Lots of excellent new sounds, for... However you listen to them these days.
Our Record of the Week is Open For Business, the delicious new LP from transcontinental, experimental duo Smoke Bellow. The Baltimore-via-Australia pair (or actually 'relocating from Australia to Baltimore, MD and back again... And then BACK AGAIN to firmly settle in Baltimore', as they explain) make dense and complicated songs that build and loop to really glorious affect. Simple and quite primitive, it's all about putting stuff in and taking it away, it's ever-evolving music. It's a low-key, slow-burning beauty, very highly recommended.
+ It's out via Trouble In Mind and we have a limited Gold colour vinyl pressing.
A big return this week from José González with his new Local Valley LP on City Slang. Overall, it's a really joyous record, his unbelievably fast fingers in more of a Tropicália mood than the darker hues of his earlier LPs. There are shadows, but the melancholia is more sun drenched. Really good.
+ our Indie LP is pressed on translucent Green colour vinyl.
Going Going Gone is the third solo LP from psychedelic popper Mild High Club... And it's well good! Funnily enough, our Lee was warming up the shop stereo (and staff morale) with The Doobie Brothers this morning, an excellent palette setter for this rich and super-fun new outing. A glimmering mix of jazzy instrumentals and slick synths, it's technically brilliant and avoids just aping other records with a bubbling set of directions.
+ Indie LP is pressed on Green colour vinyl.
The excellent Jordan Rakei releases his new What We Call Life LP on Ninja Tune and it's quite a sidestep. He's always had his own sound, but this LP really gives a lot more of himself, vocally especially with a very present and quite intense delivery. Loads going on, loads to discover.
+ Indie LP is pressed on translucent Pistachio Green colour vinyl. Nice Obi-Strip too!
Prepare once again for the hike to the basecamp of the towering, rainbow-coloured monolith of pure psych that is... The moving mountain. Also on the ever-excellent Trouble In Mind (they really are) this week is World What World, the new LP from The New Haven quartet Mountain Movers. Free-flowing jams with equal parts dark and light energy, really like this.
+ Indie LP is pressed on Purple Majesty colour vinyl.
The self-titled E.Vax LP is a really bubbling set of poppy experiments from Ratatat's Evan Mast. The production is so good, so many weird choices to drive along the songs with plenty of hooks.
+ Limited White 140g Vinyl, 33 rpm, printed 3mm spine Sleeve made of recyclable Bagasse cardboard (made of sugar cane, linen & hemp), black dust inner.
Grapefruit Season is the much-hyped return of James Vincent McMorrow. Sounds like dosh well spent and we have some limited, indie exclusive Pink colour vinyl copies.
Charley Crockett releases a great set of Country-swooners on Music City USA. We have a limited, signed print LP if you act fast.
And lastly for this week's new releases, The Beths release a fantastic live record with Auckland, New Zealand, 2020. Such good jangle!
We'll write to you tomorrow about the not-new Records of the Week, including; Nancy Sinatra, Laraaji, Moon Duo, Primal Scream, Bob Dylan, Buena Vista Social Club and a special 50th Anniversary Edition of Jesus Christ Superstar... So if you come to visit us in person anytime soon, do expect us to be blasting weird funk numbers about the Apostles.
- Drift
