25th Of February 2012 Update

25th Of February 2012 Update of New and Key Restocked Items

at Redscroll Records

I may be a day late with this this week, but it's a leap month so let's just say the month is a day behind schedule. No? On to business.

LPs & 12"s

______________________

Archers Of Loaf    "Vee Vee (Remastered Reissue On Ltd. Ed. Green Vinyl + D/L)"

Black Marble    "Weight Against The Door (Debut EP + D/L)"

Brown, James    "Sex Machine: Recorded Live At Home In Augusta, Georgia With His Bad Self (2LP Gatefold)"

Cursive    "I Am Gemini (180 Gram + 16 Page Insert + CD)"

Del Rey, Lana    "Born To Die"

Disappears    "Pre Language"

Edzayawa    "Projection One (Dark Experimental Afro Rock 180 Gram + D/L W/ Interview)"

Fun.    "Some Nights (Gatefold)"

Grimes    "Visions"

Gypsy     "Giant's Despair (White Vinyl) (+D/L)"

Houle, Marc    "Undercover (2LP Gatefold)"

Junior Bruce    "The Headless King (Neon Green Vinyl + D/L)"

Jurado, Damien    "Maraqopa"

Kite Party    "Baseball Season"

Lanegan Band, Mark    "Bubblegum"

Pentagram    "First Daze Here: The Vintage Collection (Colored Vinyl)"

People Of The North    "Steep Formation"

Perfume Genius    "Put Your Back N 2 It"

Prince Rama    "Utopia = No Person (15 Minute Exorcise)"

Ruins, Jesse    "Dream Analysis (+ D/L W/ Bonus)"

Slant Azymuth    "Slant Azymuth"

Sly & Robbie    "Blackwood Dub (Ltd. Ed. LP + CD + Sticker + Poster)"

Thieves Like Us    "Your Heart Feels (+ D/L)"

Thieves Like Us    "Your Love Runs Still (Color Vinyl + D/L)"

This Will Destroy You    "Young Mountain (Green/Black Vinyl)"

Ueseless ID    "Symptoms (+D/L)"

Various Artists    "Sid Chip Sounds: The Music Of The Commodore 64 (Ben Daglish, Chris Huelsbeck, David Whittaker, Tim & Geoff Follin…)"

Various Artists    "The Minimal Wave Tapes Volume Two (Minimal Dark New Wave: 1980's Underground Techno)"

Vestal Claret    "Bloodbath (2LP Gatefold)"

Young And In The Way    "I Am Not What I Am (+ D/L)"

Hip-Hop 12"s & LPs

______________________

Brenk Sinatra    "Gumbo 2: Pretty Ugly"

Dalek    "Untitled (Latitudes Series /1000)"

Lau, Eric & Guilty Simpson (& Friends)    "The Mission EP (Ltd. Ed. Deluxe)"

Lazerbeak & Edison    "Kill Switch"

Quasimoto    "Come On Feet" (Single)

Sean Born    "Behind The Scale (W/ Kev Brown)"

10"s

______________________

Hint    "Crash And Burn / Aliens Enter"

Quantic & Alice Russell    "Look Around The Corner"

7"s

______________________

Beal, Willis Earl    "Evening's Kiss"

Ceremony    "Hysteria"

Craft Spells    "Party Talk / Ramona"

Guilty    "Guilty (Blue/Black Swirl) (+D/L)"

Hatebreed / Neglect    "Hatebreed / Neglect (Red)"

Integrity    "Kingdom Of Heaven (+ D/L)"

Led Er Est    "Poll Gorm / Man And Tree"

Porcelain Raft    "Unless You Speak From Your Heart"

Reach The Sky    "Everybody's Hero"

Ruins, Jesse    "A Bookshelf Sinks Into The Sand"

Trail Of Lies    "Demo"

Unholy Majesty    "Unholy Majesty (+D/L)"

War    "Brodermordet"

Wild Nothing    "Cloudbusting"

Wild Nothing    "Nowhere"

Zola Jesus    "In Your Nature (W/ David Lynch Remix)"

CDs

______________________

Grimes "Visions"

Various Artists "Listen, Whitey!"

Various Artists "Sounds Of Siam"

Reviews

_____________________

Jens Lekman An Argument With Myself CD/LP

 (Secretly Canadian)

Jens (pronounced “Yens”) Lekman is a Swedish singer-songwriter/guitarist whose specialty is a poppy indie sound. Musically, he demonstrates some strong island influences on this EP, from the Caribbean-tinged opening title track to the cooled-down reggae of closer “So This Guy at My Office.” His personality and wit plays a vital role throughout: the cheerfully self-deprecating opener gives a first-person perspective of wandering drunk and alone through Melbourne (making that subject matter a fun listening experience is no easy feat, but he’s sharp enough to pull it off.) “Waiting for Kirsten” recalls an unsuccessful attempt to meet a certain Ms. Dunst when she was filming a movie in Gothenburg, Sweden. Emotional references to the wine and women of Chile are prevalent in “A Promise;” a get-well-soon song for a friend who’s “like a brother” to Lekman. “New Directions” stands out with fanfare-esque horns amidst themes of disenchantment (“they say / ‘this is what your friends are for,’ but / I don’t know who you people are anymore.”) The record ends on a romantic note, with the laid-back, almost dream-like final song transitioning an anecdote about an Earl Grey-scented co-worker to a statement toward whoever the song was written for: “my day starts when you get here / and ends when you leave.” Lekman succeeds at conveying the fluidity of emotions, providing a very listenable and well thought-out experience.

[Reviewer: Mark]

War Brodermordet 7"

 (Sacred Bones)

War (not the popular funk jazz rock band) features that guy from Iceage (the singer) and some guy from some band called Sexdrome. I'm being completely facetious on both accounts. It's one of those things that has to be mentioned, but should hold no bearing as to how you feel about it (but all too often does). These three songs are definitely not the combinations of those sounds (or of ones from any of those fellas' other projects). It's fuzzy and cold and a bit martial. When Iceage played New Haven they stopped by the shop the next day and what they (or particularly Elias, the singer of Iceage) bought is entirely reflected in this record. Weirdo jams. Left of center bassment recordings to four track with whatever instruments were around ("analog synth, pedals, drums and guitar, both members sing and play a bit of everything" - Sacred Bones). A bit dance friendly too. Fun fuzzy sounds for the end of winter.

