‘Talk Tight’ was praised by Pitchfork “for the precision of their melodies, the streamlined sophistication of their arrangements, and the undercurrent of melancholy that motivates every note.”

                                                The band was born from late night jam sessions in singer / guitarist Fran Keaney’s bedroom and honed in the thrumming confines of Melbourne’s live music venues. Sharing tastes and songwriting duties, cousins Joe White and Fran Keaney, brothers Tom and Joe Russo and drummer Marcel Tussie started out with softer, melody-focused songs. The more shows they played, the more those driving rhythms that now trademark their songs emerged. Since then, Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever rode that wave from strength to strength. Touring around the country on headline bills and festival slots all the way to BIGSOUND, the entrenched themselves with their thrilling live shows while prepping their next release.

                                                ‘The French Press’ levels up on everything that made ‘Talk Tight’ such an immediate draw. Multi-tracked melodies which curl around one another, charging drums and addictive basslines converge to give each track its driving momentum. Honed through their live shows, this relentless energy carries the record through new chapters in the band’s Australian storybook. Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever’s songs have always had all the page-turning qualities of a good yarn and ‘The French Press’ is no different. Somewhere between impressionists and fabulists, lyricists Fran Keaney, Tom Russo and Joe White often start with something rooted in real life - the melancholy of travel on ‘French Press’, having a hopeless crush on ‘Julie’s Place’ - before building them into clever, quick vignettes. The result is lines blurred between fiction and reality - vibrant stories which get closer at a particular truth than either could alone.

                                                Blending critical insight and literate love songs, ‘The French Press’ cements Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever as one of Australia’s smartest working bands.

                                                STAFF COMMENTS

                                                Laura says: Rolling Blackouts C.F. hail from Melbourne, Australia and this mini album is their first UK release. I loved this album from pretty much the first listen, which isn't something that happens very often. It usually takes me a few listens to make up my mind on a record, but there was just something about this one that grabbed me from the off. Now, I appreciate that The Go-Betweens may be a lazy reference point when it comes to Australian bands, but intentionally or not, their languid strummed acoustics and gorgeous melodies often seem to filter through. But there's a lot more to their sound than that, there are other influences at play here too: as well as the jangling guitars and bright melodic vocals there's a kinda of sun-kissed surf-pop thing going on (think a more upbeat Real Estate), as well as the occasional burst of taut punk infused energy. Rather than following a traditional verse-chorus-verse pattern, the songs kind of meander along, changing rhythm and tempo along the way, which suits their story-telling style of songwriting.

                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                Coloured LP Info: Clear vinyl Loser Edition available to independent retailers.

                                                Coloured LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Watercolor by Porter Ray.

                                                Porter Ray

                                                Watercolor

                                                Sub Pop

                                                Seattle MC Porter Ray comes correct on his Sub Pop debut with a mesemeric and multi-layered set of spectral, sub-driven hip hop. "Watercolor" is a snapshot of Porter’s life and the lives of his friends growing up in Seattle. The album captures a specific time period, before things began rapidly changing around their neighborhoods, and it delves into the experiences that shaped Porter, the situations he and his friends survived, and how they overcame the adversity they faced. Porter’s influences – including hip-hop classics like Nas’s Illmatic, Common’s Be, and Mos Def & Talib Kweli’s ...Are Black Star – shine through in both the beats and production, and his deeply personal lyrics. Porter was born and raised in and around Seattle’s Central District/Capitol Hill/Columbia City/Beacon Hill neighborhoods. He wrote short stories and poetry before he began writing rhymes in middle school and early high school, and started recording music towards the end of high school. "Watercolor" follows a string of acclaimed, self-released mixtapes -- Electric Rain, Nightfall, Fundamentals, BLK GLD, WHT GLD, RSE GLD -- all of which have been available as free downloads via Bandcamp. Featuring world beating singles “Sacred Geometry”, “Lightro [Looking for the Light]”, “Arithmetic” and "Bulletproof Windows", the album also includes performances from Jus Moni, Debra Sullivan, and Chimurenga Renaissance. "Watercolor" was recorded in various studios in Seattle, mostly mixed by Erik Blood (Shabazz Palaces, THEESatisfaction, Tacocat), with a few songs co-mixed by Vitamin D (Macklemore, Abstract Rude, Black Sheep). Watercolor was produced by B Roc, with additional songs produced by DJ El Grande, KMTK, and Tele Fresco.

                                                STAFF COMMENTS

                                                Patrick says: Porter Ray makes his major league debut with a unique set of contemporary street poetry, marrying personal and emotive lyrics over spaced out, lush instrumentals which fall between the trippier end of the golden age and the most up to date sub sounds.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Ultramega OK by Soundgarden.

                                                Soundgarden

                                                Ultramega OK

                                                Sub Pop

                                                This remixed and expanded reissue of Soundgarden’s Ultramega OK is a long-planned “correction” of the legendary band’s Grammy®-nominated debut full-length. The album was originally recorded and released in 1988 on SST Records. While the band enjoyed working with the original producer, Drew Canulette, they soon realized they weren’t quite happy with the final mix. Thus, shortly after the album’s release, the band decided to remix the album for subsequent pressings. However, success intervened: the band rapidly scored a deal with A&M and began work on their major-label debut, Louder Than Love, and the Ultramega OK remix project fell by the wayside as Soundgarden climbed their way to (ultra)mega-stardom.

                                                In 2016, after worldwide success, a breakup, a reunion, and many albums and tours, the band finally acquired the original multi-track tapes to Ultramega OK and carved out time to dig into the remix. They handed the tapes over to longtime friend and engineer Jack Endino (Nirvana, Mudhoney, Screaming Trees, Skin Yard), who worked with the band to create a fresh mix of the album that, for the band, ties up this persistent loose end and remedies the sound of their debut full-length.

                                                While they were at it, the band dug out six early versions of tracks that wound up on Ultramega OK. The songs were recorded in 1987 on 8-track tape by Jack Endino and Chris Hanzsek at Reciprocal Recording in Seattle, and mixed by Jack Endino in 2016. These versions feature the band in raw, powerful form – sonically closer to the band’s Endino-recorded six-song debut, Screaming Life – and provide a fascinating window into the development of songs that eventually became staples of the band’s set. The six songs comprise what the band refers to as Ultramega EP, and they are included in this reissue.

                                                Hailed as grunge innovators, Soundgarden redefined rock music for a generation. In the late ‘80s, the band – singer Chris Cornell, guitarist Kim Thayil, bassist Hiro Yamamoto, and drummer Matt Cameron – combined a punk ethos, brutal metal soundscapes, and Cornell’s ravenous roar to capture the attention of the masses. Jagged and ferocious, their music was deeply at odds with the synth-pop and hair metal which dominated the ‘80s airwaves. Early indie releases, including seminal Screaming Life and Ultramega OK, quickly led to a dedicated indie following as the band toured on both sides of the Atlantic. Subsequent albums, including Badmotorfinger, Superunknown, and Down on the Upside, achieved multi-platinum sales and launched the band to international fame.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Live In Paris by Sleater-Kinney.

                                                Sleater-Kinney

                                                Live In Paris

                                                Sub Pop

                                                ‘Live In Paris’ is the first official record of Sleater-Kinney’s famously blistering stage performance.

                                                The thirteen track album, which features Carrie Brownstein, Corin Tucker, Janet Weiss and touring member Katie Harkin, was captured on March 20th, 2015 at the Paris’s historic La Cigale venue during the band’s sold out international tour in support of their acclaimed eighth album, 2015’s ‘No Cities To Love’.

                                                ‘Live In Paris’ includes songs from nearly every Sleater-Kinney album, including ‘No Cities To Love’, ‘The Woods’, ‘One Beat’, ‘The Hot Rock’, ‘Dig Me Out’ and ‘Call The Doctor’.

                                                The recording was mixed by John Goodmanson at Avast and mastered by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound.

                                                STAFF COMMENTS

                                                Barry says: I know live records can sometimes get a bit of a tough rap, but this one has none of that shaky sound or hefty interval nonsense associated with it, it sound like their trademark technical melodic indie fare but with the overwhelming energy and vibes of a live show. If you like Sleater-Kinney, it's an essential, only slightly more essential that if you simply like a good old-fashioned rock-out.

                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                Coloured LP Info: Available to independent retailers, the Loser Edition LP is pressed on transparent green vinyl.

                                                Coloured LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                LP Info: Black vinyl edition.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Salt Lick by TAD.

                                                TAD

                                                Salt Lick

                                                Sub Pop

                                                TAD was a mighty force in the late-‘80s/early-‘90s Seattle scene. Their heavy, churning rock/metal/punk buzz was a crucial part of Sub Pop’s early years, and, along with peers like Mudhoney, Nirvana, and Soundgarden, they defined the sound that reinvigorated the rock world in the early ‘90s. TAD was led by the physically imposing yet incredibly sweet singer/guitarist TAD Doyle, with bassist Kurt Danielson (ex-Bundle of Hiss), drummer Steve Wied, and guitarist Gary Thorstensen. With an image that sometimes cast the band as deranged lumberjacks, and influence from Head of David and Killdozer, TAD put a uniquely rain-and-fog-coated Northwest spin on ‘80s underground rock. The band released two albums and a few EPs on Sub Pop between 1988 and 1991, all of which are now lovingly remastered by the band’s friend and engineer Jack Endino (Soundgarden, Nirvana, Mudhoney, Screaming Trees) and repackaged with bonus tracks and expansive liner notes.  

                                                After their 1989 debut album, God’s Balls, TAD continued to write and record, releasing a string of singles and the Salt Lick EP between 1989 and 1990. Salt Lick features the single “Wood Goblins,” the video for which MTV banned because it was, to the delicate eyes of MTV programmers, “too ugly.” The sounds of Salt Lick are, indeed, wonderfully ugly, thanks in part to the involvement of noise-rock technician Steve Albini (Big Black, Shellac, Nirvana, The Jesus Lizard), who recorded the EP. The band continued to release singles and gain momentum in the press. As TAD himself puts it: “Lyrically we had a lot of subject matter that was meant to be tongue in cheek from the beginning but had been presented by Sub Pop and ourselves as true-to-life. As a result, the press had taken it all seriously and began to feed on and ravenously devour the mythology that we had created.”  

                                                This reissue of Salt Lick includes tracks from the “Wood Goblins” single, a split 7” with Pussy Galore, and the “Loser” 7”. This material has been out of print on vinyl/CD for many years, and this is its first digital release.

                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                CD Info: 4-panel digipak with insert.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of God's Balls by TAD.

                                                TAD

                                                God's Balls

                                                Sub Pop

                                                TAD was a mighty force in the late-‘80s/early-‘90s Seattle scene. Their heavy, churning rock/metal/punk buzz was a crucial part of Sub Pop’s early years, and, along with peers like Mudhoney, Nirvana, and Soundgarden, they defined the sound that reinvigorated the rock world in the early ‘90s. TAD was led by the physically imposing yet incredibly sweet singer/guitarist TAD Doyle, with bassist Kurt Danielson (ex-Bundle of Hiss), drummer Steve Wied, and guitarist Gary Thorstensen. With an image that sometimes cast the band as deranged lumberjacks, and influence from Head of David and Killdozer, TAD put a uniquely rain-and-fog-coated Northwest spin on ‘80s underground rock. The band released two albums and a few EPs on Sub Pop between 1988 and 1991, all of which are now lovingly remastered by the band’s friend and engineer Jack Endino (Soundgarden, Nirvana, Mudhoney, Screaming Trees) and repackaged with bonus tracks and expansive liner notes.  

                                                God’s Balls, TAD’s punishing, noise-drenched debut album, was recorded with Jack Endino at Reciprocal Recording in Seattle in 1988, and released early the following year. In addition to their usual arsenal of guitars, bass, and drums, the band employed a variety of unusual instruments – an empty gas tank from a car, a hacksaw, a large brass tube from a microwave transmitter, CB radio mics, a cello bow used on cymbals to emulate guitar feedback – to thunderous effect, adding a Neubauten-esque clang to the band’s rock riffs. After releasing God’s Balls, TAD flew to Europe with Nirvana for both bands’ first European tour. The now-legendary, month-long tour took the bands to the UK, Ireland, Scotland, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Italy, Denmark and Sweden.  

                                                This reissue of God’s Balls features CD/digital bonus tracks from TAD’s 1988 debut 7”, plus the previously unreleased “Tuna Car” from the 7” session. God’s Balls has been out of print on LP/CD for many years, and this is its first digital release.

