[ aquarius records new arrivals email list # 46 ]
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)=( )====( )====( )=( )=( )====( Aquarius Records )====( )=( )=( o )====( New Arrivals #46 )====( o )=( )=( )====( February 19 1997 )====( )=( )=( )====( )====( )=( Beloved Customers: ----* ----* Record of the Week : ----* V/A "Gravikords, Whirligigs & Pyrophones" (Ellipsis Arts) cd+book 29.00 In the words of Douglas Wolk: Oh My Fucking God. COMPLETELY AMAZING and ENLIGHTENING collection of original pieces played by the inventors and exponents of such instruments as the fire organ (pyrophone), aquavina, theremin, lightning[TM] (Don Buchla), spoils of war (Harry Partch), duo capi (Oliver DiCicco), trylon, flowerpotophone, seraphin, intonarumori, and my personal favorite, the semi-civilized tree. Accompanying full-size 90-page book contains color photographs and interviews with each inventor, plus a foreword by Tom Waits. The whole shebang comes in a yellow box and is authored by Bart Hopkin, publisher of the Experimental Music Journal. Completely essential. ----* ----* Other New Arrivals : ----* JOHN FAHEY "City of Refuge" (Tim/Kerr) cd 15.98 The last track of Fahey's new record is titled "On the Death and Disembowlment of the New Age," and he's all for it! The fingerpicking guitar meets noise collage of "City of Refuge" makes for a radical masterpiece from a man who, after a ten-year bout with alcoholism, illness and homelessness, is now thankfully back as a creative force in a world that Gastr del Sol and the like may have made safe for his brand of experimentation... We also have Fahey's recently reissued 1959 debut, "The Legend Of Blind Joe Death," an essential classic. MONKS "Black Monk Time" (Infinite Zero) cd 13.98 Restless U.S. Army GI's stationed in Germany, circa 1966, shave their heads and try to become the "anti-Beatles," inventing punk rock as a result! This unbelievable record finally is reissued domestically on cd by Rick Rubin and Henry Rollins' Infinite Zero label, complete with bonus tracks (live and demo) and a nicely-done booklet. Rock history gets re-written when you hear this. PAVEMENT "Brighten The Corners" (Matador) lp/cd 8.98/14.98 5 million Pavement fans (it seems) can't be wrong... FLYING SAUCER ATTACK & ROY MONTGOMERY (vhf) 12"/cdep 7.98/9.98 3-song collaborative ep between AQ favorites FSA and Roy Montgomery!! THE DOLLAR BRAND TRIO "Duke Ellington Presents The Dollar Brand Trio" (Warner Reprise) cd 11.98 Lovely album first released in 1964, from piano-led introspective jazz trio headed by Dollar Brand, who later changed name to Abdullah Ibrahim. "One evening last spring, when Duke Ellington was playing a concert in Zurich, a slender young woman came up to him backstage during intermission and asked if he would come over to a nearby nightclub after the concert and listen to the trio she was singing with. Ellington, used to this sort of thing, politely brushed off the young woman and went onstage. When he returned backstage after the concert, the girl was still there. She implored him to stop by, and Ellington, despairing of shaking her off, promised to drop over to the African Club to hear the group. He arrived at closing time, but the trio persuaded the management to stay open another half hour so they could play for him. Ellington was enthralled by the music, and the result of this brief encounter was that he cut no fewer than three Reprise LPs with the group. Thus, the South African Dollar Brand Trio and its singer Bea Benjamin, will soon have their record debut in the United States, and it is a most auspicious one for the group that until recently was almost totally unknown in America." --from a 1963 Down Beat article written by Jack Lind. KOOL KEITH "Sex Style" (Funky Ass) cd 14.98 Solo disc from rapper Kool Keith (of Dr. Octagon, Ultramagnetic MC's fame) - compared to the Dr. Oct album, this