[Reviewer: Rick]

War - Brodermordet by sacredbones

17th of February 2012 Update

17th of February 2012 Update of New and Key Restocked Items
at Redscroll Records


LPs & 12"s
______________________
A New Spelling Of My Name    "The Fraud And Folly Of Good Intentions"
Adam & The Ants (Adam And The Ants)    "Peel Sessions "
All    "She's My Ex"
Annapurna Illusion / High Wolf    "Annapurna Illusion / High Wolf"
Antilles    "Antilles"
Antisect    "Leeds 2.4.86"
Bad Weather California    "Sunkissed (+ D/L)"
Battles    "Dross Glop 2 (Remixes By The Alchemist, Shabazz Palaces, Kode 9)"
Billy No Mates    "Duck, Duck, Goose! (+ D/L)"
Black Mountain    "Black Mountain"
Black Sabbath    "Volume One"
Bobby Browser    "Just Brow"
Boy Sets Fire    "This Crying, This Screaming My Voice Is Being Born"
Cement Stars    "Form & Temper"
Cock Sparrer    "Shock Troops"
Coleman III, John Wesley    "The Last Donkey Show"
Consumers, The    "All My Friends Are Dead (+ D/L)"
Creation    "Creation (2012 Reissue)"
Ducky Boys    "Chasing The Ghost"
Engineer    "Crooked Voices (+ D/L)"
Field Music    "Plumb (+ D/L)"
Flower Corsano Hejnowski    "The Count Visits"
FNU Ronnies    "Saddle Up"
Gang Of Four    "Solid Gold (30 Year Anniversary Edition)"
Giffoni, Carlos    "Evidence (Ltd. Ed. + D/L)"
Goblin    "The Best Of Goblin (Fanclub Edition)"
Hamilton, Bobby    "Dream Queen"
Harvey Milk    "The Pleaser (2LP Gatefold)"
Hawkwind    "In Search Of Space"
Ides Of Gemini / Vermapyre    "Ides Of Gemini / Vermapyre"
Idiot Savant / Who's My Saviour    "Split (Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out)"
Johnson, Robert    "King Of The Delta Blues Singers (180GRAM)"
Kiss    "Electric Magic Live: East Lansing, MI. October 21 1974 (Fanclub Edition)"
Ladytron    "Gravity The Seducer (Ltd. Ed. / Hand Numbered / Poster / + D/L)"
Lamb Of God    "As The Palaces Burn"
Light Asylum    "Shallow Tears (Ltd. Ed. + D/L)"
Loma Prieta    "I.V. (+ D/L)"
Loma Prieta    "Life/Less"
Maker    "Mirrors"
Melchior, Dan    "Excerpts (& Half-Speeds)"
Midnight    "Satanic Royalty (Gray Vinyl)"
Mind Spiders    "Meltdown (+ D/L)"
Mister Heavenly    "Out Of Love (+ D/L)"
Moebius & Renziehausen    "Ersatz (180 Gram)"
Monk, Thelonious    "The Unique Thelonious Monk (2012 Reissue)"
Morne    "Asylum"
No    "Don't Worry, You'll Be Here Forever"
Patti Smith Group    "Easter"
Pop Group, The    "For How Much Longer (Import, Unofficial)"
Prinzhorn Dance School    "Clay Class (+ D/L)"
Psychic Paramount     "II"
Pyramids    "Pyramids "
Ragan, Chuck    "Los Feliz: Live At Tangiers In Los Feliz, CA With Friends And Neighbors On February 19, 2007"
Raglani / Outer Space    "Raglani / Outer Space"
Ride    "Going Blank Again (2LP At 45RPM)"
Rose, Frankie    "Interstellar (+ D/L)"
Saddest Landscape, The    "After The Lights (First Press)"
SFV Acid    "Grown"
Silver Jews    "The Natural Bridge"
Skinny Puppy    "Back & Forth: Series Two"
Slava    "Soft Control (Ltd. Ed. + D/L)"
Sonic Avenues    "Television Youth (+ D/L)"
Strategy    "Boxy Music EP"
Summer Vacation    "Summer Vacation (+ D/L)"
Terry Malts    "Killing Time (+ D/L)"
Tindersticks    "The Something Rain (180 Gram + Art Print Poster + D/L)"
Tool    "Lollapalooza: Live At Lollapalooza Irwindale CA USA 1993-08-07 (Fanclub Edition)"
Transistor Transistor    "Ruined Lives (Gatefold)"
U2    "A Day Before Tomorrow: Live At Tiffany's, Glasgow, Scotland 24.3.1983 (Limited Fanclud Edition)"
U2    "In The Name Of Love: Live At Westfalenhalle, Dortmund, Germany, November 21 1984 (Limited Fanclub Edition)"
Various Artists    "Grey Area Vs. The Copyrights Vs. The Reveling Vs. Luther"
Various Artists    "Qat, Coffee & Qambus: Raw 45s From Yemen"
Voodoo Circle (Alex Beyrodt's)    "Broken Heart Syndrome "
VVLTVRE    "Hang Me"
Whiskey & Co.    "Leaving The Night Life (+ D/L)"
White Load    "Wayne's World III..."
Whitman, Keith Fullerton    "Generators"


Hip-Hop 12"s & LPs
______________________
Gangrene (The Alchemist + Oh No)    "Vodka & Ayahuasca (Feat. Kool G Rap, Roc Marciano, Prodigy, Evidence, Roc C)"
Professor Brian Oblivion    "The Dark Realities Of The Moment (+ D/L)"


Electronic 12"s & LPs
______________________
#.4.26.    "Theatron"
19.454.18.5.25.5.18    "Horizontal Ground 01 (HG01)"
AnD    "HG09"
Azari & III    "Reckless (With Your Love) (Remix 12")"
Bullion    "Say Arr Ee / What Does She Know (10")"
Chimp Beams    "Slowly (2xLP)"
Cocherell, Joe    "Who Are You / Where Do You Come From / Pala"
Darko Esser    "Slightly Disturbed"
Dettmann, Marcel    "Landscape"
Devine, Richard    "RISP EP 2011"
Distance (DJ Distance)    "Reboot / Bazurk"
DJ Madd    "Deeply Feat. Lady Mardo / Riginal"
Flights Of Fancy    "Love's A Dancer / Tempo Of The Night"
G-Man + Rob Strobe    "Acrophobia EP"
Joris Voorn Vs. Moby    "After The After"
Klovn    "Cover Up"
Landstrumm, Neil    "Night Train"
LOL Boys    "Moments In Heartbreak Marcus Mixx    "Special Crème"
Model 500    "Control / The Messenger"
Moodyman    "Classics Volume 1 (White Label)"
Mouse On Mars    "Parastrophics (2LP Gatefold)"
My Best Fiend    "In Ghostlike Fading (+ D/L)"
Omar S      "High School Graffiti (2x12" White Label)"
Omar S / Aaron "Fit" Siegel    "Tonite (Feat. L'Renee)"
Orpheus    "Path From Hades"
Pierre LX    "Out 1 Reworks"
Raffertie    "Mass Appeal"
Sei A    "Flux"
Sei A    "Frozen Flower "
Seuil    "Fluctuat Nec Rgitur"
Shakarchi & Straneus    "Something…"
Shlohmo    "Vacation "
Skirt    "HG10"
Speech Debelle    "Freedom Of Speech (Ltd. Ed. + D/L)"
Unknown    "Frozen Border 7"
Vakula    "Slavic Mythology EP"
Various Artists    "IOTDXI (3LP, 2CD R&S Comp.: Pariah, Space Dimension Controller, Untold, Blawan, Lone, Klaus…)"
Various Artists    "Necessary Mayhem Future Cuts"
Vondelpark    "Suana EP"
Wagner, Yan    "Turmoil"


10"s
______________________
Finest Dearest    "Finest Dearest" (2x10")


7"s
______________________
Blatz    "Cheaper Than The Beer"
Capitalist Casualties / Lack Of Interest    "Capitalist Casualties / Lack Of Interest"
Damages    "Love's Labor"
Drainland / Enabler    "Drainland / Enabler"
Filth    "Live The Chaos"
Grin And Bear It    "Grin And Bear It"
Holy Fever    "Holy Fever"
Incendiary / Xibalba    "Incendiary / Xibalba"
La Corde / Cat Party    "La Corde / Cat Party"
Liles, Andrew    "Honey Monster"
Rise & Fall    "Deciever"
SONOIO    "Scientist"
Straight No Chaser    "Straight No Chaser"
Super Ape    "Dar Party Hausen / Garfunkel"
Tall Black Guy    "Mini Therapy Chops (45RPM)"
Traveling    "End Of The Summer"
Troubled Coast    "I've Been Thinking About Leaving You"
Truth Inside    "Best Times"
Zig Zags    "Scavenger"


