This week we made a Zebra printer work... It just keeps getting better and better over at the Drift.
Hello, Friends.
Record of the Week is Straight Songs of Sorrow, a gripping new set from Mark Lanegan. His memoir* 'Sing Backwards and Weep' was released last week and has been getting rave reviews, the release of this new LP feels in many ways like a companion piece. It's unflinching in tone, but the darkness doesn't feel like a deliberate dressing, it's just dark. Production is really good, lots of guests (Warren Ellis, Shelley Brien, Adrian Utley, Greg Dulli, Ed Harcourt) and the little electronic gestures and muted instrumentation really draw you in. Another great collection from a very original voice.
A really beautiful album next from a band we love a lot and were thrilled to work with on a Dinked Edition. The Weight of the Sun is the new album from kosmiche folk-rock quartet Modern Studies. A glorious compendium of haunted disco hallelujahs, mercurial krautrock chorales, cosmic pop adagios and euphoric, resilient, anthems. Individually and collectively they have always been fine songwriters, but there is something unquestionably BIGGER about this new album. It feels perfectly delivered. Highly recommended.
+ We have our last few Dinked copies online now here.
• Exclusive 'Sunburst Splatter' vinyl
• Limited to just 300 copies, world-wide
• Exclusive numbered lyric sheet
The Swedish duo I Break Horses return on Bella Union this week with Warnings. Everything about this one is spectacularly dramatic, it's about the contrasts of light and dark. There are loads of moments of high tension and some big pay offs as you'd expect. Not as euphoric or glimmering as their early work, but Warnings has a distinct and cinematic vibe all of it's own and is already one we're instinctively playing a lot.
+ Available on double clear vinyl.
Regresa is the much anticipated debut album from Buscabulla. The album, recorded in its entirety in Raquel’s and Luis Alfredo’s home studio in Puerto Rico, is an emotional rollercoaster. The country was devastated in the wake of Hurricane María in 2017, and María almost feels like the antagonist here. There are however moments of hope and it's that battle playing out that is such a joy. It's got really exotic beats and the slick production makes for a hypnotic album. Enjoying this muchly.
+ Indie Edition LP on Pink vinyl, and includes download
Grammy-winning RAC (Andre Allen Anjos) returns with his highly anticipated new album BOY on Counter Records. The guests all add to the mix and it really is super inventive pop, if we see a little bit of sunshine, this is going to be pumping on the radio!
+ Indies Edition 2LP is on 140g opaque pink & white splatter vinyl
+ Standard Edition 2LP is on 140g 'pink glass' vinyl
Third Man Records have reissued Redd Kross' two beloved 1990s albums, Phaseshifter (1993) and Show World (1997) as limited 180-gram vinyl-only editions, the first-ever North American vinyl pressings of either album. Later next month Merge are reissuing the bands debut EP which is up for preorder now.
In the Third Man box we also had an essential restock on the Earth Live at Third Man Records release, and American Epic: The Best Of Blind Willie Johnson. Been playing both today over here.
Keep an eye on the @driftrecordshop socials for anything else landing.
Other Notes.
- Very last few Babak Gangei 'Sea Change 2020' prints are in the shop now and looking very handsome.
- New releases up for preorder from Rufus Wainwright, NZCA LINES, Wire, Fontaines D.C. and more. Browse them here: driftrecords.com/preorder
- Our May Record of the Month is and will continue to be Tim Burgess I Love The New Sky. We'll talk more about it in a couple of weeks, but it's honestly a marvel.
- Visit us on Instagram today as we're going to be posting a Richard Russell competition.
- Hope you're all doing okay and keeping mentally nourished. Lets be in touch.
* Hoping to have copies of Mark Lanegan's 'Sing Backwards and Weep' shortly.
- Drift