                                                STAFF COMMENTS

                                                Darryl says: My favourite from the three deluxe Sub Pop reissues by mighty grunge supremo’s Tad. Produced by Jack Endino, 'God's Balls' was their debut album from the heady days of 1989, a heavy punk buzz noise packed with monster riffs, clattering drums and pummelling bass. Now lovingly remastered and repackaged with bonus tracks and expansive liner notes.

                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                CD Info: 4-panel digipak with insert.


                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Return To Love by LVL UP.

                                                LVL UP

                                                Return To Love

                                                Sub Pop

                                                ‘Hidden Driver’, the opening track of LVL UP’s third album and Sub Pop debut ‘Return To Love’, never stops moving. What starts with unassuming guitars and vocals adds new lines, depths and intensity, until its unrestrained, triumphant finish. “God is peeking, softly speaking,” repeats the chorus, working through the relationship between spirituality and creative inspiration and introducing a band that is always pushing further.

                                                LVL UP - guitarists Mike Caridi and Dave Benton, bassist Nick Corbo and drummer Greg Rutkin - are a true collaboration, a band that takes the stylistically distinct ideas of four members and brings them together into something new. Caridi, Benton and Corbo write and sing equally, bringing their work to the group to be fully realized, resulting in an album built on different perspectives but a common drive. “We have very different inspirations across the board,” says Benton, noting his own admiration for the writer and documentarian Astra Taylor, Corbo’s interest in the mystical and the occult and Caridi’s attention to personal storytelling. The music itself grows from a shared melodic and experimental sensibility, as well as a nod to iconic influences like Neutral Milk Hotel and Mount Eerie.

                                                LVL UP were formed in 2011 at SUNY Purchase as a recording project between Caridi, Benton and their friend Ben Smith, with the original intention of releasing a split cassette with Corbo’s then-solo material. They instead released that album, ‘Space Brothers’, as one band and Rutkin joined shortly afterwards for the group’s first show. Smith left the band for personal reasons just before the release of second album, ‘Hoodwink’d’, a joint release on Caridi and Benton’s labels Double Double Whammy and Exploding In Sound. Double Double Whammy also put out records from other artists in the tight-knit community that launched the band.

                                                Also part of that university community was ‘Return To Love’s producer Mike Ditrio, who mixed LVL UP’s previous records and “was basically a fifth member of the band,” says Corbo. “He played a huge role in developing the sound, without butting in too much. He also navigated our personal dynamic really nicely.”

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Splendor & Misery by Clipping..

                                                Clipping.

                                                Splendor & Misery

                                                Sub Pop

                                                Clipping formed in Los Angeles in 2009. Initially conceived as a remix project, Jonathan Snipes and William Hutson began pairing noise and powerelectronics inspired tracks with (stolen) vocals by commercial rap artists. Jonathan and William did this mostly to amuse each other and the duo earned very few fans. However, the band began in earnest in early 2010, when rapper and friend Daveed Diggs joined the group. Clipping was their first project as a trio, building on both their long friendship and their many shared obsessions: rap, experimental music and genre fiction, among others.

                                                Clipping released ‘Midcity’ on their website in 2013 and signed with Sub Pop three months later. The band described their debut as “party music for the club you wish you hadn’t gone to, the car you don’t remember getting in, and the streets you don’t feel safe on.” In 2014, they released their Sub Pop debut, ‘CLPPNG’, omitting the ‘I’ in the title and lyrics to vacate rap of its traditional centre, revealing instead a collage of recurrent rap themes. 2016’s ‘Wriggle’ EP, released after Daveed’s Tony award for his role as Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson in the acclaimed Broadway musical ‘Hamilton’, included ‘Shooter’, which used gunshot sounds as the beat for an imagistic narrative of three different violent encounters.

                                                Since the release of ‘CLPPNG’ things have changed for the band - William finished his Ph.D. in Theater & Performance Studies with a dissertation on experimental music, Jonathan composed scores for the films ‘Starry Eyes’, ‘The Nightmare’, ‘Excess Flesh’ and ‘Contracted: Phase II’ and Daveed hit Broadway. Their activities outside Clipping have always influenced their work in the band but never as much as in the creation of ‘Splendor & Misery’.

                                                ‘Splendor & Misery’ is an Afrofuturist, dystopian concept album that follows the sole survivor of a slave uprising on an interstellar cargo ship and the onboard computer that falls in love with him. Thinking he is alone and lost in space, the character discovers music in the ship’s shuddering hull and chirping instrument panels. William and Jonathan’s tracks draw an imaginary sonic map of the ship’s decks, hallways and quarters, while Daveed’s lyrics ride the rhythms produced by its engines and machinery. In a reversal of HP Lovecraft’s concept of cosmic insignificance, the character finds relief in learning that humanity is of no consequence to the vast, uncaring universe. Ultimately, the character decides to pilot his ship into the unknown - and possibly into oblivion - instead of continuing on to worlds whose systems of governance and economy have violently oppressed him.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Bleach - Deluxe Edition by Nirvana.

                                                Nirvana

                                                Bleach - Deluxe Edition

                                                Sub Pop

                                                This deluxe edition of this classic is available again!

                                                Marking the 20th anniversary of its release, Nirvana's "Bleach" gets a deluxe reissue: remastered and including a never-before-released live performance.
                                                Originally recorded over three sessions with producer Jack Endino at Seattle's Reciprocal Recording Studios in December 1988 and January 1989, Bleach was released in June89 and remains unequivocally/unsurprisingly Sub Pop's very favourite Nirvana full-length. This 20th Anniversary Edition has been re-mastered from the original tapes at Sterling Sound in a session overseen by producer Jack Endino.

                                                This edition will include an unreleased live recording of a complete February 9th, 1990 show at the Pine Street Theatre in Portland, Oregon. The show features performances of "Love Buzz," "About a Girl" and a cover of The Vaselines' song "Molly's Lips" and has been re-mixed from the original tapes by Endino.

                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                2xLtd LP Info: 180g vinyl in a gatelfold sleeve, with a 16-page LP booklet which includes candid photos of the band not previously released to the public.

                                                2xCD Info: The CD version also includes a 48 page booklet which includes candid photos of the band not previously released to the public.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Donkey - Sub Pop Reissue by CSS.

                                                CSS

                                                Donkey - Sub Pop Reissue

                                                Sub Pop

                                                More structured, crafted and polished than its predecessor (like the difference between "Smell The Magic" and "Bricks Are Heavy"), though no less tough, street-ready, anthemic, and from the heart, their second record recreates the frenetic energy of CSS's renowned live shows.

                                                Produced in Brazil by the band’s own Adriano Cintra and mixed in Los Angeles by Mark ‘Spike’ Stent (whose credits include Madonna, Bjork, Massive Attack, U2, M.I.A. and Arcade Fire), ‘Donkey’ is tough and street ready and recreates the frenetic energy of their live shows.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Cansei De Ser Sexy - Sub Pop Reissue by CSS.

                                                CSS

                                                Cansei De Ser Sexy - Sub Pop Reissue

                                                Sub Pop

                                                Hailing from São Paulo, one of the world's hottest cities (in both temperature and abundance of beautiful people), CSS's debut album "Cansei de Ser Sexy" (Portuguese for 'Tired of Being Sexy') is a total assault on the senses. After every turn is another track filled with things that make you go 'mmmm', where sex-crazed lyrics ride over crunchy guitar riffs and hip-shaking beats. A revelation live (gig of the year when they toured around the albums release in 2006, for the lucky Piccadilly Records staff who blagged their way in), sounding like The Slits seen through the kaleidoscopic eyes of The DFA.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Flight Of The Concords - Sub Pop Reissue by Flight Of The Concords.

                                                Flight Of The Concords

                                                Flight Of The Concords - Sub Pop Reissue

                                                Sub Pop

                                                Acclaimed Kiwi novelty band Flight Of The Conchords followed the release of their six-track Grammy Award-nominated CD EP ‘The Distant Future’ with their full length record album debut, the conveniently titled ‘Flight Of The Conchords’ (which, not at all coincidentally is also the name of their HBO television series). Still going strong, with their cult comedy continuing to sell out arenas.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of Phase Zero by Morgan Delt.

                                                Morgan Delt

                                                Phase Zero

                                                Sub Pop

                                                The invocation of classic west coast psychedelia that permeates Morgan Delt's Sub Pop debut LP feels like a continuous sunrise, never concealing its influences yet perfectly putting its songs through a gauzy lens that blurs and obscures. Is such a thing even possible after witnessing umpteen reverb-jockeys creating their own take on the genre? Can anything truly different be done in the realm of being both original and reverent, wearing favorite records and artists' moves on one's sleeve? Definitely the case with our man here. After releasing a 6-song cassette in 2013 followed by a full length for the Trouble In Mind label, the California native now fine-tunes his sound world outwardly rather than honing in on a specific trajectory, allowing all of said influences to coexist together in a unique yet undoubtedly Californian vision.

                                                The resulting 10-song collection, performed entirely by Delt, recorded in his Topanga Canyon studio, and mastered by JJ Golden, is a home-fi construction with a more subtle, brain-tickling character than its predecessor, and somewhat reflects a realist take on the flower power fantasy of 1967. Doused in echo and haze, slow chords lap in like Pacific waves, flanked by gentle whispers of multi-tracked, cooing vox, phased guitars and fuzz that calmly surrounds the listener's head less than it jabs at the cortex.

                                                The great thing about Delt's approach to such history is (and sorry to sound harsh) that unlike too many of his so-called L.A. psych-rock peers, there's no costume involved, no application of a conjured identity to match a specific image. He's no psychedelic Civil War re-enactor, so to speak. It's subtle and tactful revisionism without using psychedelia as a crutch/easy marketing tool and letting the sounds come out and make their own case.

                                                It takes a creative mind to make psychedelic rock music – tablas, drones, hallucinatory vocal effects, and all – without slipping into cliché, but Delt can transport what would normally be a dark-n-druggy blanket into a much more optimistic and friendly listening experience. Despite his voice being channelled through hallucinatory effects, it's warm and inviting, projecting a sense of hope (particularly in “Some Sunsick Day,” which evokes the hopeful “We'll Meet Again” as the world explodes at the end of Dr. Strangelove, later covered by the Byrds). It's more or less just an invite to watch the sun rise too. -Brian Turner, WFMU

                                                STAFF COMMENTS

                                                Barry says: Hazy Late-60's tinged psych on the newest LP from hippie music maestro Morgan Delt. Swirling whirs of analogue synths, torn speaker-fabric fuzz and twangy guitars intersperse with sunny blissed-out guitar and delayed falsetto vocals. Mellow, warming summer feels. Lovely.

                                                Andy says: I loved Morgan's debut but this ups his game tenfold! Still with that fuzzy, warm, home-made feel, but so much deeper and better and with stronger songs all round, this is the perfect soundtrack for your hazy Indian Summer.

                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                Coloured LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                [ + ]
                                                [ - ]
                                                Cover of How It Feels To Be Something by Sunny Day Real Estate.

                                                Sunny Day Real Estate

                                                How It Feels To Be Something

                                                Sub Pop

                                                  Sunny Day Real Estate’s third album, ‘How It Feels To Be Something On’, is now back in print on vinyl after more than a decade of fetching high prices on the collector’s market. To date the album has sold over 11,000 copies. In 1997, Sub Pop approached Sunny Day Real Estate’s members for help in compiling a rarities album. Because there were so few usable tracks, band founders Jeremy Enigk and Dan Hoerner agreed to get together and write some new material to augment the archival songs but they wound up crafting an entire new album in a matter of days. Without bass player Nate Mendel, who remains with Foo Fighters to this day, Sunny Day Real Estate reunited to record ‘How It Feels To Be Something On’, which Sub Pop released in 1998. After 2000’s ‘The Rising Tide’ the band split, though Enigk, drummer William Goldsmith and Mendel did reconvene to record an album under the name The Fire Theft in 2003 and Sunny Day Real Estate reunited for a series of shows in 2010.

                                                  FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                  Indies Exclusive LP Info: Loser Edition Coloured Vinyl LP.


                                                  Indies Exclusive LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                  [ + ]
                                                  [ - ]
                                                  Cover of Ghost Of David by Damien Jurado.

                                                  Damien Jurado

                                                  Ghost Of David

                                                  Sub Pop

                                                    ‘Ghost Of David’, the third album by Damien Jurado, is now available on vinyl and cassette for the first time. Originally released September 19th 2000, ‘Ghost Of David’ has sold over 13,000 copies to date.

                                                    Damien Jurado is an urban-folk singer with his hand in the baskets of all the right fringe genres. He’s a storyteller and the stories have matured steadily since he first appeared on the scene with the perfect balance of light-hearted pop and saddest-of-the-sad on his early singles and first full length, ‘Waters Ave S’.