CDs
______________________
Bonobo "Black Sands Remixes"
Butane "Little Helpers Vol. 1"
Death in June "Take Care Hummingbird (Import 2CD)"
Dozer "In The Tail..."
Goatwhore "Blood For..."
Maker "Mirrors"
Orange Goblin "Eulogy For..."
Pallbearer "Sorrow And Extinction"
Sutcliffe Jugend "With Ex"
T.O.M.B. "Uag"
Various Artists "Robots Pres We Are Opilec (2CD)"
Witch Mountain "South Of Salem (/1000)"


Magazine/Fanzine
_____________________
ANP Quarterly V2#6 (FREE Magazine While They Last)
Building A Better Robot (Book)
Hardcore ABS
Maximum R'N'R #346
Partisan #1
Wire #337


Reviews
______________________

Ides Of Gemini / Vermapyre 12"

(Magic Bullet)
Vermapyre as you might remember from my review of their split 7" with Japan's Parasite, is a mysterious black metal band from France & Belguim, which is the latest side project outlet for Dwid Hellion of Integrity fame. The sound is more streamlined here then on the 7", this time Vermapyre concentrates more so on feedback & reverb driven noise with sparse drums slightly peppered with just a dash of black metal elements for flavor and esthetic appeal.
Ides Of Gemini are the real stand out on this record. These guys are a two piece from Los Angeles. The two songs presented here, "Martyrium of the Hippolyt," & "Constantinople" are hauntingly beautiful. A rich guitar tone, slow pacing and a ghostly  vocal approach. They've definitely found the perfect home for their full length that comes out in late May on Neurot Recordings.
[Reviewer: Josh]

Side note:Ten years ago, did anyone listening to the piles of screamo being released on Magic Bullet ever think that Charles Manson would ever be on that roster? I sure didn't. [Josh]



Damien Jurado Maraqopa CD/LP

(Secretly Canadian)
Damien Jurado and producer Richard Swift team up once again on the new full length album, Maraqopa. In the 15th year of his career, it is evident that Jurado knows exactly what he is doing when it comes to making wonderful music. Maraqopa begins with ‘Nothing Is The News’ a psychedelic-blues jam, filled with echoing and abstract sounds contributing to an almost ‘classic rock’ tune. The album gets progressively less chaotic, as Jurado reverts to simple yet soulful folk songs that sound truly American. His gentle voice and powerful lyrical content seem to pull you deeper and deeper into a desolate landscape where life is simple; a reminder of a time that has long since passed. Songs ‘Reel to Reel’, ‘Working Title’, and ‘Mountains Still Asleep’ are especially wonderful, although Maraqopa is best listened to from start to finish; it has incredible replay value. Damien Jurado releases Maraqopa, his tenth studio album, on February 21st.
[Reviewer: Kyle]




Moholy-Nagy Like Mirage CD/LP

 (Temporary Residence Ltd.)
With members from groups like Tarentel and The Drift, this San Francisco/Berlin trio’s gorgeous experimental and instrumental landscapes are to be expected. The synthesizer line creates a rich, warm and radiant atmosphere throughout, as if it represents the varying skies throughout the day. The additional instruments really help bring the ambience together: for example, the acoustic guitar radiates like both the Sun (“Sunday Brunch”) and the Moon (“Nightjar.”) Also, the resonant piano plays a vital role right from the start to complement the glowing synth on “Tears Of The Prophet.” On later songs like “Seagulls” and “Astronomy Is A Natural Science,” it especially dramatizes the feeling of gazing at an eternity-stretching sky. Thankfully, this is not merely a chill-out record, as songs like “Brute Neighbors” and “Homeless Comet” have a more mechanical ambience that sounds reminiscent of earlier electronic/Krautrock styles.
[Reviewer: Mark]

10th Of February 2012 Update

10th Of February 2012 Update 

of New and Key Restocked Items
at Redscroll Records


LPs & 12"s
______________________
12XU (One Two XU)    "Les Grandes Marees (OBI Strip)"
A Place To Bury Strangers    "Onwards To The Wall (+ D/L)"
Alcest    "Le Soyages De L'Ame (Gatefold)"
Bardo Pond / Carlton Melton    "Split (Fallen Far Out Found Feasting In Palace)"
Bikini Kill    "Reject All American (+ D/L)"
Blues Control / Laraaji    "RVNG FRKWYS Vol. 8"
Burnt Friedman    "Bokoboko (2LP)"
Caspian    "Live At Old South Church"
Cloud Nothings    "Attack On Memory (+ D/L)"
Dispatch    "Who Are We Living For?"
Flaming Lips, The    "Transmissions From The Satellite Heart (Featuring The Absolute Sounds Of The Flaming Lips) (2012 Reissue)"
Flaming Lips, The    "Clouds Taste Metallic (2012 Reissue)"
Flaming Lips, The    "Hit To Death In The Future Head (2012 Reissue)"
Flower Travellin' Band    "Anywhere (180 Gram)"
Goatwhore    "Blood For The Master (Gatefold)"
Graveyard    "The Altar Of Sculpted Skulls"
Green, Colleen    "Milo Goes To Compton. (+ D/L)"
Guelewar    "Touki Ba Banjul: Acid Trip From Banjul To Dakar (Cambian Funk Reissue 70s-80s)"
Happy Ending    "Have A Nice Day! (+ CD)"
Hause, Dave    "Resolutions"
Hooded Menace / Horse Latitudes    "Hooded Menace / Horse Latitudes"
Islands    "A Sleep & A Forgetting (+ CD)"
Loops Of Your Heart    "And Never Ending Nights (180 Gram /500 + CD)"
Michaelson, Ingrid    "Human Again"
Miles, Wymond    "Earth Has Doors (+ D/L)"
Moore (Steve) / Majeure    "Brainstorm (Ltd. Ed. /1000 + D/L)"
Naujoks, Christian    "True Life / In Flames"
Neung Phak    "Neung Phak"
Neurosis    "Souls At Zero (2012 Reissue)"
Neurosis    "Enemy Of The Sun (2012 Reissue)"
O'Rourke, Jim    "Old News #7"
Owen    "No Good For No One Now (+ D/L)"
Phantom Family Halo, The    "When I Fall Out"
Pink Floyd    "Wish You Were Here (180 Gram + D/L + Poster; Black Bag Edition)"
Pulp    "The Demos (1981-1984)"
Shearwater    "Winged Life (+ D/L)"
Shearwater    "Animal Joy (+ D/L)"
Sleigh Bells    "Reign Of Terror (Gatefold + Lots of 12x12 Cards)"
Strawberry Path (Jimmy & Hiro)    "When The Raven Has Come To The Earth (180 Gram)"
Swell Maps    "… In "Jane From Occupied Europe" (+ D/L)"
Swell Maps    "A Trip To Marineville (+ D/L + 7")"
Tennis    "Young & Old (Black Sticker)"
Thieves Like Us    "Berlin Alex (+ D/L)"
To Live And Shave In L.A.    "The Cortege "
Tronics    "Love Backed By Force (+ D/L)"
Turman, Robert    "Flux "
Twilight Sad, The    "No One Can Ever Know (+ D/L)"
Useless Eaters    "C'Est Bon!"
Van Etten, Sharon    "Tramp (+ D/L)" [Our first copies come with a bonus 7" and poster - get 'em whilst you can]
Vanishing Lepers    "Vanishing Lepers"
Various Artists    "Voguing And The House Ballroom Scene Of New York City 1976-96 Volume One (2LP + Junior Vasquez Mix CD)"
Various Artists    "Voguing And The House Ballroom Scene Of New York City 1976-96 Volume Two (2LP)"
Windy And Carl    "We Will Always Be"
Young Magic    "Melt (+ D/L)"