is less sci-fi, more s-e-x. Vinyl of this will be in someday... You've seen Kool Keith raved about in the Bay Guardian, the paper that refuses to acknowledge AQ's reincarnation. Hmm... do you think it has something to do with the fact that we can't afford their advertising rates? Still though, we'll take their music section over the SF Weekly's weak 'n' worthless 'coverage' any day of the week. How do you all feel about the state of local music writing? FAUST "You Know (Fa)Us(T)" (ReR) cd 14.98 70's krautrock icons Faust return for their second reunion album of this decade...produced by themselves, rather than "Rien"'s Jim O'Rourke, this harks back to the classic fractured-pop Faust sound more so than that previous album did. This is really good. DAVID BOWIE "Earthling" (Virgin) cd 15.98 Sure Bowie's jungle makeover (courtesy of A Guy Called Gerald) is a calculated move, but at least somebody told him that Nine Inch Nails isn't where it's at. And he can pat himself on the back for beating U2 to the punch. GERALDINE FIBBERS "What Part Of Get Thee Gone..." (SFTRI) cd 10.98 Their wonderful Sympathy 10" now on cd, with extra tracks. HOVERCRAFT "Akathisia" (Mute/Blast First) cd 14.98 Krautrock-y guitar/bass/drums drone. A more, uh, cybernetic version of Cul de Sac? Quite nice. FU MANCHU "Godzilla" (Man's Ruin) 10" 3rd in a series of "stoner rock" ep's (Melvins doing Floyd, Kyuss doing Sabbath...this time, it's these 'dudes' doing B.O.C.). Unfortunately, this features some of the worst cover art we've ever seen. What I have to ask is, where was Frank Kozik when St. Vitus needed him? MARBLES "Pyramid Landing & Other Favorites" (SpinART) cd 12.98 Robert Schneider goes solo with this collection of early, pre-Apples in Stereo sweet pop tunes. MECO "The Best Of" (Mercury) cd 16.98 We know that you're so excited about seeing Star Wars in the theatre again that you'll buy this collection by disco artist Meco, who went to the top of the charts in 1977 with his version of "Star Wars Theme/Cantina Music." That hit is included here of course, along with other examples of Meco's soundtrack-disco crossover. Also we are carrying a few copies of the super-limited edition double cd soundtracks for "Star Wars" and "The Empire Strikes Back", which are book-bound with supercool holograms on the discs -- one of the Death Star, one of how it looks when going into warp drive. ENDLESS SMILE "Ten To Hope" (Releasing Eskimo) cd 16.98 From Sweden, noisy drone music that should appeal to fans of Flying Saucer Attack and Skullflower. BLACK MANNA "The Field Recordings" (Scheming Intelligensia) 10" 9.98 No-fi NOISE (a la Merzbow) from B. Non and Shug of SF's own Mudwimmin. AZ "Music For Scattered Brains" (Atavistic) cd 13.98 Explore a realm of circus-y, noisy electronica courtesy of Azita from Chicago no-wavers The Scissor Girls. Previously available only as a limited-edition lp. REDD KROSS "Show World" (Mercury) cd 12.98 V/A "Digital Catastroph 1997" (ZK Records/DHR) 2xcd 22.00 Even though the techno-noise-punk assault of Alec Empire's Berlin-based Digital Hardcore outfits always reminded us of Japanese drum machine-abusers the Space Streakings, nobody was expecting this project: tracks from various underground bands on Japan's ZK label (best known among them Violent Onsen Geisha) get remixed by Alec, EC8OR, Shizuo and others from the DHR squadron. That's what's on the first disc of this two cd set, the second contains the original versions, so you can see how those tracks were mutated by the Germans. Extreme stuff. Unfortunately the Space Streakings aren't a ZK band... PIZZICATO 5 "Sister Freedom" (Matador) 10"/cd 7.98/6.98 CHUCK BARRIS "Presents Themes From TV Game Shows" (TV City) cd 13.98 Y'know, the guy from the Gong Show. This excitable, multi-talented 70's gameshow kingpin composed timeless theme songs for such shows as The Dating Game, the Newlywed