                                                    Since then (with his second full length, ‘Rehearsals For Departure’, the ‘Gather In Song’ EP [both from 1999] and this year’s collection of found recordings, ‘Postcards And Audio Letters’), he’s moved more toward the dark and if you ask him he’ll tell you point blank that it’s in the dark where you’ll find us all.

                                                    LP format includes a digital download code.

                                                    FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                    LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                    [ + ]
                                                    [ - ]
                                                    Cover of X-Communicate by Kristin Kontrol.

                                                    Kristin Kontrol

                                                    X-Communicate

                                                    Sub Pop

                                                    Sometimes you have to rip it up and start again. It was a tough call for Dee Dee. Dum Dum Girls was her guise for most of a decade, an outlet through which she’s crafted a resonant, instantly identifiable body of work. Over the course of three albums, four EPs and an array of singles, Dum Dum Girls morphed from the girl-group-gone-bad moves of their 2010 debut, ‘I Will Be’, to the plush noir-pop of 2014’s ‘Too True’, a dark heart burning bright but as her music evolve she found that for many she would be forever refracted through the prism of Dum Dum Girls’ early work: retro-leaning female harmonies, a backdrop of lo-fi, fuzzed up guitars.

                                                    In 2015 she decided to shed her skin, ditching Dee Dee for Kristin, her real name and adding Kontrol. It was a spontaneous idea that resonated. The challenge was to start fresh, go further back into her relationship to music. Sweep all her loves together into one genreless experience. “The first music I felt was mine was classic 80s pop and 90s R&B, from Tiffany, Janet Jackson and Madonna to TLC, SWV, and Aaliyah,” she says. “But for years I was hellbent on the rock ‘n’ roll thing, revering Joan Jett, Patti Smith, Chrissie Hynde,” - a rebellion against her classical vocal training - “but I was like, fuck it, I’m just going to try it all. I’m going to pretend I’m Kate Bush covering Mariah.”

                                                    Refocused and inspired, Kristin wrote 62 songs, whittled the list to ten for ‘XCommunicate’ and finished the album with the help of new producers Kurt Feldman (who had produced her ‘On Christmas’ single a few years back) and Andrew Miller (who played guitar on the first Dum Dum Girls album and had joined the band in its last incarnation).

                                                    Arguably the biggest shift, beyond the music itself, is that as Kristin Kontrol she tells her stories using a sonic palette splashed with bold pop melodies, her vocals showcasing a range hitherto unexplored on record. The songs that emerge from Kristin’s universe - a menagerie of new wave and R&B, European synth pop and experimental disco - are both familiar and unique, using genre rather than adhering to it, with a distinct nod to the present. It may be a leap into the unknown, but “little risk means little reward,” as Karen O once counselled her. “I feel free. I kind of excommunicated myself. Even if I have to rebuild my whole career, I’d rather work hard than feel stagnant. I feel excited again, and that's priceless.”

                                                    STAFF COMMENTS

                                                    Barry says: I was born in the early 80's, It was a time (allegedly) when cheesy synth washes and digital synthesis was at it's peak. I was unfamiliar with the musical trends of the time, I was unemployed and partially useless. I was heavily reliant on others. What I should have been doing instead of lolling about at my parents gaff was getting a head-start on what would, 30 years later become my go-to cheer-up genre of choice. Gated synths and reverse-reverbed drums are in abundance, they use a LOT of chorus. They're not afraid of chorus' (chorii?) and verses. Feel-good retro synth-pop with a modern twist. Thoroughly surprised me this one, but i'm glad it did.

                                                    [ + ]
                                                    [ - ]
                                                    Cover of I Hear You by Arbor Labor Union.

                                                    Arbor Labor Union

                                                    I Hear You

                                                    Sub Pop

                                                    Arbor Labor Union was born from a peach tree in Georgia in the American south. They play psychedelic, repetitious, and joyful rock and roll music. In 2014 they released the album Sings for You Now under the name Pinecones. In 2016 they decided to change their name in order to form a more perfect union. A union of sound and vision. With this, they had a new album, a masterpiece of modern guitar music entitled simply I Hear You.

                                                    I Hear You was crafted through the ancient process of collaboration. All four members brought their love to one another and turned it into song. The album plays like a freedom chant. You can hear laughter in their music. You can see the joy among them. In every known photo of the band they appear to be smiling. All that is left to do is listen. Listen to this album dedicated to listeners. And, should your response also be “I hear you,” the band replies, “affirmative, loud and clear.”

                                                    I Hear You was recorded and produced by Randall Dunn (Earth, Sunn0))), Thurston Moore, Black Mountain) and Arbor Labor Union in the fall of 2015 at Avast Studio in Seattle, WA. The album was mastered by Jason Ward at Chicago Mastering. 

                                                    FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                    2xIndies Exclusive LP Info: Indies exclusive "Loser" edition, coloured vinyl & mp3 coupon plus an etching on Side D.

                                                    2xIndies Exclusive LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                    [ + ]
                                                    [ - ]
                                                    Cover of Not A Word / I Won't Let You by Low / S. Carey.

                                                    Low / S. Carey

                                                    Not A Word / I Won't Let You

                                                    Sub Pop

                                                      THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2016 EXCLUSIVE, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

                                                      This 10” single on special translucent white vinyl features two 7-minute collaborations between Minneapolis group Low and Wisconsin’s S.Carey, aka Sean Carey, best known as the drummer and supporting vocalist for Bon Iver.

                                                      The idea for this release came from producer BJ Burton. ‘Not A Word’ was an unfinished Low track that BJ worked with S.Carey to complete, while ‘I Won’t Let You Fall’ was an unfinished S.Carey song that BJ worked with Low to complete.

                                                      Packaging: 10” jacket with custom dust-sleeve.

                                                      Note: Includes mp3 download.

                                                      Limited to 500 copies.

                                                      [ + ]
                                                      [ - ]
                                                      Cover of Three Men And A Baby by Mike & The Melvins.

                                                      Mike & The Melvins

                                                      Three Men And A Baby

                                                      Sub Pop

                                                      ‘Three Men And A Baby’ is the new album by Mike (Kunka, bassist / vocalist of godheadSilo) and The Melvins.

                                                      In 1998, Mike and his friends The Melvins - who at that time were King Buzzo (guitar / bass / vocals), Dale Crover (drums / vocals) and Kevin Rutmanis (bass / vocals) - started making a record at Tim (The Champs) Green’s Louder Studios. Complications occurred and the incomplete recording sat until 2015, when everyone reconvened and finished the damn thing at Sound Of Sirens in LA with Toshi Kasai.

                                                      The results are worth the wait. Mike’s signature bass crunch and vocals are all over it and The Melvins are in fine form. The album has everything from hefty noise rock churn to a Public Image Ltd. song to cough syrup blues to deconstructed black metal.

                                                      FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                      CD Info: CD in three-panel gatefold digipak with custom dust
                                                      sleeve

                                                      [ + ]
                                                      [ - ]
                                                      Cover of New Misery by Cullen Omori.

                                                      Cullen Omori

                                                      New Misery

                                                      Sub Pop

                                                      Former Smith Western frontman Cullen Omori releases his debut long player, ‘New Misery’, through Sub Pop Records.

                                                      The album, which features the highlights ‘Cinnamon’ and ‘Sour Silk’, was recorded by Shane Stoneback (Sleigh Bells, Fucked Up, Vampire Weekend) at the now defunct Treefort Studios and was mastered by Emily Lazar (Sia, HAIM, Vampire Weekend, Arcade Fire, Bjork) at The Lodge.

                                                      In early 2014 Omori began working on the solo material that has now fully materialized as ‘New Misery’, a collection of 11 songs building upon his own musical past while reaching towards the future of what guitar rock could be. His songs marry dark yet blissful pop with vocal melodies and hooks that are at once immediate yet demand to be heard again and again.

                                                      Along with Omori, ‘New Misery’ features additional bass and keyboards from Ryan Mattos, drums from Loren Humphrey and James Richardson on guitar. Unlike the more distributed roles within the Smith Westerns, Omori wrote, played and oversaw nearly every part of the new album, beginning a true new chapter of his long-term creative growth.

                                                      Cullen Omori knows it’s a false cliché to say there are no second acts in American lives but after the 2014 breakup of his acclaimed band the Smith Westerns living that cliché was his greatest fear. His solo debut is a direct challenge to that anxiety: an album that goes beyond the glam punch of the Smith Westerns to new sounds, new sources of inspiration and greater self-awareness.

                                                      [ + ]
                                                      [ - ]
                                                      Cover of Heron Oblivion by Heron Oblivion.

                                                      Heron Oblivion

                                                      Heron Oblivion

                                                      Sub Pop

                                                      Heron Oblivion are Meg Baird (Espers), Noel Von Harmonson (Comets On Fire, Six Organs Of Admittance, Sic Alps, The Lowdown), Ethan Miller (Comets On Fire, Howlin’ Rain, Feral Ohms), and Charlie Saufley (Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound).

                                                      Listening to Heron Oblivion’s album feels like sitting in a lovely meadow in the shadow of a dam that’s going to burst any moment.

                                                      Members of this new San Francisco combo have put in time in both raging and relatively tranquil psychedelic sound units. This is the premise and the synergy behind this very unique and special new album.

                                                      The group first properly gigged in April of 2014 opening for War On Drugs. They finished the record independently then inked a deal with Sub Pop in early 2015. Most recently they toured the West Coast with Kurt Vile and Cass McCombs.

                                                      ‘Heron Oblivion’ was recorded at The Mansion in San Francisco by Eric Bauer.

                                                      “Expressive guitar lines laced with feedback sprawl out again and again without trailing away too far. Meg Baird’s serene voice harkens back to ’60s folk singers, subdued in a way that lends special gravity without being bombastic. Frankly, the group sounds exactly like what psychedelic rock should sound like” - Stereogum

                                                      STAFF COMMENTS

                                                      Barry says: In parts, Heron Oblivion perfectly juxtapose eastern influenced guitar stanzas with almost ghostly and ethereal vocal lines. Elsewhere, fuzzy minor-key pop with soaring melody lines. Think Sonic Youth meets Low via Grails. Unsettling and clangy, acerbic but impeccable. Low-fi beauty at it's best.

                                                      FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                      Indies Exclusive LP Info: Loser Edition clear vinyl with a white swirl.

                                                      Indies Exclusive LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                      [ + ]
                                                      [ - ]
                                                      Cover of Mass Gothic by Mass Gothic.

                                                      Mass Gothic

                                                      Mass Gothic

                                                      Sub Pop

                                                      After nearly ten years as the creative force behind much-loved New York rock outfit Hooray For Earth, Noel Heroux had lost his way. “I was constantly cutting corners and phoning everything in,” he says. “I was super depressed. I was creatively frustrated. I was emotionally unavailable to the people I really, really wanted to be there for - and no matter how much I cared, I just couldn’t change. But when I realized that I needed to the end the band and just try again, my head cleared and the clouds parted. I’d been derailed somehow,” he adds

                                                      “So I allowed myself to return to the beginning.”

                                                      This year marks the release of ‘Mass Gothic’, the Massachusetts-bred, New Yorkbased singer / songwriter’s self-titled Sub Pop debut. Written and recorded at home over four months during the winter of 2013 - 2014, it’s a stunning reminder of not just Heroux’s own remarkable talents as singer and songwriter but how unbridled creativity can sound and feel: before Hooray For Earth had quickly become a fullyfunctioning band it began as a solo project. Not pressure or compromises, just Heroux, a four-track and an irrepressible urge to “jot down all of the noise and music floating around in my head” and make it available to other people. “All I wanted to do was whatever I do when I’m alone and I’m unconcerned with what anyone else wants or expects,” he says. “I did my best to let go, and what came out was pure, uncut. It reminded me of the first few times I made music, when I was a young kid. I didn’t set any rules and I had zero expectations.”

                                                      The result is an expansive, often exhilarating set of guitar-driven pop that required very little editing when it was done. Additional mixing was provided by Chris Coady (Beach House, TV On The Radio) with mastering done by Greg Calbi (Father John Misty, Tame Impala) at Sterling Sound. The album was engineered by Wall at Tastefully Loud and mastered by Eric Boulanger at The Bakery in Los Angeles.

                                                      From the iridescent doo-wop of ‘Every Night You’ve Got to Save Me’ to the skyward crescendo of ‘Mind Is Probably’ to the falsetto-streaked clatter of ‘Want To, Bad’, it’s a radiant retelling of Heroux’s starting over, with ‘Nice Night’ as its cathartic, electrifying centrepiece.

                                                      “A lot of these songs are more or less a really dramatic, loud apology / thank you note,” he says, referencing his partner, collaborator and future tour mate, Jessica. “It didn’t matter where any of the sounds came from. I just cared that it sounded big and heavy, and that it was moving when it was done. It’s a clean slate entirely - and I’m so relieved.”