Hip-Hop 12"s & LPs
______________________
Mr. Complex    "Swiss Chocolate Cake (+ USB Drive)"
Parker, Lewis    "Shark"
Pusha T    "Fear Of God II: Let Us Pray (2LP Gatefold)"
Various Artists    "All The Breaks Vol. 2 (100 Breaks)"
YU    "The Earn (2LP /500)"


Electronic 12"s & LPs
______________________
Ernestus, Mark / Djery Djery / Mbene Diatta Seck    "Mbeuguel Dafa Nekh / Dub Dafa Nekh"
Hobo    "Iron Triangle (2x12")"
Justice    "On'N'On / Canon EP"
Pitchben    "Stand Up"
Prinzhorn Dance School    "Classy Class (+ D/L)"
Talabot, John    "Fin (+ CD)"
Terranova    "Hotel Amour (+ CD)"


10"s
______________________
Justice    "On'N'On (+ D/L) "
Mize, Cheyenne Marie    "We Don't Need "


7"s
______________________
Akron/Family    "Everyone Is Guilty"
Apse    "3.1"
Bad Brains    "1981 171A Sessions (Unofficial)"
Callers & Delicate Steve    "Further Out / Perfect Pairs"
Damu The Fudgemunk & Raw Poetic    "Kilawatt V1.5 (Deluxe/Expanded Ed. + CD)"
Lau, Eric & Guilty Simpson    "The Mission / (Georgia Anne Muldrow Remix)"
Mount Eerie    "Distorted Cymbals"
Useless Eaters    "Sucked In"
War On Drugs, The    "Come To The City"
White, Jack      "Love Interruption / Machine Gun Silhouette"
Whore Paint    "Whore Paint"


CDs
______________________
Currensy & Sean O'Connel...
Embalmed (Mexico) "Exalt The Imperial Beast"
Midnight "Satanic Royalty"
Mitochondrian "Parasignosis"
Oval "OvalDNA (CD/DVD)"
Porter Ricks "Biokinetics"
Sanguis Imperem "In Glory We March"
Speedwolf "Ride With Death"
Dub Spencer & Trance Hill "Too Big..."
Sharon Van Etten "Tramp"
Various Artists    "Voguing And The House Ballroom Scene Of New York City 1976-96"
Vladimirs "Late Hours"


Magazine/Fanzine
_____________________
Wax Poetics #50 (Prince/Frank Ocean)


Reviews
____________________

Sandro Perri Impossible Spaces LP/CD

(Constellation)
Hailing from Toronto, Perri has been musically active for over a decade. One of his older projects is Polmo Polpo, which focuses on wildly experimental ambient compositions. On Impossible Spaces, his second full-length using his real name, he sounds a lot more traditional and folksy than he did on his previous work. However, there’s no shortage of creativity and post-rock adventure (in addition to performing the vocals, guitar, synth, and most of the drums and percussion himself, Perri wrote, recorded, produced, and even created the artwork for the record.) Trying to describe this album to the unfamiliar is no easy feat: there are so many layers and varying paths throughout that it takes multiple listens to really appreciate it all. It’s a great example of a musician using his guitar to paint a canvas with an amazing variety of brushstrokes, expressing a number of emotions. For example, “How Will I?” focuses on the loss of his friend and collaborator Jordan Somers, but instead of wallowing in sorrow, Perri finds solace in his memories and proclaims "hand in my hand, shoulder to shoulder / today, it looks like love is bolder."
[Reviewer: Mark]

Versis Illcandescent CD

(The Beat Down)
Hip Hop artist, Versis, emerges from the California underground with his first LP, Illcandescent.  At just 19 years of age, his lyrical content is mature, mellow, and reflects the cool California living. Versis has a voice and flow very similar to Blu, but has fresh ideas built-in into a soulful sound.  A blend of Blues, Jazz, and Hip Hop, Illcandescent is an album that ensures easy listening. This 14 track album has incredibly impressive production, from ‘Spittin’ in the Wind’ featuring one of Europe’s top producers, fLako; to the always impressive Exile, on ‘Life Story’. Versis released Illcandescent in 2010, and since then, his highly underrated album has been floating around the underground, waiting for you to get your copy.

[Reviewer: Kyle]



Whore Paint Menarchy 7"

(Anchor Brain Records)
Last week I was lucky enough to catch the full Saturday line up of Ladyfest Boston. The biggest standout of the day (besides Sick Fix who if you haven't seen, make it a point to do so) was Whore Paint. A Providence, RI all-girl three piece. Noisy swirling guitar parts played through an array of effects pedals and two amps to make up for the lack of a bass player backed by a muddy thudding drumbeat. Singer Reba, delivers a soulful vocal mix ranging from softly whispered to banshee wailing and everything in between. I'm pretty sure this record is on 180 gram too, which is awesome cause this is going to get a lot of plays from me!
[Reviewer: Josh]

RSR012 Call It Arson "Animal Strings" LP

RSR012 Call It Arson "Animal Strings" 

150-Gram Gate-fold LP

Official Release Date: February 21, 2012

Taking Pre-Orders NOW!

Call It Arson has recently gotten back together and hit the studio to record new material for an upcoming record. We're happy to offer you for the first time on vinyl one of the best albums ever released by a Connecticut band. Animal Strings is the twelfth Redscroll Records release and was originally released on compact disc in 2006 by Killnormal Records. This 150-gram LP version comes in a high quality gate-fold cover and includes a download card featuring a bonus remix by Mansuit of the song "Murder My Nightmares" from The Friend for Life EP (2002). This LP is limited to just 500 copies total.

For those unfamiliar, Call It Arson is an indie folk rock band with a wide range of influences. Just check out the videos below.

The price of the record is $14.97 and shipping anywhere in the US is $4 via USPS Media Mail.

[International Buyers should contact us ahead for a quote on shipping.]

We're taking orders on these now and they will ship out to you on 
Friday, February 17th.  They'll be available in store starting on the 21st.

