Awesome Color – Massa Hypnos LP (Ecstatic Peace)
Michigan’s finest export in decades! Dark psychedelic guitar rock that will destroy your brain. Biting choruses, tons of noise and MC5 parts. Gatefold LP with poster, limited to 500.
Black Sleep of Kali – Our Slow Decay (Small Stone)
Denver’s premier stoner rock / doom band, with singer and guitarist Taylor Williams (Lifeless, Glacial) doing his best to permanently injure your hearing. The record has lots of buried harmonies and intricate time signatures, and might be the bastard child of Quicksand and Sleep.
Drop Dead – Discography 1991-1993 (Armageddon Label)
Extremely pissed off hardcore punk with intelligent lyrics. These guys make your band look like The Jonas Brothers. 39 song collection, finally back in print. Years ago I saw a Drop Dead 8 track at Double Decker Records. It was fully operational, with 20 songs on it, complete with sticker, cardboard case and lyrics. I looked over and asked them how much it was, and someone said, “Oh, they just made that one.” That is how awesome this band is.
Tarentel – Home Ruckus: Bottled Smoke 7 (self released)
Home recordings from 2007, Tarentel plays ambient instrumental post rock. Essentially they are geniuses who disguise themselves as a band. They also release a ton of material each year, all of which is extremely different and rewarding (not to mention fun to collect). These six songs are shorter, unpolished pieces and remind me of their “Ghost Weight” era.
Gauge – 153 (Shakefork)
153 is an hour long documentary about Gauge, a band from Downer’s Grove, Illinois. Gauge began on New Years Day 1991, and played post hardcore inspired by the Dischord / Sammich scene of the late 80’s in Washington DC. They released several records and broke up in 1994, which was right around the same time that all the younger bands in that scene (Capt Jazz, Joan of Arc and Braid) started signing lucrative record contracts. The movie is a combination of reunion show footage and interviews, and is incredibly well put together by director & editor Matt Golin. A must see for fans.
OFF! – 7” Box Set (Vice)
I know this isn’t out yet, but I can hardly contain myself. OFF! formed last year, and feature Keith Morris from Circle Jerks and Black Flag singing, Dimitri Coats from Burning Brides on guitar,
Steven McDonald of Redd Kross on bass and Mario Rubalcaba (Rocket From The Crypt, Hot Snakes, Clikitat Ikatowi) on drums. The first 7” comes out on October 12th, which will then be followed by a four 7” box set.
The Pixies – Acoustic and Electric (Eagle Rock)
Pre-ordered this DVD after watching a preview online, and I’m really psyched. It contains two full shows from 2005, one of which is acoustic. It also contains a show from TT The Bears in 1986. Mandatory viewing for Pixies fans!
Antidote – Thou Shalt Not Kill (Bridge Nine)
If for some reason you don’t already own this New York hardcore punk classic, now’s your chance to get it on vinyl and/or CD, courtesy of Bridge Nine Records. Eight blister-inducing anthems recorded in 1983, featuring Misfits drummer Arthur Googy. Lyrically, this record reflects the hopelessness of living and working in New York during the recession of the early 80’s. Some people argue that this is the best hardcore 7” ever made, and either way, it’s certainly worth revisiting just for it’s pure energy.
Land of Talk – Cloak & Cipher (Saddle Creek)
Second LP from Canadian singer / songwriter Elizabeth Powell, who write dreamy, layered indie rock. It’s still growing on me, but I can already tell it’s a huge step forward from their last record in terms of songwriting and recording. “Playita” and “Quarry Hymns” are both great songs.
Bluebells – Sisters
I bought this because I knew Craig Gannon played on it and I’m a huge Smiths nerd. It’s absurdly poppy, sort of like a glossier version of The Escape Club, if that’s even possible. Although there were some interesting moments, such as the guitar work on “Cath”. I’ll stick with The Cradle for now.