                                                      FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                      Indies Exclusive LP Info: Loser edition pressed on banana yellow vinyl.

                                                      [ + ]
                                                      [ - ]
                                                      Cover of Bleach by Nirvana.

                                                      Nirvana

                                                      Bleach

                                                      Sub Pop

                                                      The debut album from one of rock's most important bands, this is Cobain and Nirvana at their hungriest and rawest and without the worry of the unit shifting label men. An influential record that was a blueprint for the grunge revolution, and now digitally remastered to sound even louder!!!

                                                      [ + ]
                                                      [ - ]
                                                      Cover of One Way Street: The Sub Pop Albums by Mark Lanegan.

                                                      Mark Lanegan

                                                      One Way Street: The Sub Pop Albums

                                                      Sub Pop

                                                        The ‘One Way Street’ set compiles the first five solo albums recorded by Mark Lanegan, the Pacific-Northwest icon also known for his work with Screaming Trees, Gutter Twins, Mad Season, Queens Of The Stone Age, Isobel Campbell and more.

                                                        ‘The Winding Sheet’, Mark Lanegan’s first solo work, is notable in its departure from the characteristic sound of Screaming Trees, the band he fronted from 1985 until 2000. Its follow-up, ‘Whiskey For The Holy Ghost’, released during the grunge explosion of the early 1990s, showcases Lanegan’s growing maturity as a songwriter and vocalist.

                                                        ‘Scraps At Midnight’ could be considered the final installment of a trilogy of albums featuring Lanegan’s interpretation of American roots music accompanied by his troubling lyrics of loss, sin, and redemption.

                                                        ‘I’ll Take Care Of You’, Lanegan’s fourth solo effort, consists entirely of cover songs with interpretation of songs from a wide variety of songwriters including Tim Rose, Tim Hardin, Booker T. Jones and Buck Owens.

                                                        On Lanegan’s fifth and final solo album for Sub Pop, ‘Field Songs’, Lanegan seems to have taken the best elements from his previous work to create one of the most fulfilled and fulfilling albums of his career; ‘Field Songs’ also includes ‘Kimiko’s Dream House’, which Mark co-wrote with Jeffrey Lee Pierce of The Gun Club.

                                                        Three of these five albums have been out of print on vinyl for many years; ‘I’ll Take Care Of You’ was only released on vinyl in Europe and ‘Field Songs’ was only issued on CD.

                                                        Each album in the ‘One Way Street’ box set is pressed on 180gram vinyl and is housed in a sleeve reproducing the original release’s artwork.

                                                        [ + ]
                                                        [ - ]
                                                        Cover of Ones And Sixes by Low.

                                                        Low

                                                        Ones And Sixes

                                                        Sub Pop

                                                        Low’s Alan Sparhawk had this offer about the new album: “In our 20+ years of writing songs, I've learned that no matter how escapist, divergent, or even transcendent the creative process feels, the result is more beholden to what is going on at the moment. It's hard to admit that one is so influenced by what is in front of us. Doesn't it come from something magical and far away? No, it comes from here. It comes from now. I'm not going to tell you what this record is about because I have too much respect for that moment when you come to know it for yourself.

                                                        “I will, however, tell you about how we made it. BJ contacted us a few years ago and invited us out to the studio where he works with Justin, Lizzo, and other artists. The studio is close to our home in Duluth, so it seemed tempting. Months later, I worked with BJ, producing the recent record by Trampled by Turtles. We got along and seemed to have similar curiosity about the possibilities for Low, so time was booked and songs finished. We tracked under the soft glow of laser discs playing lost classics like Point Break and Speed. Glenn Kotche from Wilco was there one day working on another record, so we had him in to play hand-percussion on a couple songs. Working 2 or 3 days at a time, leaving it with BJ, then back again for more, we don't have the time or money to second-guess or pick from a pool of possibilities. This is the whole thought - the untamed truth. This is now. This is everything.”

                                                        STAFF COMMENTS

                                                        Andy says: A more rhythmical undercarriage brings a more dynamic sound to this exceptional band.

                                                        FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                        2xLtd LP Info: Very limited "Loser" edition on yellow vinyl. Double LP housed in a slipcase with exclusive art and insert not included in the standard vinyl edition.

                                                        [ + ]
                                                        [ - ]
                                                        Cover of Pain by Deaf Wish.

                                                        Deaf Wish

                                                        Pain

                                                        Sub Pop

                                                        When Deaf Wish found themselves in a room together for the very first time, they agreed on a guiding philosophy: “Let’s not make anything that’s going to last. If we’re together for just two shows, then that’s what it is.” They’ve deviated since.

                                                        Over the course of eight years, the Melbourne foursome bassist Nick Pratt, drummer Daniel Twomey and guitarists Sarah Hardiman and Jensen Tjhung - with each member contributing vocals - have instead amassed one of rock’s most exhilarating bodies of work, a concise run of seven inches and white-knuckle albums whose legendary live translation has been most accurately described as ‘unhinged’. All this despite their being scattered across multiple continents, with no way of getting to know one another outside of intermittent touring. “We didn’t really know what this band was,” says Tjhung. “We had something, but it wasn’t clear - we had to figure out what that was.”

                                                        This year marks the arrival of ‘Pain’, the first music they’ve written since coming together again semi-permanently in Melbourne and their appropriately titled first full length for Sub Pop. It is a miraculously dissonant, wonderfully immediate display of Deaf Wish at their mightiest, alive with the same wild chemistry and sense of possibility that made their first recordings so vital.

                                                        With more time together than they’ve ever had before, they’ve found themselves confronted with ideal (yet foreign) conditions. Twominute freak-outs like ‘Eyes Closed’ share airspace with the meditate squall of ‘On’ and the guitar-born majesty of ‘Calypso’. Everything was captured in three takes or less, in a bleak, nondescript studio on the lifeless outskirts of Melbourne. ‘Pain’ was mastered by Mikey Young (Eddy Current Suppression Ring, Total Control).

                                                        FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                        Indies Exclusive LP Info: Exclusive ‘Loser Edition’ coloured vinyl format available to independent retailers.

                                                        Indies Exclusive LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                        [ + ]
                                                        [ - ]
                                                        Cover of The Helio Sequence by The Helio Sequence.

                                                        The Helio Sequence

                                                        The Helio Sequence

                                                        Sub Pop

                                                        The self-titled sixth album by Portland, OR’s The Helio Sequence is a renewed push forward for the band, depending on an effortless kinetic energy.

                                                        After creating their previous album, 2012’s ‘Negotiations’, through a long, introspective, the band wanted to try a new, open and immediate process.

                                                        There’s a delightful candour to The Helio Sequence, an openness that is rare for a band about to enter its third decade. The album was recorded and produced by the band in their Portland studio.

                                                        FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                        LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                        [ + ]
                                                        [ - ]
                                                        Cover of Koes Barat by Koes Barat.

                                                        Koes Barat

                                                        Koes Barat

                                                        Sub Pop

                                                          THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2015 EXCLUSIVE, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

                                                          When Alan Bishop becomes obsessed with something, he often goes to great lengths (and travels great distances) to turn that obsession into an essential artifact.

                                                          Such is the case with his latest group's Sub Pop debut, ‘Koes Barat’, a sincere, gripping tribute to a band of Indonesian brothers - the Koeswoyos - whose instantly catchy garage-rock songs and ridiculously charming ballads caused a sensation in their homeland, Singapore, and Malaysia.

                                                          They also made their government very uneasy: Basing your look on Western musicians and covering Beatles songs were considered subversive activities in mid-'60s Indonesia.

                                                          Back in 2010, Sun City Girls legend Bishop asserted his fandom of Koes Bersaudara (aka Koes Plus) with two archival releases of their music on his and Hisham Mayet's Sublime Frequencies label.

                                                          But that noble gesture wasn't enough to sate Bishop's appreciation of this music that flourished from the mid '60s to 1970. He also felt an overwhelming urge to interpret what he felt to be the best Koes tunes.

                                                          To that end, he enlisted some of his favorite musicians in the Spoils—guitarist Milky Burgess, drummer Don McGreevy, and bassist Jim Davis—all of whom also play or played with Seattle’s Master Musicians Of Bukkake, and producer Randall Dunn (Sunn O))), Marisa Nadler) to work the boards.

                                                          ‘Koes Barat’ was cut in less than a week of sessions, and the results hit your ears with a revelatory smack. It is the most immediate, fun collection that the prolific Bishop has ever led.

                                                          LP includes an MP3 coupon.

                                                          [ + ]
                                                          [ - ]
                                                          Cover of EarthEE by THEESatisfaction.

                                                          THEESatisfaction

                                                          EarthEE

                                                          Sub Pop

                                                          Seattle duo Stasia Irons and Catherine Harris-White return as THEESatisfaction with ‘EarthEE’, the follow up to their acclaimed 2012 debut ‘awE naturalE’.

                                                          The album, led by highlights ‘Recognition’, ‘Nature’s Candy’ and the title track, was recorded in Seattle and Brooklyn and features guest appearances from Shabazz Palaces' Ishmael Butler, Meshell Ndegeocello, Porter Ray and Taylor Brown. The set features Stas and Cat rapping and singing over sublime soul-jazz, SA-RA style wonkiness and spacious psych-funk textures, creating a seductive album that draws you in.

                                                          ‘EarthEE’ was produced by THEESatisfaction and Erik Blood, mixed by Blood at Protect And Exalt Studios: A Black Space and mastered by Adam Straney at BreakPoint Mastering in Seattle.

                                                          [ + ]
                                                          [ - ]
                                                          Cover of No Cities To Love by Sleater-Kinney.

                                                          Sleater-Kinney

                                                          No Cities To Love

                                                          Sub Pop

                                                          “We sound possessed on these songs,” says guitarist / vocalist Carrie Brownstein about Sleater-Kinney’s eighth studio album, ‘No Cities To Love’. “Willing it all - the entire weight of the band and what it means to us - back into existence.”

                                                          The new record is the first in 10 years from the acclaimed trio - Brownstein, vocalist / guitarist Corin Tucker and drummer Janet Weiss - who came crashing out of the 90s Pacific Northwest riot grrrl scene, setting a new bar for punk’s political insight and emotional impact.

                                                          Formed in Olympia, WA in 1994, Sleater-Kinney were hailed as “America’s best rock band” by Greil Marcus in Time Magazine and they released seven searing albums in 10 years before going on indefinite hiatus in 2006.

                                                          However, the new album isn’t about reminiscing. It's about reinvention, the ignition of an unparalleled chemistry to create new sounds and tell new stories. “I always considered Corin and Carrie to be musical soulmates,” says Weiss, whose drums fuel the fire of Tucker and Brownstein’s vocal and guitar interplay. “Something about taking a break brought them closer, desperate to reach together again for their true expression.” The result is a record that grapples with love, power and redemption without restraint.

                                                          Produced by longtime Sleater-Kinney collaborator John Goodmanson, who helmed many of the band’s earlier albums including 1997 breakout set ‘Dig Me Out’, ‘No Cities To Love’ is indeed formidable from the first beat.

                                                          Sleater-Kinney’s decade apart made room for family and other fruitful collaborations, as well as an understanding of what the band’s singular chemistry demands. “Sleater-Kinney isn't something you can do half-assed or half-heartedly,” says Brownstein. “This band requires a certain desperation, a direness. We have to be willing to push because the entity that is this band will push right back.”

                                                          “The core of this record is our relationship to each other, to the music, and how all of us still felt strongly enough to about those to sweat it out in the basement and to try and reinvent our band,” adds Tucker. With ‘No Cities To Love’, “we went for the jugular.”

                                                          FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                          LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                          [ + ]
                                                          [ - ]
                                                          Cover of All Hands On The Bad One - 2014 Remastered Edition by Sleater-Kinney.

                                                          Sleater-Kinney

                                                          All Hands On The Bad One - 2014 Remastered Edition

                                                          Sub Pop

                                                            “Sleater-Kinney is America's best rock band” - Greil Marcus, Time (2001)

                                                            Sleater-Kinney is an acclaimed American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington in 1994.

                                                            The band's core lineup consists of Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar), Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), and Janet Weiss (drums).

                                                            Sleater-Kinney were known for their feminist, left-leaning politics, and were an integral part of the riot grrrl and indie rock scenes in the Pacific Northwest.

                                                            ‘All Hands On The Bad One’ is the fifth studio album by Sleater- Kinney, originally released on May 2, 2000 by Kill Rock Stars.