3rd Of February 2012 Update

3rd Of February 2012 Update of New and Key Restocked Items
at Redscroll Records


LPs & 12"s
______________________
Alkaline Trio    "Goddamnit"
Ambarchi, Oren / O'Rourke, Jim / Haino, Keiji    "Imikuzushi (2LP Gatefold)"
Battles    "Dross Glop 1"
Bayside    "Acoustic"
Between The Buried And Me    "Between The Buried And Me"
Birthday Party    "Peel Sessions"
Black Flag    "First Four Years"
Blood For Blood    "Spit My Last Breath"
Bolt Thrower    "Honour Valour Pride (2012 Reissue)"
Bolt Thrower    "Those Once Loyal (2012 Reissue)"
Bolt Thrower    "Mercenary (2012 Reissue)"
Caravels / Gifts From Enola    "Well Worn"
Caretaker    "Patience (After Sebald)"
Cocteau Twins    "Stars And Topsoil: A Collection (1982-1990) (2LP Gatefold)"
Cohen, Leonard    "Old Ideas (180 Gram + CD)"
Cruise Family    "We're In Heaven"
Deftones    "Saturday Night Wrist (Rerelease)"
Dispatch    "Four Day Trials"
Doozer, The    "Keep It Together"
Electric Wizard    "Come My Fanatics"
First Aid Kit    "The Lion's Roar (180 Gram + D/L)"
Fucked Up    "Year Of The Tiger (+ D/L)"
Golden Calves    "Golden Calves Money Band LP + Century Band 12" (Pre-Wooden Wand 1996)"
Gotan Project    "La Revancha Del Tango (2LP)"
Hit The Lights    "Invicta (+ D/L)"
Hospitals, The    "The Hospitals"
House Of Low Culture    "Poisoned Soil "
Iron Lung    "Sexless // No Sex"
Johnson, Robert    "The Complete Collection"
Kimono Draggin'     "Kimono Gold"
King Khan & BBQ    "The King Kahn & BBQ Show"
Kweller, Ben    "Go Fly A Kite (Deluxe Diorama Package 180 Gram + CD)"
Ladytron    "Witching Hour (Ltd. Ed. Red Vinyl)"
Lanegan Band, Mark    "Blues Funeral (Ltd. Ed. Colored Vinyl + D/L)"
Led Zeppelin    "BBC Sessions (Fanclub Edition)"
Lilacs & Champagne    "Lilacs & Champagne (Ltd. Ed. + D/L; The Producing Team Behind Grails)"
Lonely Forest, The    "Arrows"
Make Do And Mend    "Part And Parcel"
Morgan, Neal    "In The Yard (+ D/L)"
Of Montreal    "Paralytic Stalks (Deluxe Ed. Gatefold 2LP Yellow Vinyl + D/L)"
Peaking Lights    "936 Remixed (Ital, Xander Harris, Innergaze, Cuticle)"
Perispirit    "Spiritual Church Movement"
Pink Floyd    "London 1966/1967"
Queens Of The Stone Age    "Vinyl Firsts, B-Sides & Remixes (Fanclub Edition; 2LP)"
Reggie And The Full Effect    "Greatest Hits '84 '87 (Ltd. Ed. White Vinyl)"
Rene, Wendy    "After Laughter Comes Tears: Complete Stax & Volt Singles + Rarities 1964-65"
Residents, The    "Sonidos De La Noche: Coochie Brake (+ D/L)"
Royal Baths    "Better Luck Next Life (+ D/L)"
Schnauss, Ulrich & Mark Peters    "Underrated Silences (+CD)"
Schneider, Marc & Aera    "The Taylor & Smith EP"
St. Vincent    "Actor (+ D/L)"
Sunn O)))    "00 Void (2xLP Finally On Vinyl; Originally Recorded In 2000 On 2" Tape)"
Trailer Trash Tracys    "Ester (180 Gram + D/L)"
Various Artists    "Michigan Meltdown: Post-Garage Pandemonium And Pre-Punk Fuzz Freaks From The Mitten State's Milken Era (Astaroth, Air, Master Danse, …)"
Various Artists    "We Are The Works In Progress (Four Tet, Karin Dreijer Andersson, Terry Riley, Blonde Redhead, Deerhunter, Liars, Broadcast…)"
Wiese, John    "GGA"
Witch Cross    "All That's Fit For Fighting (4LP Set)"
Womack, Bobby    "Facts Of Life (Reissue)"
Woollen Kits    "Woollen Kits (+ D/L)"


Electronic 12"s & LPs
______________________
Alfabet (Awanto3 & Tom Trago)    "Hell Of Samba / Too Shy"
Ango    "Another City Now (6 Track EP)"
Diplo Vs. Tiesto    "C'mon"
Duck Sauce    "Big Bad Wolf"
Exaltics, The Meets Gosub    "The Exaltics Meets Gosub (Part One)"
Fluxion    "Traces EP 1/3"
Gao, Mike    "Finest Ego: Faces 12" Series"
GB (Gifted & Blessed)    "7 In 24 / Dogon"
Gray, Chris    "Moonchildren / Go Away"
Joker    "On My Mind"
Jones, Lee    "The Moose Mingles EP"
Lonely C + Baby Prince    "Not So Lonely Remixes EP"
Machinedrum (AKA Tstewart)    "SXLND"
Madteo    "Bugler Gold Pt. 1"
MRSK    "Twirl / Pinkman"
Obsolete Music Technology    "Mmmmmusic / Distance"
Onra    "Chinoiseries Pt. 2"
Parker, Lewis    "Shark"
Pollyester    "Concierge D' Amour / Voices"
Regis    "Speak To Me / Model Friend"
Rrose    "Artificial Light (1969-1909)"
Rrritalin    "Nutter Magnet EP"
Sid Vaga    "Brazuca"
Svreca    "Obscur. Final (Remixes By Regis, Orphx, Silent Servant & Skirt)"
Tejada, John / Truncate (David Flores)    "Maximiliano / Veinticinco"
Toth, Andras    "Would U?"
Two Armadillos    "Golden Age Thinking Part 1 Of 3"
Unit Moebius Anonymous    "Permabu"
Various Artists    "A Tribute To Richard Polson (Surgeon, Oliver Ho, Regis, 65D Mavericks)"
Xosar    "Ghosthaus"


10"s
______________________
Husker Du    "Eight Miles High / Makes No Sense At All / Love Is All Around"


7"s
______________________
Black People    "Brain Wash / Fallen Down"
Code Orange Kids    "Cycles"
Colouride    "Amor Y Neon / Your Master Is Calling"
Creem    "Good Riddance / I Hate"
Doubledealer    "Whose World Is This"
End Of A Year / Shook Ones    "End Of A Year / Shook Ones"
Futility    "Forward / Deluge"
Gallows    "Death Is Birth"
Ivy League    "Ivy League"
Murder City Devils    "Every Day I Rise / Ball Busters In The Peanut Gallery"
Snake Oil    "Snake Oil"


CDs
______________________
Alcest "Les Voyages De L'Ame"
Current 93 "Thunder Perfect Mind (2CD Reissue)"
Del Rey, Lana "Born To Die"
Katy B "On A Mission"
Regis "1994-1996" (Slipcase)
Rene, Wendy "After Laughter Comes Rain..."
Timelords "History Of..."
Unthanks, The "The Songs Of Robert Wyatt..."
Void "Sessions..."


DVD/Blu-Ray
_____________________
Radiohead "King Of Limbs: Live From The Basement" (Both the DVD and Blu-Ray Versions)


Magazines
_______________________
Savage Damage Digest Issue #2
Tape Op Issue #87


Reviews
______________________

 Co La Daydream Repeater LP

(NNA Tapes)
NNA Tapes has developed a good and respectable reputation off of releaseing a nice variety of left of center synth oriented (and many very droney) music. The variety hasn't quite reached the level where I would have expected this release however. Co La has a very sample heavy and constructed album (closer to plunderphonic stuff than mashups - not that those aren't related to each other) here.  It's fun and quirky and nostalgic (many Motown and roots reggae sounding samples) and entirely danceable at times and serenely chill at others. Looping rhythms.

