Oh my heck. Some massive new records, a couple of Dinked Editions and a duo of essential reissues. Total vibes.
Hello, Friends.
Record of the Week is the euphoric return of Sleater-Kinney with The Center Won’t Hold, their ninth studio LP. It was produced with St. Vincent and creatively it's arguably the biggest step into new territory in their exemplary twenty-five years as a band. The energy remains taught with plenty of drive, the subtlety is in the glimmering new tones. It's an album of pop bangers where nothing sounds the same but it all sits beautifully together. The only melancholy is that this will (likely) be the last album with drummer Janet Weiss who announced she has left the band. The upside is that it will cause the brilliantly dynamic and utterly fearless band to evolve once more.
+ Deluxe Edition is: Heavyweight black vinyl in a gatefold sleeve with an inner bag. Includes a bonus black on a limited 7” and a sticker sheet!
Spoilt this week with another of our absolute favs dropping a new LP. Living legends Oh Sees release their twenty-something-th album - Face Stabber - a double album that hits all the usual highs and takes the band off into some groove-heavy new waters. Genuinely psychedelic with some burned out riffs for the bad trips and long jazzy sprawlers for those high-highs. As life-long fans you'll never get anything other than two thumbs from us, but this latest slab will delight the OC heads and will totally bring them to a new audience. My word what a band.
+ Punchline... We have CD copies now, but the LP (and deluxe LPs) will drop later this month.
Ride release their second post-reunion album in This Is Not a Safe Place. They really have mastered a comeback brilliantly, just enough of their early haze, but sonically they really have extended out what they do with some gloriously jangling guitars and vocally there is some clarity here that is more indebted to The Byrds than Ride V1. Really enjoying this a lot.
+ Afraid the limited indie LP didn't touch the sides.
* We have five signed Ride posters on the counter. We're going to think of a fun way to give these away, so keep an eye on our social pages next week.
It's a double Dinked Edition week with two absolutely lush new albums.
In numerical order, No. 19 welcomes back Benjamin John Power as Blanck Mass with the brutal new Animated Violence Mild. We've seen it billed quite a lot this week as a "delirious soundtrack to the apocalypse", which does indeed go a long way to articulating this beast. Layers and layers of intricate beats and textures collide in waves of crunching distortion and gnar. It's fully primal music and no one gets close to him.
+ We will have a last few Dinked Editions available online next week, but we're afraid to report that the stock will be arriving in two waves. If you have ordered already, you will get your copy, it just might be late next week, email if you're freaking out.
+ We have a limited indie pressing on green vinyl.
Edition No.21 is the magnificent No Ground To Walk Upon from Here Lies Man. Always arriving with the question What if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat?, the L.A. based band comprised of Antibalas members sure can hold a sun scorched riff or two. It's got such a great groove to it, they lock you in and take you on a trip, it really is such a great ride.
+ We are going to stick the last few copies in stock NOW of the special Dinked Edition. Get clicking!
Shura returns on Secretly Canadian with forevher, a joyous album of sparkling pop songs. It's romantic and full of hope, been playing this loads.
+ First edition pressed on semi-translucent blue vinyl.
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard drop album number 373 with Infest The Rats' Nest, a riotous and fuzzy album of thrash metal. A stark companion to April's Fishing For Fishies, it's kind of the most direct album they have made in ages, tons of energy and no changes of pace... Just rawk.
Thrashing Thru The Passion is The Hold Steady’s seventh studio album. The album collects five new songs recorded this year alongside five acclaimed ones released digitally between November 2017 and March 2019.
+ Indie Exclusive LP on Brown Vinyl.
After eight years away, Friendly Fires return with Inflorescent. The venn diagram has shifted away from the poppy hooks and they now occupy the area that relies less on the chorus, it's more based on rhythm and beats, some really lush builds going on.
+ Limited indie version is pressed on florescent purple coloured vinyl.
Also this week, Frank Turner releases No Man’s Land (including an indie edition on white vinyl), we have stock of the superb self-titled Cross Record album (an edition LP on Translucent Orange Vinyl that is limited to just 500 copies), the self-titled Mallory Knox LP and Lillie Mae's Other Girls on Third Man. Big shout out to the Third Man fans, the limited Indie shop exclusive is on rainbow splatter coloured vinyl and limited to just 1000 copies! Making that live now... no fighting please.
Couple of limited singles that have us going this week... Going Norway is Girl Band’s second single following their 4-year hiatus, a two track 7” with an exclusive B side taking the same name as their upcoming album The Talkies. Only got a few of these, superb artwork. Another big return with Georgia dropping two 12" singles via Domino. Upbeat Chicago house vibes with Started Outand grinding electro-pop with About Work The Dancefloor.
The Horrors release a double LP of remixes this week, featuring Gabe Gurnsey, Giant Swan, Richard Fearless and more. V Remixed on Wolf Tone, don't miss this one, we have like half a dozen.
Lastly this week - and sponsored by our Lee who is a mega fan - Explosions in the Sky and Temporary Residence Ltd reissue their utterly beguiling How Strange, Innocence and The Rescue albums. Full of epic builds and delicate explosions, they really do make some serious magic. Remastered, repackaged and reissued to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the band, both of them feature a very limited colour vinyl pressing. Can't see these lasting the weekend.
We'll be sticking a playlist on the website later on, might help you navigate this mega week, honestly... it is full of treasures. Open late for drinks on Friday and Saturday where we're going to sneak on some white labels we've gotten our hands on, come crush a can.
- Drift