                                                            The album was produced by John Goodmanson and recorded from December 1999 to January 2000 at Jackpot! Studio in Portland, Oregon and John & Stu's Place in Seattle, Washington.

                                                            Upon release, ‘All Hands On The Bad One’ reached number 177 on the US Billboard Top 200 chart and number 12 on the Heatseekers Albums chart.

                                                            ‘All Hands On The Bad One’ appeared on several end-of-year lists and received a nomination for Outstanding Music Album at the 12th Annual Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Awards.

                                                            The Village Voice placed it at number 10 in its 2000 ‘Pazz & Jop’ Critics' Poll.

                                                            “The band's most melodic, playful, sarcastic, and punchy album to date” - Brent DiCrescenzo, Pitchfork (8.3).

                                                            The album has been freshly remastered by Greg Calbi for this release.

                                                            FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                            LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                            [ + ]
                                                            [ - ]
                                                            Cover of Call The Doctor - 2014 Remastered Edition by Sleater-Kinney.

                                                            Sleater-Kinney

                                                            Call The Doctor - 2014 Remastered Edition

                                                            Sub Pop

                                                              “Sleater-Kinney is America's best rock band” - Greil Marcus, Time (2001)

                                                              Sleater-Kinney is an acclaimed American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington in 1994.

                                                              The band's core lineup consists of Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar), Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), and Janet Weiss (drums).

                                                              Sleater-Kinney were known for their feminist, left-leaning politics, and were an integral part of the riot grrrl and indie rock scenes in the Pacific Northwest.

                                                              ‘Call The Doctor’ is Sleater-Kinney’s second studio album. It was produced by John Goodmanson and released on March 25, 1996 by Chainsaw Records.

                                                              The album is often considered to be Sleater-Kinney's first proper album because Tucker and co-vocalist and guitarist Carrie Brownstein left their previous bands, Heavens to Betsy and Excuse 17, at the time of its recording.

                                                              The line-up featured Corin Tucker (vocals, guitar), Carrie Brownstein (guitar, vocals) and Lora Macfarlane (drums, vocals).

                                                              ‘Call the Doctor’ appeared at number three in The Village Voice's ‘Pazz & Jop’ critics' poll for 1996.

                                                              In 2010, the album was ranked number 49 in the list of the 100 greatest albums of the nineties by the editors of Rolling Stone.

                                                              “Trades sex-worker role-playing, doll parts, gender-bending, and other common female-rock tropes for stories of everyday struggle [...] Sleater-Kinney proves that punk still offers new ways to say no" - Johnny Ray Huston, SPIN

                                                              The album has been freshly remastered by Greg Calbi for this release.

                                                              FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                              LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                              [ + ]
                                                              [ - ]
                                                              Cover of One Beat - 2014 Remastered Edition by Sleater-Kinney.

                                                              Sleater-Kinney

                                                              One Beat - 2014 Remastered Edition

                                                              Sub Pop

                                                                “Sleater-Kinney is America's best rock band” - Greil Marcus, Time (2001)

                                                                Sleater-Kinney is an acclaimed American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington in 1994.

                                                                The band's core lineup consists of Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar), Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), and Janet Weiss (drums).

                                                                Sleater-Kinney were known for their feminist, left-leaning politics, and were an integral part of the riot grrrl and indie rock scenes in the Pacific Northwest.

                                                                ‘One Beat’ is the sixth studio album from Sleater-Kinney, originally released on August 20, 2002 by Kill Rock Stars.

                                                                It was produced by John Goodmanson and recorded between March and April 2002 at Jackpot! Studio in Portland, Oregon.

                                                                The album peaked at number 107 in the United States on the Billboard 200 and entered the Billboard Top Independent Albums at number five.

                                                                "[Sleater-Kinney’s] sharpest statement yet" - Caryn Ganz, SPIN (#12 in SPIN’s Albums Of The Year 2002).

                                                                “Years at the top haven't dulled their willingness to take risks, and that's just what they do, spectacularly, on ‘One Beat’” - Brendan Reid, Pitchfork (9.1). · The album has been freshly remastered by Greg Calbi for this release.

                                                                FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                                LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                                [ + ]
                                                                [ - ]
                                                                Cover of Sleater-Kinney - 2014 Remastered Edition by Sleater-Kinney.

                                                                Sleater-Kinney

                                                                Sleater-Kinney - 2014 Remastered Edition

                                                                Sub Pop

                                                                  “Sleater-Kinney is America's best rock band” - Greil Marcus, Time (2001)

                                                                  Sleater-Kinney is an acclaimed American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington in 1994.

                                                                  The band's core lineup consists of Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar), Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), and Janet Weiss (drums).

                                                                  Sleater-Kinney were known for their feminist, left-leaning politics, and were an integral part of the riot grrrl and indie rock scenes in the Pacific Northwest.

                                                                  ‘Sleater-Kinney’ is the first effort from the group, recorded by Nick Carrol at 486 Victoria Street in Melbourne, Australia, and produced by Tim Green and the band at the Red House in Olympia, Washington.

                                                                  The album was originally released in 1995 by the independent queercore record label Chainsaw Records.

                                                                  The line-up featured Corin Tucker (vocals, guitar), Carrie Brownstein (guitar, vocals) and Lora Macfarlane (drums).

                                                                  “While their same-sex one-on-ones aren't exactly odes to joy, they convey a depth of feeling that could pass for passion” - Robert Christgau, Consumer Guide (Grade: A-).

                                                                  The album has been freshly remastered by Greg Calbi for this release.

                                                                  FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                                  LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                                  [ + ]
                                                                  [ - ]
                                                                  Cover of The Hot Rock - 2014 Remastered Edition by Sleater-Kinney.

                                                                  Sleater-Kinney

                                                                  The Hot Rock - 2014 Remastered Edition

                                                                  Sub Pop

                                                                    'Sleater-Kinney is America's best rock band' - Greil Marcus, Time (2001)

                                                                    Sleater-Kinney is an acclaimed American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington in 1994.

                                                                    The band's core lineup consists of Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar), Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), and Janet Weiss (drums).

                                                                    Sleater-Kinney were known for their feminist, left-leaning politics, and were an integral part of the riot grrrl and indie rock scenes in the Pacific Northwest.

                                                                    ‘The Hot Rock’ is the fourth studio album by Sleater-Kinney, originally released on February 23, 1999 by Kill Rock Stars.

                                                                    It was produced by Roger Moutenot and recorded at Avast studio in Seattle, Washington in July 1998.

                                                                    ‘The Hot Rock’ reached number 181 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart and number 12 on the Heatseekers Albums chart, becoming the first Sleater- Kinney album to enter the charts.

                                                                    ‘The Hot Rock’ appeared at number 23 in The Village Voice's ‘Pazz & Jop’ critics' poll for 1999.

                                                                    Similarly, Spin placed The Hot Rock at number 18 in its list of 'The Top 20 Albums of 1999'.

                                                                    In 2002, Rolling Stone ranked the album at number 17 on its list of 'Women in Rock: The 50 Essential Albums'.

                                                                    “The expansive new sound gives Sleater-Kinney room to experiment with their Husker Du-style storytelling... They've earned the right to keep reinventing themselves” - Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone.

                                                                    “Tucker explores what her voice can do when it's not in overdrive, stretching vowels like a religious supplicant or spewing prosody like Patti Smith. At the same time, Brownstein blossoms as a singer herself [...] braiding lines with Tucker so artfully the result sounds like the voicings of a single restless mind” - Will Hermes, Entertainment Weekly (Grade A).

                                                                    The album has been freshly remastered by Greg Calbi for this release.

                                                                    FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                                    LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                                    [ + ]
                                                                    [ - ]
                                                                    Cover of The Woods - 2014 Remastered Edition by Sleater-Kinney.

                                                                    Sleater-Kinney

                                                                    The Woods - 2014 Remastered Edition

                                                                    Sub Pop

                                                                      'Sleater-Kinney is America's best rock band' - Greil Marcus, Time (2001)

                                                                      Sleater-Kinney is an acclaimed American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington in 1994.

                                                                      The band's core lineup consists of Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar), Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), and Janet Weiss (drums).

                                                                      Sleater-Kinney were known for their feminist, left-leaning politics, and were an integral part of the riot grrrl and indie rock scenes in the Pacific Northwest.

                                                                      ‘The Woods’ is the seventh and final studio album from Sleater- Kinney, released on May 24, 2005 by Sub Pop.

                                                                      It was produced by Dave Fridmann and recorded from November 2004 to December 2004 at Tarbox Road Studios in Cassadaga, New York.

                                                                      ‘The Woods’ reached #80 on the US Billboard Top 200 chart and #2 on the Independent Albums chart.

                                                                      The album appeared at number four in The Village Voice's ‘Pazz & Jop’ critics' poll for 2005.

                                                                      “They bash Eighties nostalgia, tell a feminist fairy tale and even quiet down for a couple sensitive love songs – needed breaks from music so intense you wonder how they can contain its explosiveness” - Rolling Stone (100 Best Albums of the 2000’s).

                                                                      “To survive these days, you have to be either suicidal or superficial. Sleater-Kinney, meanwhile, get by simply sounding fucking supersonic” - Stephen Deusner, Pitchfork (9.0).

                                                                      The album has been freshly remastered for this release.

                                                                      FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                                      2xLP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                                      [ + ]
                                                                      [ - ]
                                                                      Reduced Cover of Tied To A Star by J Mascis.

                                                                      J Mascis

                                                                      Tied To A Star

                                                                      Sub Pop

                                                                      J Mascis’ Tied to a Star, the follow up to his acclaimed Sub Pop debut 'Several Shades of Why'. The album, led by the songs “Every Morning” and “Wide Awake,” was recorded and produced by Mascis and mixed by John Agnello at Bisquiteen in Amherst, MA.

                                                                      'Tied to a Star' also features guest appearances from musicians Ken Maiuri (Young@Heart Chorus), Pall Jenkins (Black Heart Procession), Mark Mulcahy (Miracle Legion) and Chan Marshall (Cat Power).

                                                                      STAFF COMMENTS

                                                                      Andy says: J seems to write prettier songs the older he gets. This is another gorgeous, mellow, mainly acoustic record, but with his trademark, sweetly melodic electric lead runs, occasionally making an appearance.

                                                                      FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                                      Ltd LP Info: Just found 1 copy of this!! Exclusive pink vinyl available to independent
                                                                      retailers.

                                                                      [ + ]
                                                                      [ - ]
                                                                      Cover of Lese Majesty by Shabazz Palaces.

                                                                      Shabazz Palaces

                                                                      Lese Majesty

                                                                      Sub Pop

                                                                      “Sanity, a visage of my wealth
                                                                      Lost but always found before the idols that I’ve knelt
                                                                      Strategy, the only way to cry
                                                                      Keep it do or die and always think in terms of I
                                                                      Reverie, some legend futures past
                                                                      Revelry, instead for it renders hella fast
                                                                      Capitol, a sound that’s on the rise
                                                                      It’s slaking unrealized until essence has been razed
                                                                      Sepulcher, a stage enlived by ghosts
                                                                      Floating off with bags of the blood encrusted dough.”

                                                                      - “They Come In Gold” (from “The Phasing Shift” suite)

                                                                      Herein bumps and soars 'Lese Majesty', the new sonic action of Shabazz Palaces. Honed and primal, chromed and primo. A unique and glorified offering into our ever-uniforming musical soundscape. 'Lese Majesty' is a beatific war cry, born of a spell, acknowledging that sophistication and the instinctual are not at odds; Indeed an undoing of the lie of their disparate natures.

                                                                      'Lese Majesty' is not a launching pad for the group’s fan base increasing propaganda. It is a series of astral suites, recorded happenings, shared. A dare to dive deep into Shabazz Palaces sounds, vibrations unfettered. A dope-hex thrown from the compartments that have artificially contained us all and hindered our sublime collusion.

                                                                      These reveries were sent to Palaceer Lazaro and Fly Guy ‘Dai in the year of gun beat battles in excess; In a succession of days, whilst walking in dreams and in varied transcendental states….(every minute of every day is filled with observation and composition. In action). Songs are committed and gathered by robots at Protect and Exalt Labs, a Black Space in Seattle, Washington.

                                                                      [ + ]
                                                                      [ - ]
                                                                      Cover of Do To The Beast by The Afghan Whigs.

                                                                      The Afghan Whigs

                                                                      Do To The Beast

                                                                      Sub Pop

                                                                      ‘Do To The Beast’ is the first new album by The Afghan Whigs in over a decade and a half. Founded in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1988, the band has long stood out from its peers, with their savage, rapturous blend of hard rock, classic soul, and frontman Greg Dulli’s searing angst and obsessions.