[Reviewer: Rick]

Creem Good Riddance / I Hate You 7" 

(Katorga Works)
Creem is a pissed off hardcore band from New York that is shooting for an 80s Boston (Jerry's Kids / SSD / Last Rites) sound and manages to hit the nail on the head straight down to the low recording quality, which is probably what separates them from the other modern bands doing the style, like COA. Two short songs that will make you want to stomp around, throw beverages and punch a stranger in a cramped BO smelling basement. Featuring members of Natural Law & Nomos, these guys know how to channel the "mysterious guy" aesthetic with blank labels and the absence of a lyric/info sheet. This is the second press (small hole, new cover).
[Reviewer: Josh]


Machinedrum Room(s) CD/LP

(Planet Mu)
Producer/musician Travis Stewart constructs some very trippy, abstract and elaborate IDM landscapes on this record. Generous helpings of scattered hip-hop beats, hypnotic vocal samples and all sorts of spacey electronic bursts provide an intoxicating experience throughout. “Sacred Frequency” is an instant standout with its ultra-tight, infectious beat pattern splashed with endless electronic glissandos that sound like shooting stars. Stewart is very effective at manipulating sample loops: for example, “Come1,” “The Statue” and “Door(s)” all utilize invigorating keyboard patterns that sound perfect for jaunting through an old-school video game world. The closing track “Where Did We Go Wrong?” provides a surprising finale, with the beats replaced with a cascade of soft white noise and celestial ambience. I should probably listen to this record before going to sleep; it might just spawn some new dream worlds.
[Reviewer: Mark]

Meet Kyle, The Intern

Meet Kyle, The Intern

Hello! I'm Kyle Barry, Redscroll Records' new intern. I am a senior at Quinnipiac University, major in Media Studies, minor in Music. I'm an aspiring music producer planning to get into the music industry after graduation, and Redscroll Records has provided me with the perfect opportunity to further my knowledge on the industry, and help me meet my Media Studies requirements. You will be hearing lots more from me with new album reviews and artist spotlights. 

Ladyfest Weekend

LADYFEST Is This Weekend!

We'll be in Boston on Saturday (Saturday only) for Ladyfest with thousands of 7"s. If you are going to be at Ladyfest and want us to bring something for you specifically that is not a 7" please drop us a line (email or phone or message in a bottle or... probably just email or phone really) and we'll bring it with us. Otherwise, it will be a fine time to check out what we've got in the 7" variety.

You can check out all the information on the blog or facebook pages.  There are tons of bands and workshops (click on the above image to enlarge - the blog also has a full line up and a couple more posters too).

Waxahatchee Wednesday

Yo! Waxahatchee Wednesday is almost here!

8 pm | $5 | All Ages (No Alcohol*)

||Facebook Event Page||

Waxahatchee 
Ex-PS Eliot singer plays gloomiest acoustic pop. New LP on Don Giovanni.

Road Worrier
Awkward (ie self-aware) rock, with a slight Netflix influence, and a keyboard. Willimantic. Ex-SOFX.

Groomerz
Halfway to Sanity-era Ramones goes garage. New Haven. Ex - Dark Circles, Dead Unx, Zone, etc.

If you don't know the secret of the location, stop by Redscroll (24 N Colony Rd. Wallingford CT) sometime before the show and they'll tell you where to go.

*This is a business and we do not have a liquor license. If you show up with alcohol you will be asked to put it in your vehicle (or the vehicle in which you came or otherwise in the trash). If you do not you will be asked to leave. If you further do not the asking will stop and none of us want to deal with what comes next.

Rick's Definitive Favorites of 2011

Rick's Definitive Favorites of 2011
(Definitively my favorite cropping edit of my favorite picture of myself from 2011)

Yo, you want to know what I liked from this past year of 2011? If the answer’s no stop lying to yourself (You got past the title for some reason, yea?).  Here’s my alphabetical list. The past couple of year’s favorites lists included some sort of disclaimer introduction (2010 LPs, 2010 EPs, 2009). I’m foregoing it this year. I definitively find these to be my favorite releases from 2011. No digital only releases. I own a store that sells strictly physical releases so you can put the digital ones on your cloud and pray they’re still there in the next hour. Preaching to the converted et cetera ad nauseum blah blah blah.  In addition to the write ups are links for the places online we have them for sale (for the ones still available; for some it might be temporarily out of stock while others may be out of print). Of course, it is verily encouraged that you just come by the store and get ‘em (and maybe tell me how dumb some of this is or how great something you didn’t even know existed before is or something in between).

ANV (Autre Ne Veut) Body (Hippos In Tanks)

Hypnogogic pop that is catchy and infectious and weird (I used the word hypnogogic, right?).

[Buy Online]

Bestial Mouths Hissing Veil (Dais)

Goth is definitely the knee-jerk reaction response to first hearing this and it’s totally understandable to think that with the warbling feminine vocals, the synth melodies and the production that makes it echo as if you’re listening down the other end of a hall. More accurately, this is dark rock and roll that really resonates (literally and figuratively) with me.
[Buy Online]

Big Freedia Azz Everywhere (540 Records)

I have a booty bass collection. That is pretty much all you need to know. You might also like to know this is Nola bounce music. Nola, as in New Orleans. Bounce music as in that which lies between Miami bass and Chicago juke. Big Freedia is also a transgendered artist and she got booed off the stage at a festival in Hartford in May last year (if you’re as contrarian as I can be then that’s as much a reason as any to check it out; live on Jimmy Kimmel recently).

Bjork Biophilia (and related singles) (One Little Indian / Polydor / Universal / Nonesuch)

This one is bigger than just the release itself. It was an event and continues to be an event. It's an application for computational devices. It’s classes in Iceland for young school children. I understand why people overlook this record. Bjork has a way of building up expectations; teasing her new instrument made specifically for this album for instance. When it isn’t a monumental extraordinary piece of bliss people get disappointed. This album itself is good, but it is not just an album and if you only see it that way you’re missing out.
[Buy Online]  [Original Review]

Blawan What You Do With What You Have (R&S Records)

I really enjoy the name Blawan. It’s fun to say. This is my favorite release of his from last year. Bass music for dancing or head nodding (as I mostly do these days). He’s also got a track on another release done with Hessle Audio that I’ve got on this list. I’ll probably be more specific about what attracts me to this type of music there.
[Buy Online] 

Borden, Ferraro, Godin, Halo, Lopatin Frkwys Vol. 07 (Rvng. Intl.)

I’m going to continue to address how I like OneOhTrix Point Never’s latest release (“Replica”), but somehow continue to leave it off this list. This list includes 2 releases that Daniel Lopatin is a major contributor to which I personally enjoy more. This one would be a record you might think should suffer from too many chefs in the kitchen, but somehow just ends up being sublime. Perhaps no one wanted to get in the others’ way. Perhaps they all agreed to keep it simple ahead of time so that not one person was ever conducting the rest. Whatever the circumstances, this ended up being a favorite for putting on and zoning out to and then coming out of that zone and realizing the record is ready to be flipped (and re-flipped and repeat and repeat and replicate [derp]).

