A week of welcome returns.
Hello, Friends.
We’ll be honest, a new Be Your Own Pet after some fifteen odd years was not in our 2023 projections, but we’re always glad to lack foresight in these situations! Partially at the behest of Jack White, and long after they burned out way too fast, Mommy finds a totally revitalised BYOP back with a lot of bristle and angst. It is in fact an album full of angst, it just has progressed from the adolescence of their first two albums into a garage rock gnarler for 2023. Jemina Pearl sounds amazing in the eye of the storm; it’s a really up record, our record of this new week in fact.
+ Available on limited Green colour vinyl.
Haunted Mountain is the new solo LP from singer/songwriter and Big Thief guitarist Buck Meek. It was predominantly recorded as live as possible with a hi-fi-lo-fi approach, the vibe is pretty strong. It’s quite disarming in that way, it has such a mellow bounce that you realise he’s singing about something sad, which hits. A lot of the songs were written in partnership with Jolie Holland, of whom Buck Meek in return contributed to her new record… which is also called Haunted Mountain! We’ll talk more about that one at some point, but this Haunted Mountain is good stuff, perhaps his best solo LP yet.
+ Available on limited Green vinyl.
+ Buck has signed us some 12” art cards.
Willie J Healey returns this week with his third studio LP - Bunny - and it really is a bountiful listen. He’s always illustrated himself to be a sharp songwriter, which allows his stylistic direction to change and on this occasion it’s a squelching funk and soul pop record. Dense and sonically abundant, the production and arrangement is excellent, avoiding a messy listen and instead bringing flashes of euphoria in and out of the mix.
+ Available on exclusive Clear vinyl.
Jump For Joy is the new album from North Carolina’s Hiss Golden Messenger and it is…a joyous one! MC Taylor has always surrounded himself with impeccable players and he leads a rich and lovingly observed trip through rock and roll soul. His always unmistakable vocals sound rich and warm and the ensemble really do deliver a honey-drenched euphoria. A sonic blam.
+ Pressed on a wild-looking Orange & Black Marble vinyl.
+ Either format will include a signed poster whilst stocks last.
Austin TX glam punks A Giant Dog release Bite via Merge Records. It is tightly wound, such big production with complex arrangements flowing through operatic rock, cinematics and plenty of crunch to both the vocals and the riffs. It’s a huge first listen, but plenty to discover as you go back.
+ Available on Opaque Green colour vinyl.
Partisan Records reissue/full-release the self-titled Sun's Signature EP that debuted on RSD a while back. The duo - Elizabeth Fraser (Cocteau Twins) and Damon Reece (Spiritualized, Massive Attack) - create cinematic swoons, with Fraser’s voice sounding as dynamic and ethereal as ever.
+ The 12” is pressed on Marbled Yellow vinyl.
+ The CD includes a bonus disc with remixes by John Grant, CUTS, Will Gregory, Gwenno, LUMP, and Hinako Omori.
Lastly this week, Bay Area experimental pop mastermind Chrystia Cabral returns as SPELLLING, with Spellling & The Mystery School, a conceptual revisit to her previous work. Recorded with her touring band, the songs receive fresh arrangements and plenty of new life. It’s like they have all stepped out of the haze and mist with shimmering rhythms, retaining the ghostliness and successfully going somewhere.
+ Pressed on Purple colour vinyl.
Some great reissues in the racks too, with; Nina Simone, Sea Power’s Man of Aran, Emeralds and Kurt Vile’s still hazy Wakin On A Pretty Daze. A banger!