                                                                      The new album is both a homecoming - it marks their return to Sub Pop, for whom the Whigs were the first signing from outside the label’s Northwest base - and a glimpse into the future of one of the most acclaimed bands of the past twenty five years.

                                                                      ‘Do To The Beast’ is an appropriately feral title for one of the most intense, cathartic records of Dulli’s entire career. It adds fresh twists to The Afghan Whigs canon: there’s the film noir storytelling of ‘Black Love’, the exuberance of ‘1965’, the brutal introspection of ‘Gentlemen’. However, the album exudes a galvanized musical spirit and rhythmic heft that suggest transcendence and hope amidst the bloodletting.

                                                                      Recorded in LA, New Orleans, Cincinnati, and Joshua Tree - a virtual map of the band’s past and present homes, the album features Whigs co-founders Greg Dulli and John Curley, along with the core band of guitarists Dave Rosser and Jon Skibic, multi-instrumentalist Rick Nelson and drummer Cully Symington. Also featured are soul iconoclast Van Hunt, Mark McGuire (Emeralds), Johnny ‘Natural’ Nagera (Usher’s musical director), Alain Johannes (Queens Of The Stone Age, Arctic Monkeys), Clay Tarver (Bullet LaVolta, Chavez), Dave Catching (QOTSA, Eagles of Death Metal), among others.

                                                                      STAFF COMMENTS

                                                                      Laura says: Greg Dulli and co return in fine style with this swaggering blend of rock'n'roll angst, classic r'n'b and soul. A dark and uncompromising tour de force.

                                                                      FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                                      2xLtd LP includes MP3 Download Code.

                                                                      [ + ]
                                                                      [ - ]
                                                                      Cover of I Want You Back by Chad VanGaalen.

                                                                      Chad VanGaalen

                                                                      I Want You Back

                                                                      Sub Pop

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

                                                                        This Record Store Day exclusive features four new tracks from Calgary artist Chad VanGaalen's vault of unheard music.

                                                                        None of these tracks appear on Chad's upcoming Sub Pop album, ‘Shrink Dust’ (out in April on Sub Pop).

                                                                        Cover art by Chad himself.

                                                                        Limited to 250 copies for the UK and Ireland.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Mirrors The Sky by Lyla Foy.

                                                                        Lyla Foy

                                                                        Mirrors The Sky

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Sometimes the best course of action is to find your path and stay focused, which is the approach that shaped Lyla Foy’s debut album, ‘Mirrors The Sky’. Everything changed for the 25-year-old London songwriter one day in early 2012, when she cancelled her evening plans to work on music at home. After years of collaborations, she decided to go it alone, and that night produced the gorgeously stripped-down ‘No Secrets’, which she eventually shared with the world under the moniker WALL. “When I first started writing for the project, I wanted everything to be really focused on the melodies, but also really simple and minimal,” says Foy. “Just using a lot of bass, and simple drum patterns. I wanted to try something new, and that one song felt like the beginning of something.”

                                                                        The reaction to ‘No Secrets’ confirmed Foy’s suspicion that she’d stumbled onto something pretty special. The track led to an appearance on British web-series Black Cab Sessions, and the Black Cab folks formed a label to release WALL’s debut single, ‘Magazine’. The English accolades poured in via glowing reviews and radio spins - BBC Radio’s Steve Lamacq went so far as to call ‘Magazine’ his favourite song of the year - and by the end of 2012 Pitchfork was giving her props for her haunting cover of Karen Dalton’s ‘Something on Your Mind’, and spotlighting the title track from 2013’s ‘Shoestring’ EP.

                                                                        Foy has now decided to come out from behind her WALL and adorn ‘Mirrors The Sky’ with her given name. She’s still in the same musical mindset that produced ‘No Secrets’ and she still plays with the guys - Oli Deakin (bass, keyboards), Andy Goodall (drums), and Dan Bell (guitar, keyboards) - who helped bring WALL’s songs to the stage.

                                                                        For a project that began as a single song in a London bedroom, Lyla Foy’s hypnotically hushed songs have come quite a long way over the past two years, figuratively and literally, as her worldwide deal with Sub Pop will find her spending quality time supporting ‘Mirrors The Sky’ around the globe.

                                                                        STAFF COMMENTS

                                                                        Ryan says: Beautiful dreamy folk/pop from Lyla Foy previously known as 'WALL'. For fans of Daughter.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Island Intervals by Death Vessel.

                                                                        Death Vessel

                                                                        Island Intervals

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        The fact that Joel Thibodeau’s slender, winsome voice is at once so comforting and so unsettling might be the greatest of his many strengths. Reed-thin but sturdy, youthful but somehow ageless, its deep benevolence is also slightly eerie, and the way he gently walks the line between intense feeling and contemplative remove lets him sing from a timeless place where he evokes the beauty of vanished people and places, sweetness too profound for words, loss too great for tears.

                                                                        Like Nico’s, Jimmy Scott’s, or Phil Elverum’s, Joel’s is a voice that demands its own sonic and lyrical world, and with ‘Island Intervals’, his third record as Death Vessel (and second for Sub Pop), we're treated to the sound of him finding a rich and strange new home among new friends in Iceland who probably saw him as a long-lost relative.

                                                                        For his first album since 2008’s acclaimed ‘Nothing Is Precious Enough For Us’, Joel traveled to Reykjavík on an invitation from Sigur Rós singer Jónsi and producer Alex Somers, where they spent three months together conjuring an album that’s both a song cycle and a window into a mysterious and singular landscape.

                                                                        ‘Island Intervals’ wraps Joel’s voice and furtive guitar in sounds that evoke not so much a band playing as elemental forces of earth and water; Pete Donnelly (The Figgs, NRBQ), Samuli Kosminen (Múm) and Thorvaldur ‘Doddi’ Thorvaldsson assist Somers in creating a rich and multi-layered world that sounds, at times, like a well-tuned forest sighing and bending in a gale, or the deep cracks and booms of a glacier calving its way to the sea. Jónsi also joins Joel on vocals for the track ‘Ilsa Drown’.

                                                                        ‘Island Intervals’ lives in the spaces between running away and letting go, and finds its author embracing a life whose most solid, real moments loom and vanish, like a range of mountains that emerges from a bank of low clouds, and just as suddenly slips away.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Bed & Bugs by Obits.

                                                                        Obits

                                                                        Bed & Bugs

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Obits are a four-piece band who currently live in Brooklyn, NY, and whose music is probably considered an occupant of the rock music genre, specifically in the areas of garage, punk, surf, surf-punk, and garage-punk.

                                                                        On this new album, ‘Bed & Bugs’, they’ve also covered a song (‘Besetchet’) from Volume 23 of the excellent ‘Ethiopiques’ series. So much for tidy categorization. · This is the third full length album by Obits, following their 2011 album ‘Moody, Standard And Poor’, which itself followed their 2009 album ‘I Blame You’.

                                                                        ‘Bed & Bugs’ was recorded by Nikhil Ranade, Eli Janney and Geoff Sanoff.

                                                                        The discerning listener may well note more than a passing similarity to such bands as Hot Snakes, Edsel, Drive Like Jehu, Girls Against Boys, Pitchfork, and possibly Television or the Wipers. This is un-coincidental - with the exception of those last two, Obits share members with all of those bands.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Ruthless Sperm by His Electro Blue Voice.

                                                                        His Electro Blue Voice

                                                                        Ruthless Sperm

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Ruthless Sperm. What’s in a name? A whole hell of a lot, actually. Sperm can ruin everything. Persistent little shits that fight their way to the prize. If just one soldier gets ahold of its egg of choice, things will break apart, bubble and mutate. A microscopic violence that leads to thirty plus pounds of sludge and flesh. Still, beauty tends to be the outcome after all this splashy mess and most parties find a happy, rewarding ending. Most parties. To the unfortunate others, the outcome can be more terrifying than anything dreamed up in a Polanski flick.

                                                                        Italy’s His Electro Blue Voice follows a similar path to creation. Once the choice is made, it’s guaranteed the trip will be violent and unrelenting. Only the band doesn’t tell you up front which crooked path is gonna lead you to the finish line (at first, they may not even know). But whether it’s slathered in a thick glaze of neo-gothic guitar, an unexpected electronic pulse or leveled under a death trip full of panic inducing terror shrieks, His Electro Blue Voice have become masters at building soundscapes that leave brave listeners spent, soiled and with nothing positive on their mind.

                                                                        On Ruthless Sperm – His Electro Blue Voice’s debut full-length, after a string of collectible singles/EPs and an appearance on the Sub Pop 1000 compilation – they set their trajectories on a Kraut-driven rhythm; a haunting, cinematic wash or a mechanically-sound industrial thump. Thirty-plus minutes of shock-horror blasts, blaring cyber-synth attacks and that gloriously-repetitive Stoogeoid-meets-Killing Joke throb. The end result is a platter that’s as direct as it is deadly. Yet for all the bombast and bummer, His Electro Blue Voice still bring forth euphoric hooks and shards of shoegaze, if only to leave them strewn about within the mechanical wreckage. You can almost hear the sounds of the early 4AD roster in the grooves, left teetering between warped indie sensibility and creepy-crawl madness. Crazy sounding, but damned if it doesn’t stick in your head.

                                                                        Ruthless Sperm by His Electro Blue Voice: subtle as a construction site and precise like a leather gloved killer. This is the apocalypse. This is end times. Thankfully we get a decent soundtrack to go with it.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of An Object by No Age.

                                                                        No Age

                                                                        An Object

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        With An Object, their fourth full-length album, No Age has forgone the straight and narrow route, landing in a strange and unexpected place, feet planted in fresh, fertile soil. This new LP finds drummer/vocalist Dean Spunt exploding from behind his kit, landing percussive blows with amplified contact mics, 4-string bass guitars, and prepared speakers, as well as traditional forms of lumber and metal. Meanwhile, guitarist Randy Randall corrals his previously lush, spastic, sprawling arrangements into taught, refined, rats’ nests. Lyrically Spunt challenges space, fracturing ideological forms and complacency, creating a striking new perspective that reveals thematic preoccupations with structural ruptures and temporal limits.

                                                                        As the title An Object suggests, these eleven tracks are meant to be grasped, not simply heard. Whether in the fine grit of Randall’s sandpaper guitar scrapes on “Defector/ed,” or Spunt’s percussive stomp and crack on “Circling with Dizzy” and “An Impression,” these are songs that pivot on the sheer materiality of music-making, incorporating the process every step of the way. Still, this is hardly a work of avant garde noise music. These songs are hummable, political, recognizably rooted in underground rock, and informed by an understanding of sound as a material to be shaped, handled, and worked over. It is an aesthetic in which the relationships between guitar, percussion, and vocals—as well as those between rhythm and melody—become relationships between things.

                                                                        These relationships are built into An Object at every level. In collaboration with friend and Grammy-nominated designer Brian Roettinger (5 EP‘s, Nouns, Losing Feeling, Everything In Between), the band prepared and assembled the physical packaging of An Object, including jackets, inserts, and labels, fusing the roles of manufacturer, artist, and musician into one. It is this sense of the total work of art that underlines An Object as the culmination of two years of touring, writing, and performing, finding No Age moving into new terrain at the height of their powers.

                                                                        An Object was recorded by longtime No Age collaborator Facundo Bermudez and No Age at Gaucho’s Electronics in Los Angeles.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Me Moan by Daughn Gibson.

                                                                        Daughn Gibson

                                                                        Me Moan

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        The name is Daughn Gibson - rhymes with Jaughn, or Raughn.

                                                                        He first entered the daydreams of the general public in 2012 with his acclaimed debut, All Hell. Armed with modern technology and a pile of thrift-store records, Daughn shook the ghosts out of scratchy Christian folk records and baptized them as fierce Americana with his booming baritone voice.

                                                                        It's on Daughn's second album and Sub Pop debut, Me Moan, that he truly reveals himself to the world. If All Hell was a gritty black-and-white movie, Me Moan is a widescreen IMAX 3D extravaganza. While the roots of All Hell’s sample-based music remain, these songs are performed live, lushly detailed and richly orchestrated. Live drums, guitars (by John Baizley of Baroness and Jim Elkington of Brokeback), pedal steel, horns, house strings, bagpipes and organs appear on this record,

                                                                        Like Cormac McCarthy or Robert Altman, Daughn Gibson is a uniquely American artist who throws his soul into his work, free of compromise, possessed by unique vision and so damn intense that he constantly teeters on spontaneous combustion. It's not out of line to consider Me Moan as his Blood Meridian; his Nashville. All that's left is for you to let Daughn in.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Jackleg Devotional To The Heart by The Baptist Generals.