Clams Casino Instrumentals (Type)

Clams Casino is a hip hop producer who has worked with Lil B and Souljah Boy and many in between and out of bounds. He released a free pack of instrumentals. Those are fine and good and worth hearing. These are far better. I’ve listened to those once through (the free ones) and can listen to one track at a time from those within a larger playlist. These (the main focus here) are phat beats that work collectively as an album. For me it all builds up to side D and drops the hammer and leaves me wanting more (but not those others mentioned – more like this album).
[Buy Online]  [Original Review]

Com Truise Galactic Melt (Ghostly International)

If you haven’t heard anything from this guy yet go track down “VHS Sex” and by the end if you don’t want to hear more then forget all about it. Elektro green computer graf-x soundtrack time.
[Buy Online] 

Cut Hands Afro-Noise 1 (Susan Lawly / Very Friendly / Dirter Promotions)

I almost left this off because the LP versions didn’t come out until January 2012 (this month). The CD has been out for a while though so it should be on here (which is a bit contrary to a couple other releases on here, but blah blah blah it’s a list).  The title of this pretty much explains what you’re getting into. Beyond that, it’s the project of William Bennett of Whitehouse. He’s recently done some podcasts for Radio Web MACBA about his sound collecting from around the world – if you want deeper insight into how much this album makes sense to come out of him. I really did go into listening to this expecting to like it, but after repeated listens it really shines brighter and brighter each time.
[Buy Online]  [Original Review]

DMX Krew Cosmic Awakening EP (Shipwrec)

Ed DMX released a bunch this past year (12”s) and this is my favorite of the batch. Electro funk. I went to a loft party he played at in the financial district of Manhattan (probably 8 years ago at this point). I had to say “No” to the question “Are you a cop?” I’m so glad people don’t believe cops have to identify themselves anymore (wouldn’t that make things a little more quaint though?). How dumb is that notion? Pretty dumb. The party he played was pretty dumb too (there was lots of cigarette (and other) smoking in an enclosed not well ventilated area). His performance was great though. Fun story. That place also had a secret room that I learned about on a previous visit.  I think it just ended up being a storage area (maybe wrong/doesn’t matter).
[Buy Online] 

Dream Boat Widow (AMDISCS)
 
Disaffected pop from Providence, but it really could be from space or anywhere isolated (bedroom production bedroom listening music).
[Buy Online] [Original Review] 

Elzhi Elmatic (Jae B. Group)
Will Sessions Elmatic Instrumentals (Fat Beats)

Detroit state of mind full time from this. It’s Illmatic transplanted. It’s really that simple. It’s a fresh take on a fresh golden age classic. Will Sessions’s instrumentals are a fresh take on the beats of “Illmatic” and harkens back to the golden age of hip-hop production. There’s been a lot of that trend lately and I’m really enjoying it.
[Buy Online]  [Original Review]
 
EMA Past Life Martyred Saints (Souterrain Transmissions) 

Erika M. Anderson is a singer song-writer with a background in experimental droning less-than-rocking music (Gowns). These songs are promising and good of themselves. “Marked” had a loop in my head for a few weeks after my initial listen. They are songs, however, that don’t really always complement each other and this often comes across as a compilation (it didn’t help that I’ve read an interview where Ms. Anderson says that this is basically how the album came together – a bunch of songs she’s written over a long stretch of time and collected to make this).  Forgot I was writing about favorites right now.  This is entirely melancholic and cathartic and other things that rhyme with icepick and feel like one going into your numb abscess of a heart (frikkin’ deep, eh?).
[Buy Online] [Original Review]
 

Fatima Al Qadiri Genre Specific Xperience (UNO)

Water themes and electronic music work well. Well, Drexciya works. I can’t think of a hundred other examples. Drexciya has been getting some much appreciated reissues lately. Electro funk goodness. I have now hardly discussed Fatima Al Qadiri. It’s great. I like it quite a bit more than the Ay Shay stuff from the same artist. It’s way more fun and way more Drexciyan. Have I mentioned how much I love Drexciya? The Fatima Al Qadiri videos are really fun too. View them.
[Buy Online] 

Ford & Lopatin Channel Pressure (Software)

Pop jams from the present (not like all those Full Sail University factory pumped tunes relying on equations from the past). Daniel Lopatin also released a record as OneOhTrix Point Never recently. That made a lot of year end lists. It’s good, but this is more my personal speed. Synth-pop jams. Yea, they have a 1980s aesthetic, but there’s no mistaking it for something from the 80s.
[Buy Online] 

Fostercare / †‡† (Ritualz) †‡† vs. Fostercare (Robot Elephant Records)

Witch house still exists. Stop taking heed of any words to the contrary. It exists. I like it. Industrial EBM goth club stompers and slow hip-hop faded.
[Buy Online]  [Original Review]

Jason Grier With Nite Jewel Heart Shaped EP (Human Ear Music)

Twin Peaks songs that were made far too late to appear on the series (this is not factual).
[Buy Online] [Original Review]

Laurel Halo Hour Logic (Hippos In Tanks)

Hypnotic rhythms and drones. Hip knotted. Disaffected overlapping techno down the hall behind a closed door (Zipperspy in the basement while you’re in the bathroom 2 stories up and a young woman is humming while making a snack in the kitchen on the first floor).
[Buy Online] 

HTRK Work (Work, Work) (Ghostly International)

There are a couple albums in this list I hold a bit closer to the heart than the others. This is one of ‘em. I’ll point out the other as well. Le petite morte post coital blues plague tunes.
[Buy Online] [Original Review]

Holy Other With U (Triangle)

Disaffected pop in the witchy realm (Have I mentioned how I enjoy freestyle jams? Yes, I did.). This is definitively my favorite Triangle release this year. This has gotten plenty of love and plenty of descriptive ramblings so I’ll just say yep.
[Buy Online] 

Hudson Mohawke Satin Panthers (Warp)
Hud Mo Pleasure Principle (Pleasure Principle)
Super fun polished dance jams for attention deficit dance music fans.
[Buy Online] 

Iceage New Brigade (What's Your Rupture?(currently))

These young dudes play rock and roll with a ton of energy and the arrogance of youth
(specifically the arrogance of youth; don’t get it confused with actual arrogance). It's a combination that people seem to embrace or reject. I embrace it and definitely listened to this multiple times in a row multiples of multiple days and nights throughout the year. 
[Buy Online] [Original Review]

Jam City Waterworx (Night Slugs)

Party party party. Bass bass bass. Neck cramps.
[Buy Online] 

Katy B On A Mission (Rinse)

Party ballads with dance production. It’s basically pop drum ‘n’ bass. Her voice isn’t flawless. Really, to me, this has the same attraction as 80s freestyle jams. I like the imperfections of it. It doesn’t aspire to be an Adele record (for instance). It aspires only to be hot dance tracks. It succeeds. “Lights On” all night. I’m also hoping this gets an LP release; it’s only on CD now.
[Buy Online] 

Knxwledge Klouds (All City)

Hip-hop beats with a disaffected treatment. This label, All City Records, is also one of the most consistent label with quality releases again and again. This is the only release that’s made this list, but plenty others definitely come close. All City is a hip hop beat label out of Ireland at its heart and it occasionally veers off that, but never extremely far and all of it is quality.
[Buy Online] 

Kuedo Severant (Planet Mu)

Fresh take on italo-disco soundtracks from half of the Vex’d duo.
[Buy Online] [Original Review]

Light Asylum In Tension (Mexican Summer)

Dark dance pop. Crazy good voice and crazy good New Order loving songs.
[Buy Online] [Original Review]

Lykke Li Wounded Rhymes (Warner / Atlantic / EMI / LL / You get it, a bunch of majors in different sectors of the world)