Game, and a bunch of others lost to history. The 21 tracks on this cd even include several with Chuck's vocals, among them "Why Me Oh Lord" and "Sometimes It Just Doesn't Pay To Get Up." Sleazy & silly listening indeed. Suspiciously issued by someone in Australia. Which means it won't be around for long (nudge). WACO BROTHERS "Cowboy In Flames" (Bloodshot) cd 13.98 Second record from Jon Langford's (Mekons) country-styled project. MU-ZIQ "Urmur Bile Trax vol. 1 & 2" (Astralwerks) cd 12.98 Mike P.'s two recent import-only drum&bass 12-inch records on one cd. TRANSONIC "Downstream Illusion" (EFA) cd 16.98 Reissue of Bill Laswell-associate Robert Musso's electronica opus from a few years back. V/A "Nirvana: Jungle Sky IV" (Liquid Sky) cd 14.98 Collection of "atmospheric drum and bass" by the likes of DJ Soul Slinger, Arto Lindsay, DJ Ani, Ben Neill and others. SIN ALLEY "Detroit 442" (Demolition Derby) cdep 7.98 Female-fronted, gasoline-soaked trash rock from Belgium. GRAVITAR "Now The Road Of Knives" (Charnel Music) cd 12.98 Third album from Michigan's heaviest noise-psych-rock band. This time, co-produced by Warren Defever of His Name Is Alive/Princess Dragon Mom fame. Also sporting some fine cover artwork. MARY LOU LORD "Martian Saints!" (Kill Rock Stars) cdep 7.98 5 song ep from Miss Lord, one original and covers of Peter Laughner, Pete Droge, Elliot Smith, and Nick Saloman (Bevis Frond). Guitar played on two songs by Mr. Frond as well! ELEVENTH DREAM DAY "Eighth" (Thrill Jockey) cd 12.98 Tastes Tortoise-y! URINALS "Negative Capability...Check It Out!" (AmRep) cd 13.98 Some classics for you punks. "Surfin' with the Shah" "Jetsons Main Theme" "I'm White and Middle Class" "I'm a Bug" etc. FURRY THINGS "Hedfones" (Trance) cdep 8.98 SHELLAC/MULE (Touch and Go) split 7" 3.99 TALL DWARFS "Stumpy" (Flying Nun) 2xlp/cd 8.98/13.98 In the liner notes of their last album, Chris Knox and Alec Bathgate invited fans to send casettes of percussive loops they promised to use as the basis for new songs. Here is that long-awaited record. Beloved tough guy Mike Wolf, a.k.a. stateside Flying Nun rep, a.k.a. The Guy With The Best Job In The World (as opposed to Windy, a.k.a. The Girl With The Best Job In The World), describes it better than I can: "It's a throwback to the more experi-MENTAL TDs of "Louis Likes His Daily Dip", etc... (T)ake into account that they invited 16 strangers into the band, maybe not the best thing to do for a coherent "sound" but a damn lot more interesting than 4th gen. white boys with guitars singing about how hard life is. I try to look at each TDs record as not being one part of a path that leads anywhere specific, but a unique incursion into the reaches of their 2 brains. Yes there's less to tap your foot to on Stumpy, but "Pull The Thread (& Unravel Me)" had me in tears the first time I heard it, and it still brings me to the brink despite the fact that I'm, y'know, one of those tough guys." ----* ----* Printed Matter : ----* PLUNDERPHONICS, 'PATAPHYSICS + POP MECHANICS book 25.00 Subtitled 'An Introduction to Musique Actuelle' this British publication from 1995 collects 'sparklingly concise essays' written by Andrew Jones. He covers experimental music as exemplified by everyone from Fred Frith to John Oswald to Zorn to The Residents, After Dinner, Tom Zé, Willem Breuker, and Rova. Our thanks're due to William Winant for turning us on to this book, "the perfect antidote to the safe, normal, MTV-driven predictability of much of modern music." HALANA issue #2 7.50 Wow. Keiji Haino, Pauline Oliveros, Tony Conrad, William Parker, Patty Waters, Alan Lamb. Not only are these folks featured in the handsome magazine, their music appears on the accompanying cd. ONGAKU OTAKU issue #2 4.95 Mason Jones' magazine of underground Japanese music has nearly doubled in size with its second issue. Featured artists include Otomo Yoshihide, