Not that you’ll thank us, but we’re bringing you some serious reissue heat.
Hello, Friends.
Songs '94-'98 is a really dreamy collection of songs from Australian indie-pop group The Cat's Miaow. A supergroup formed in the fertile Melbourne scene, they released a pristine set of DIY pop songs that feel very much like an antipodean take on C86 or Sarah Records. Slow, pretty, sad, woozing and weirdly sun-drenched... Or maybe that's just today's take on things. Really worth checking out.
This week see's the first Matador pressing of Pavement's Westing (By Musket And Sextant), the compilation of EPs, singles and other Pavement early work from 1989-1993. It was originally released around the world between Drag City, Big Cat, Domino and the iconic Flying Nun, incidentally. Even as the massive SM fans that we are, it's nice hearing Spiral Stairs singing quite a bit too.
A fascinating release on RVNG INTL this week with American Rituals, a collection of early recordings from Cheri Knight. She received some mid-career success as a straight-up folk singer (working with Steve Earle and Emmylou Harris amongst others), but this collection looks at her DIY roots studying music composition at the free-thinking Evergreen State College outside Olympia, Washington. Some pretty wild sections, but this really is an enthralling set of mod synth meditations and vocal loops.
This week's Jazz gold comes from Louisiana-born tenor saxophonist Don Wilkerson with the joyous Preach Brother! and fellow saxophonist George Braith with the soulful Extension. Both originally on Blue Note, both full of high energy and very much recommended.
Rounding out today's Jazz reissues is the always-essential Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. The duo recorded the session pretty much on the fly and the 1956 album was the first of the three they'd go on to record. This edition is via Verve's Acoustic Sounds Series and features transfers from analog tapes and remastered 180 gram vinyl in deluxe gatefold packaging.
Idlewild's The Remote Part gets a Twentieth Anniversary pressing, its first issue since debuting back in 2002. Has the breakout 'You Held the World in Your Arms' single, but it's all the growling album tracks that makes this one such a gem.
Twice as old and celebrating turning 40 is Talk Talk's shimmering debut, The Party's Over. Any of you who have found the band posthumously through Laughing Stock or Mark Hollis' solo LP do really need to go back and check this out, about as sonically different as you can get, but the melancholy behind the sunshine is just amazing.
As we mentioned a few weeks back, Woodsist have put together a little volley of essential reissues, with the lo-fi-iconic Real Estate debut LP, plus limited colour vinyl pressings of Kevin Morby's excellent Harlem River debut and the succeeding second studio LP, Still Life. Both of the Morby LPs are on colour vinyl.
In very short supply, we are delighted to bring you some very limited represses on Numbers from the genuinely groundbreaking and very dearly missed SOPHIE. We have the debut 12" NOTHING MORE TO SAY, also the BIPP / ELLE and LEMONADE / HARD releases. If you want some summer-hot bangers, look no further.
Light In The Attic have made a very limited UK exclusive 'Clear Red with Metallic Silver' vinyl pressing of Nancy Sinatra's Boots LP. In all likelihood our 2022 most-played album already, it's just got such amazing vibes and we encourage you all to get well and truly involved.
Lastly today and very much burning a hole through the Drift stereo with its white-hot-heat, Strut present the first box set release to bring together the 1970s recordings of The Pyramids. Aomawa: The 1970s Recordings charts the band's three albums (produced without any label backing or distribution between 1972 and 1976) of wild, varied avant-garde experimentalisms. African-styled percussion, chanting and free jazz that swells and flows. Very highly recommended.
Do stay cool, and all eyes on us for a DOUBLE DINKED announcement tomorrow.
- Drift