This came out really early in the year and this is the other (this and HTRK) that I hold a little higher than the rest of the list. Crazy, right? Unexpected? Probably. Shouldn’t PJ Harvey’s album (“Let England Shake”) be on here and probably higher than the rest (even HTRK!)? No, I did like the PJ Harvey album, but not enough to even make this list and not nearly as much as this. It definitely owes or more accurately pays homage to older PJ Harvey recordings mixed with some Phil Spector styled producing (well-orchestrated girl pop done melancholic in other words).
[Buy Online] 

Maria & The Mirrors Travel Sex (Parlour Records)

If this was a full length it’d probably be on that upper echelon too. Primal noisey pounding and squelching.
[Buy Online] [Original Review]

Mater Suspiria Vision Crack Witch (Living Tapes)
Mater Suspiria Vision Seduction Of The Armageddon Witches (Mishka)

The “Crack Witch” cassette came out in 2010, but the LP in 2011 and even so the “Seduction...” 7" definitely came out in 2011 so just go with it. I love this band and they release a ton of material all the time. I just ordered another LP of theirs in fact. The best band easily to fully embrace the term witch house. Zombie raves. Oh, and the Living Tapes label has also been solid this past year with releases also by Mellow Grave and Crypt Thing among others. Mishka is more a culture accessory (read: t-shirt/clothing/streetwear) company, but the few releases they’ve had on 7” have been solid too (I don’t think I need to even mention all they do; they’re active and doing a solid job of it all). The Hussle Club single almost got to this list as well.
[Buy Online] [Original Review]

Nguzunguzu Timesup EP (Fade To Mind)

There a bunch of 12”s in the bass realm on this list that I actually thought about grouping together. I like them all for basically the same reasons. Bass bass bass. Head snapping goodness. Fade to Mind is a new label subsidiary of Night Slugs headed by Kingdom and so far he’s off to a good start (this is the first release and there is just one more so far – MikeQ released just a week or so ago). Looking forward to more from this upstart.
[Buy Online] 

Pure X Pleasure (Acephale)

Shoegazin’ melodic indie rock. Derp. Yo, it’s good. Forget all the trappings that come along with saying something is shoegaze. I know as well as anyone how tired it is to use that phrase. This is refreshing and great. They did a split with Sleep Over as Pure Ecstasy (I don’t know what made them switch to just the X) and I thought Sleep Over outshined them on that, but Pure X outshined Sleep Over with their full length. Sleep Over’s LP is also well liked, mind you, but it is another release of the past year I liked not quite enough for this list. Blam-O!
[Buy Online] 

SBTRKT SBTRKT (Young Turks)

Post dubstep in the utmost or just modern dubstep. Either way, this record is pure alt-pop goodness. He also has done a lot of work outside of this full length and truthfully if this wasn’t so great as a whole I probably would have included a few 12”s or EPs. Delicious.
[Buy Online] 

Shabazz Palaces Black Up (Sub Pop)

My man from Digable Planets is doing it! I don’t actually know him. I’d hang though. This is easily my favorite hip-hop release from the past year. Do it.
[Buy Online] [Original Review]

Shlohmo Bad Vibes (Tall Corn)

This is the third of the couple albums (yea, I maybe should have said few) that I hold a little closer to my favorite heart than the rest from the year's hearts. This is an album of down tempo hip-hop beats that at times is sick azz chillbient and at times is just chill and not so 'bient.  
[Buy Online]  [Original Review]

Andy Stott Passed Me By / We Stay Together (Modern Love)

The Modern Love camp this past year has been unsurpassable. Love it. I’m a little late to the party and am just digging into some of the archives. Andy Stott is top of the heap (Miles, GH, Demdike Stare and the lot are not far behind). Techno dark and mangled.
[Buy Online] 

Supreme Cuts Trouble (Small Plates Records)

Illbient is a phrase I probably should use more. This is hot illbient jams to the roof and back down to the bassment (shout to Lokash). It’s a 10” record EP and I really do wish it was twice as long because I have yet to listen to it just once through and then move on. I usually play it 3 times actually before pushing on. There is promise of a full length somewhat soon.

Teeth Swarm/Shift/Sequence/Spawn (Ramp Recordings)

This is chill dubstep or post dubstep or just cool electronic music that's mostly about head nodding (I seem to do a lot of that).
[Buy Online] 

//TENSE// Consume EP (Desire)

This is another instance of having come out in one form in 2010 (CDr) and then getting an LP release a bit later (actually in 2011). Tense also released a 12” (“Escape”) in 2011, but I have not gotten my hands on that yet. I do want it. Heavy bat cave vibes filtered through early Ministry.
[Buy Online] 

Trust Bulbform (Sacred Bones)

Trust played a show with Balam Acab at Le Poisson Rouge (NYC) that I attended. I had seen Balam Acab at Wesleyan a couple weeks (week and a half perhaps) prior and I actually enjoyed that performance from him (and her; live accompaniment) a bit more. Trust however blew me away with how much I enjoyed it. Keeping on the bat cave theme I remember saying how transported I felt back to the days of the Bat Cave / Albion at club Dowtime in Manhattan or the Bank on Houston Street (clubs that are now long gone). It was a pleasurable dark dancing time. Looking forward to more than just an EP from this act (next month!).
[Buy Online] 

Various Artists 116 & Rising (Hessle Audio)

For a while I had a hard time getting the Hessle Audio stuff into the shop and then when I finally could with ease this came out and I listened to it in abundance. Forward thinking bass music; not dumbed down square wave tsunami drum n bass for certain. I’d love to mention just about every track on this (James Blake is on it which is easily the most recognizable name).
[Buy Online]  [Original Review]

Various Artists Bangs & Works Vol. 2 (Planet Mu)

I loved volume 1 of this. I love volume 2 equally. Equally. Volume 1 was on my favorites list last year. Here’s number 2! Chicago juke joints.
[Buy Online] 

White Ring Hey Hey, My My + Felt U (Handmade Birds)
White Ring Black Earth That Made Me (Rocket Girl)

The “Black Earth…” release is another that is technically a re-release. The Neil Young covering release however is definitely a fully-fledged 2011 release. Cathartic and hovering droning darkwave glitch (witch house).
[Buy Online] 

Zomby Nothing (4AD)
Zomby Dedication (4AD)

I was a little surprised at the recent signings by 4AD. I wasn’t surprised because they were signing acts completely from left field, but rather because they were signing heavy weights in a realm they hadn’t dwelled before. It was a good move (the Joker release aside). These two releases by Zomby are solid. Electronic head phone jams on “Dedication” and straight up rave head partying on “Nothing” (which is really the one I listen to a hundred times more; hyperbole there). 

[Buy Online] 

NNA TAPES

I realize I have gotten to the end of this and haven’t mentioned our New England neighbors in NNA Tapes. Part of this is because I get orders from them infrequently and I’m personally a little behind on their releases. I am however psyched on all the moves they’ve done lately and particularly am pleased with the vinyl releases and am looking forward to more experimental pop droning goodness. Great job, fellas! Hats off to y’!

[Buy Online] 

So, there you have it. I hope you enjoyed that. Again, feel free to come in and tell me how much you disagree or agree with any of it or let me know what I left off (I know I’ll be telling myself some things down the line). Yell at me for including basically ZERO hardcore or metal releases (oh well, that's how it fell for me this past year). There’s already been a couple releases of 2012 I’m pretty sure will make a year-end list. Here’s to music! If you'd like to keep more up to date with what I'm listening to I also run a podcast/radio show/mixtape/a bunch of music that I introduce and occasionally talk about/blog/tumblr over at NothingUnderTheSun.Tumblr.com.