                                                                        The Baptist Generals

                                                                        Jackleg Devotional To The Heart

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        On The Baptist Generals’ sophomore album, the word ‘heart’ repeats eight times. The Denton, TX band, known for their haunting, claustrophobic take on drunken folk, needed ten full years to bare their hearts - one of which is in the album title, ‘Jackleg Devotional To The Heart’, a name that songwriter Chris Flemmons conjured shortly after he recorded, and then trashed, the album’s first attempt in 2005.

                                                                        Flemmons goes so far as to call this his ‘love album’, and it’s an apt description - though love through The Baptist Generals’ eyes is plenty complicated.

                                                                        The band’s vibraphones, guitarrons and ambient feedback combine like a mess of ventricles, aortas and veins - not to mention, from the sound of it, all of the blood spilled while ‘Jackleg…’ lurched for years toward an eventual finish line.

                                                                        Call it a love record, then. It’s the kind of love Flemmons had to figure out in the ten years since The Baptist Generals’ critically-acclaimed 2003 full-length debut ‘No Silver / No Gold’, a period in which he admits he’s fallen in love with a wild spectrum of music - the ‘Éthiopiques’ series, saxophonist Archie Shepp, film scorer Meredith Willson, and plenty more. That wide spectrum only befits ‘Jackleg…’s repeated need to buck genre; in fact, the 2005 version of the album hit the trash heap because “it sounded like any other indie rock-type band,” Flemmons admits.

                                                                        Co-produced by Stuart Sikes (Loretta Lynn, Cat Power, The Walkmen, Modest Mouse, The White Stripes) and the band’s Jason Reimer, ‘Jackleg Devotional To The Heart’ sounds like exactly no one else.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Traces Of Me by Survival Knife.

                                                                        Survival Knife

                                                                        Traces Of Me

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Survival Knife hail from Olympia, WA, and this is their first release (if you don’t count a soundboard recording of their first show that has been gathering praise all over the internet).

                                                                        The band, which features two of the three founding members of Northwest legends Unwound, pull together elements of Drive Like Jehu / Hot Snakes, Black Flag’s mid-period mathematical lurch, King Crimson and, of course, Unwound, for a taut and catchy post-hardcore crunch.

                                                                        Since their live debut in March 2012, they have shared stages with the likes of METZ, Bitch Magnet, Kinski and Hungry Ghost.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of The Tarnished Gold by Beachwood Sparks.

                                                                        Beachwood Sparks

                                                                        The Tarnished Gold

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        ‘The Tarnished Gold’ is the work of the classic Beachwood Sparks lineup: singer / guitarist Chris Gunst, singer / bassist Brent Rademaker, singer / multi-instrumentalist Farmer Dave Scher, and singer / drummer Aaron Sperske, with invaluable support from guitarist and longtime friend Ben Knight (The Tyde).

                                                                        For the sessions, the band expanded to seven pieces, with guitarists Knight and Neal Casal (solo artist and former member of Ryan Adams and The Cardinals), with Dan Horne on pedal steel in place of Scher, who opted to play organ, key, Flying V guitar and electrified melodica. Also lending a hand were Gunst’s wife Jen Cohen, Beachwood Sparks’ very first drummer Jimi Hey, Brent’s brother Darren (leader of The Tyde) and LA indie-rock maestro Ariel Pink. Producer Thom Monahan returned to his familiar spot behind the console.

                                                                        The world has caught up with Beachwood Sparks since they came out of nowhere in 2000 with their self-titled debut album, bringing new life to what Gram Parsons famously described as “cosmic American music”, and recapturing LA’s laidback but vibrant heyday back in the late 60s and early 70s. At the time, this kind of harmony-rich, irony-free music was rare.

                                                                        After their second album, 2002’s trippier ‘Once We Were Trees’, and the decidedly offbeat 2003 EP ‘Make The Cowboy Robots Cry’, Beachwood Sparks called it quits. But during the subsequent half decade, the indie music scene began to change with the appearance and wholesale acceptance of multi-voiced throwback groups from Fleet Foxes to Bon Iver to Grizzly Bear.

                                                                        STAFF COMMENTS

                                                                        Andy says: A band that splits up for ten years and comes back with the best thing they've ever done? Beachwood Sparks break the Rules Of Rock with this beautiful album.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Traps by Jaill.

                                                                        Jaill

                                                                        Traps

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        When Jaill nonchalantly stepped into the room with 2010’s ‘That’s How We Burn’, the group had already turned out a small catalogue of selfrecorded and self-released albums and EPs.

                                                                        SPIN said of ‘That’s How We Burn’, “What elevates their [Sub Pop] debut beyond your average tweepunk rager is the gentle psych dabblings: extra delay on a guitar solo, an errant ‘ooh-ahh-ooh,’ a dubby Panda Bear flourish, and the swirling noise that murmurs through the background.”

                                                                        Recorded throughout 2011 in Kircher’s crummy, poorly lit basement, with minimal gear and a control room of thrift store afghans, and mixed at NY’s Rare Book Room by Nicolas Vernhes.

                                                                        Milwaukee-based psych-pop three-piece confronting a malfunctioning universe with an inventive, lean 11-song album.

                                                                        STAFF COMMENTS

                                                                        Ryan says: Jaill have stuck with their jangly 90's anti-anthems since their last release but this time round, it all feels more confident and honed. Each track is a winner in it's own right!

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of The Slideshow Effect by Memoryhouse.

                                                                        Memoryhouse

                                                                        The Slideshow Effect

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Memoryhouse formed some five years ago in the depths of Southern Ontario, Canada, in a mid-size town called Guelph as a collaborative project meant to serve as an artistic outlet for composer Evan Abeele and photographer Denise Nouvion. Evan, a dedicated student of classical music and a pop-music encyclopaedist, intended Memoryhouse to be a multimedia art project, pairing his instrumental compositions with Denise’s photographs and short films. Testing ways to blur the boundaries between genres, to weave a synthesis of music and photography, they experimented with themes, lyrics and multiple layers of instrumentation. Nouvion’s soft, ethereal voice anchored the frozen textures of Abeeleâ's compositions with frank sentimentality—a unique approach towards humanizing the electro-pop compositions they were creating.

                                                                        The new album is called 'The Slideshow Effect' and its title speaks to what hasn’t changed for Memoryhouse: their continuing interest in the synthesis of the aural and the visual. It refers to the photographic/cinematic technique of zooming and panning to animate still images, often used in documentary film making to give movement to archival photographs. The 10-track album, produced by Abeele, with assistance from friend, collaborator, and occasional Memoryhouse bassist Barzin Hassani Rad, finds Memoryhouse heading toward a new clarity in composition as well as sound; a more organic direction for artists who are, in their own words, transitioning from a “bedroom recording project” into a fully realized band. Nouvion’s voice has never been more present than on the new album, which finds her stepping away from Memoryhouse’s past reverbed sound in favour of a more upfront, and intimate vocal approach.

                                                                        They half-seriously refer to their new sound as “Taylor Swift with Built to Spill as her backing band.”

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Creatures Of An Hour by Still Corners.

                                                                        Still Corners

                                                                        Creatures Of An Hour

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        The debut full length from Still Corners glows with the delicate vocals of singer Tessa Murray and the atmospheric, cinematic influences of songwriter Greg Hughes.

                                                                        Still Corners capture both the youthful tone of French New Wave and the unease of Italian horror, from the projections (created by band member Leon Dufficy) that feature heavily in their live performances, to the free-floating grace of ‘Creatures Of An Hour’.

                                                                        Recorded at Hughes’ own studio in Greenwich, fusing whispered intimacy to the emotional expansiveness of composer Ennio Morricone, Hughes crafts deceptively simple songs that linger like half-remembered dreams.

                                                                        STAFF COMMENTS

                                                                        Andy says: This has the faraway pang of Shoegaze, but alot more besides. Powerful, dark but pretty, propulsive songs, recall a more organic Broadcast or a gutsy Slowdive. Very good.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Cuckoo by Still Corners.

                                                                        Still Corners

                                                                        Cuckoo

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        From London, England and comprised of Tessa Murray (vocals), Greg Hughes (guitar and keys), Leon Dufficy (guitar) and Luke Jarvis (bass), Still Corners make music Fader describes as “gorgeous, shimmering pop”.

                                                                        The A-side ‘Cuckoo’ leads off their forthcoming Sub Pop debut.

                                                                        Influential bloggers Gorilla vs. Bear describe the bside ‘Endless Summer’ as “a gorgeous, swirling new dream-gaze gem”.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Dynamite Steps by The Twilight Singers.

                                                                        The Twilight Singers

                                                                        Dynamite Steps

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        The fifth album from Greg (Afghan Whigs / Gutter Twins) Dulli’s Twilight Singers collective, and the group’s first in five years.

                                                                        The Twilight Singers’ previous release, the acclaimed confessional opus "Powder Burns", came out in 2006.

                                                                        "Dynamite Steps" is clearly the next chapter, a whole new level of catharsis and progress, evocatively cramming all the highs and lows of the maverick singer-songwriter’s past half-decade into unexpected sonic trapdoors.

                                                                        'Shot on location' at various locales significant to Dulli’s life, you can hear the sense of place emanating up from the grooves of "Dynamite Steps". Here, the weary nighttime decadence of New Orleans rubs up against the oppressive sunshine of Los Angeles and the desolation of Joshua Tree’s desert vistas.

                                                                        "Dynamite Steps" explores the thin line between life and death, mortality and immortality, resignation and celebration—that mythical moment when your life flashes before your eyes, drawn out here over the course of eleven songs.

                                                                        The album’s forty-three minutes prove an unflinching odyssey through the dark side, but one that’s ultimately redemptive in its scope and power.

                                                                        Various guests contribute to the new album, including: Ani DiFranco, Joseph Arthur, Petra Haden, Carina Round, Nick McCabe (The Verve) and Mark Lanegan.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Everything In Between by No Age.

                                                                        No Age

                                                                        Everything In Between

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Recorded in Los Angeles from the end of 2009 and into 2010, "Everything In Between" is the new album from No Age, the duo of Dean Spunt and Randy Randall.

                                                                        The band emerged from former band Wives in 2005 to become No Age, worldwide glowing talismans for the DIY art-punk scene in LA, now famously known as having its epicentre at The Smell, a clubhouse where art-life/music life welded and inspired a creative movement and attitude which has fertilized a purple patch of likeminded punkers and artists around the globe.

                                                                        "Everything In Between" is a bold step in No Age’s creative evolution. It is a culmination of reflecting upon life’s ruptures and triumphs; the process of moving through these moments banged and bruised, yet better off for the wear and tear.

                                                                        The band have pushed themselves in different and challenging directions, deconstructing their weird-out pop songs while still maintaining their original aesthetic and intent.

                                                                        "Everything In Between" sees No Age expand on the emotional force at the core of their catchy songwriting through tone, structure, noise, and samples.



                                                                        STAFF COMMENTS

                                                                        Darryl says: Combining all that's good about No Age; incendiary guitar blasts, noodling experimental art-noise bits, and a melodic know how, "Everything In Between" is another winner from the duo.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Glitter by No Age.

                                                                        No Age

                                                                        Glitter

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        No Age is the Los Angeles duo of Dean Spunt and Randy Randall. They’ve pushed themselves in challenging and different directions, deconstructing their weird-out pop songs while still maintaining their original aesthetic and intent.
                                                                        Where their explorations in sound were previously suspended separately around instrumental reveries and misty coatings of distortion, these abstractions are now adding to the emotion and euphoria throughout every song.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of That's How We Burn by Jaill.

                                                                        Jaill

                                                                        That's How We Burn

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Recalling the glory of 90s lo-fi, these songs possess a sinewy tension honed from years of basement shows, and gritty rock sense born of  enduring cold Midwest winter months.

                                                                        Vincent Kircher, Austin Dutmer, Andrew Harris and Ryan Adams are a  somewhat sneaky, rarely sleazy group of guys from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Together, they are Jaill, a self-described psych-pop combo who play with undeniable guts.

                                                                        Recorded at the Mystery Room studio with Justin Perkins, the new Jaill album "That’s How We Burn" finds the band wrapping its head and arms more solidly around a sound they’ve been building up for nearly a decade, their Wisconsin sensibilities lending to a laid-back but creatively effortless brand of pop, with bright guitars and amped-up energy skipping like a stone over Kircher’s dense lyrics, only to sink into momentary mellow moments.

                                                                        STAFF COMMENTS

                                                                        Darryl says: New on Sub Pop, Jaill marry a 90s indie-slacker style approach with some wonderful psyche-pop melodies.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Nothing Hurts by Male Bonding.

                                                                        Male Bonding

                                                                        Nothing Hurts

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Emerging from the fertile D.I.Y. rock scene in Dalston, a gentrification-proof London neighbourhood with ample 'lo-fi' bands and Turkish restaurants, noise-pop trio Male Bonding plays fast.

                                                                        "Nothing Hurts", the band’s first full-length, gets it done in half an hour, and most songs clock in at around two minutes. But, there’s much more to Male Bonding than high-speed, high-impact punk. If you will know their velocity, you will remember their melodies. Every song on "Nothing Hurts", whether a clipped, snarling rock anthem (“All Things This Way,” “Crooked Scene,” “Pumpkin”) or something more foggy and contemplative (“Franklin,” “Worse to Come”), carries a hook that’s immediate and permanent.

                                                                        "Nothing Hurts" was recorded in the fall of 2009 in New York and mixed and mastered by Pete Lyman at Infrasonic Sound.



                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Keep In Mind Frankenstein by Grand Archives.

                                                                        Grand Archives

                                                                        Keep In Mind Frankenstein

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Mat Brooke, formerly of cultish favourite Carissa's Wierd and Piccadilly favourites Band Of Horses, re-emerged in 2006 with his new project Grand Archives. "Keep In Mind Frankenstein", their second full-length album, like much of its predecessor, was crafted at Paradise Sound with help from producer Ben Kersten. A few friends dropped by during recording including Brooke's former Carissa's Weird cohorts Jenn Ghetto and Sera Cahoone, who sang backing vocals, and Jason Kardong, who added the gorgeous streaks of pedal steel across the wistful sweep of "Oslo Novelist". For the most part, Grand Archives played everything, especially the weird bits, and while it's a little darker than the first record, the album is made up of disparate elements artfully fitted together and brought to life with affecting results.

                                                                        FORMAT INFORMATION

                                                                        CD Info: CD is beautifully packaged in mini-gatefold sleeve with gold foil-stamped print.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Around The Well by Iron And Wine.

                                                                        Iron And Wine

                                                                        Around The Well

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Collecting songs ranging from out-of-print to never-before-released, "Around The Well" spans Iron and Wine's earliest sessions which yielded the band's debut (2002's "The Creek Drank the Cradle") through to material recorded for 2007's "The Shepherd's Dog". The "Around The Well" collection is broken up into two sections. The first half is an assortment of hushed home recordings, unedited and raw, and the second highlights moments captured in the confines of proper studios with the help of other musicians, friends and engineers. The album's title comes from a line in the song "The Trapeze Swinger", a fan favourite which was written for and included in the movie 'In Good Company'. Three more songs written and recorded for the film finally make their appearance here as well: "Belated Promise Ring", "God Made The Automobile" and "Homeward, These Shoes". "Around The Well" also brings together hard-to-find covers such as The Flaming Lips' "Waitin' for a Superman" and New Order's "Love Vigilantes", along with one of Iron and Wine's earliest originals, "Sacred Vision".

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of The Sea & The Rhythm by Iron & Wine.

                                                                        Iron & Wine

                                                                        The Sea & The Rhythm

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        Sam Beam returned in 2003 with a follow-up mini album to his acclaimed debut "The Creek Drank The Cradle". The songs contained here were culled from the same batch of bedroom recordings from which the first album sprang, and it serves as a precursor to Iron & Wine's second album, the wonderful "Our Endless Numbered Days".

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Stray Age by Daniel Martin Moore.

                                                                        Daniel Martin Moore

                                                                        Stray Age

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        The first thing you'll notice about Daniel Martin Moore's debut, "Stray Age" is its simplicity. It's a folk record, evoking certain feelings (as all good records should), but there's a gentle approach to its sound and the way Moore's voice phrases his words. Those reference points are really just that, though. Moore is most captivating as a singer, one who doesn't seem concerned with usual folkie fodder. "Stray Age," is rich with understated complexities that take you to places that people like Nick Drake and Mojave 3/Slowdive principle Neil Halstead have been cited as doing and there's a soft swing in the vocals reminiscent of Chet Baker.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]
                                                                        Cover of Saturnalia by The Gutter Twins (Mark Lanegan & Greg Dulli).

                                                                        The Gutter Twins (Mark Lanegan & Greg Dulli)

                                                                        Saturnalia

                                                                        Sub Pop

                                                                        "Saturnalia" is the first album from The Gutter Twins, the collaboration forged in late 2003 by Mark Lanegan and fellow maverick singer-songwriter Greg Dulli. "Saturnalia" finds the axis Dulli nicknamed 'the Satanic Everly Brothers' going even deeper into the shadows than ever before. Mystical, unpredictable, ultimately masterful, the album both embodies and defies any expectations suggested by the principals' individual notoriety. Pointedly not resting on the sonic laurels of their previous successes, "Saturnalia" instead proves rootsy but baroque, handmade yet modernist, teeming with siren melodies that don't resolve. Produced by Dulli and Lanegan along with the band's unofficial third member Mathias Schneeberger, the album's eerie modal swirls trap the listener in each song's atmosphere; simultaneously evoking everything from Indian sitars to Appalachian folk and Delta grit, the drones inadvertently create narcotic hooks. Spartan electronica indelibly collides with spooky space blues on "Who Will Lead Us?"; "Idle Hands" fuses Middle Eastern exoticism with shocking guitar riffs that shoot AC/DC boogie into another fucking galaxy. What Dulli and Lanegan achieve here ultimately feels like the determinedly individual product of two auteurs coming together.

                                                                        [ + ]
                                                                        [ - ]

                                                                        next 100

                                                                        Latest Pre-Sales

                                                                        178 NEW ITEMS
                                                                        Ned Doheny - Think Like A Lover (Mudd's Extended Versions)

                                                                        Ned DohenyThink Like A Lover (Mudd's Extended Versions)

                                                                        Christy Essien - One Understanding

                                                                        Christy EssienOne Understanding

                                                                        Various Artists - Forgot 002

                                                                        Various ArtistsForgot 002

                                                                        Various Artists - Interferencias Vol 2

                                                                        Various ArtistsInterferencias Vol 2

                                                                        Dwarves - Rex Everything

                                                                        DwarvesRex Everything

                                                                        Jack White - Over And Over And Over / Everything You've Ever Learned

                                                                        Jack WhiteOver And Over And Over / Everything You've Ever Learned

                                                                        Miss Red - K.O.

                                                                        Miss RedK.O.

                                                                        Basement Revolver - Heavy Eyes

                                                                        Basement RevolverHeavy Eyes

                                                                        Swans - Soundtracks For The Blind - Reissue

                                                                        SwansSoundtracks For The Blind - Reissue

                                                                        Echo & The Bunnymen - The Stars, The Oceans & The Moon

                                                                        Echo & The BunnymenThe Stars, The Oceans & The Moon

                                                                        The Flaming Lips - Seeing The Unseeable: The Complete Studio Recordings Of The Flaming Lips 1986-1990

                                                                        The Flaming LipsSeeing The Unseeable: The Complete Studio Recordings Of The Flaming Lips 1986-1990

                                                                        Violent Femmes - Hallowed Ground

                                                                        Violent FemmesHallowed Ground

                                                                        Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes

                                                                        Violent FemmesViolent Femmes

                                                                        Violent Femmes - Permanent Record: The Very Best Of Violent Femmes

                                                                        Violent FemmesPermanent Record: The Very Best Of Violent Femmes

                                                                        Tom Waits - Small Change - Remastered

                                                                        Tom WaitsSmall Change - Remastered

                                                                        Various Artists - Spider-Jazz - KPM Cues Used In The Amazing Animated Series - That We Are Not Allowed To Mention For Legal Reasons

                                                                        Various ArtistsSpider-Jazz - KPM Cues Used In The Amazing Animated Series - That We Are Not Allowed To Mention For Legal Reasons

                                                                        Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson - Apart

                                                                        Pete Yorn & Scarlett JohanssonApart

                                                                        Twain - Rare Feeling

                                                                        TwainRare Feeling

                                                                        Sun Ra - God Is More Than Love Will Ever Be

                                                                        Sun RaGod Is More Than Love Will Ever Be

                                                                        Damian O'Neill & The Monotones - Refit Revise Reprise

                                                                        Damian O'Neill & The MonotonesRefit Revise Reprise

                                                                        Pacific Coliseum - Ocean City

                                                                        Pacific ColiseumOcean City

                                                                        Al Zanders - Guidance

                                                                        Al ZandersGuidance

                                                                        Marlui Miranda - Tchori Tchori (Brasingles Vol.1)

                                                                        Marlui MirandaTchori Tchori (Brasingles Vol.1)

                                                                        Benedikt Frey - New Now

                                                                        Benedikt FreyNew Now

                                                                        Zodiac Trax - Zodiac Trax

                                                                        Zodiac TraxZodiac Trax

                                                                        Ditongo - Editales Vol. 1

                                                                        DitongoEditales Vol. 1

                                                                        Crotocosm (Willie Burns & Jordan GCZ) - Setting The Scene For An Island Battle

                                                                        Crotocosm (Willie Burns & Jordan GCZ)Setting The Scene For An Island Battle

                                                                        Arktapes - Arktapes002

                                                                        ArktapesArktapes002

                                                                        K100 Signal - Following / Implosion

                                                                        K100 SignalFollowing / Implosion

                                                                        CV - Special Delivery Vol. 4 - A Collection Of Dysfunctional Edits By CV

                                                                        CVSpecial Delivery Vol. 4 - A Collection Of Dysfunctional Edits By CV

                                                                        Body Beat Ritual - Mortal Sin

                                                                        Body Beat RitualMortal Sin

                                                                        Various Artists - Broken District 02

                                                                        Various ArtistsBroken District 02

                                                                        Chevals - Spirit Of Rhythm EP

                                                                        ChevalsSpirit Of Rhythm EP

                                                                        Various Artists - Tambours De Martinique

                                                                        Various ArtistsTambours De Martinique

                                                                        Albion - Volym Tva

                                                                        AlbionVolym Tva

                                                                        Get Down Edits - Festival EP

                                                                        Get Down EditsFestival EP

                                                                        Juan Maclean - Panic In Fort Greene Park EP

                                                                        Juan MacleanPanic In Fort Greene Park EP

                                                                        Various Artists - Tropical Disco Edits Vol. 3

                                                                        Various ArtistsTropical Disco Edits Vol. 3

                                                                        Mr. Fries - WOLFEP045

                                                                        Mr. FriesWOLFEP045

                                                                        The O'Jays - For The Love Of Money / Darlin' Darlin' Baby (Sweet, Tender, Love)

                                                                        The O'JaysFor The Love Of Money / Darlin' Darlin' Baby (Sweet, Tender, Love)

                                                                        Pau Roca - Pleasure Of Edits 2

                                                                        Pau RocaPleasure Of Edits 2

                                                                        Various Artists - Love Bite EP

                                                                        Various ArtistsLove Bite EP

                                                                        Michael Iwatsu - Fracture

                                                                        Michael IwatsuFracture

                                                                        Various Artists - BRBL002

                                                                        Various ArtistsBRBL002

                                                                        Felix Leifur - The Tarleton Appreciation Club

                                                                        Felix LeifurThe Tarleton Appreciation Club

                                                                        Ebo Taylor - Yen Ara Remixes Part 1

                                                                        Ebo TaylorYen Ara Remixes Part 1

                                                                        Kito Jempere - Sea Monster - Remixes Part 2

                                                                        Kito JempereSea Monster - Remixes Part 2

                                                                        Theo Kottis - Beautiful Strangers

                                                                        Theo KottisBeautiful Strangers

                                                                        K15 - Be Glad You Create Anything

                                                                        K15Be Glad You Create Anything

                                                                        Various Artists - Cult Edits 002

                                                                        Various ArtistsCult Edits 002

                                                                        👌🏻 We open at 11am. https://t.co/aPveOpTT7H
                                                                        Sun 20th - 6:42
                                                                        The most chilled album for this glorious sunny weather, out next week!! PREORDER: Fitz Ambrose & Submerse 'Villa Ro… https://t.co/dKeOaPTizk
                                                                        Sat 19th - 11:22
                                                                        Happy Saturday everyone. Now that brilliant madness of #rsd18 is out of the way here comes the return of the “10 fo… https://t.co/ysFCVPzTTL
                                                                        Sat 19th - 9:05
                                                                        We’ve just taken delivery of some record storage carry cases. Available on line and on the website. Follow the link… https://t.co/JELQRNn2zx
                                                                        Fri 18th - 3:38
                                                                        If you managed to catch @CharlesWatson__ on @BBC6Music in session for @laurenlaverne today and liked what you heard… https://t.co/kLLzIpzvwB
                                                                        Fri 18th - 2:24
                                                                        E-newsletter —
                                                                        Sign up
                                                                        Back to top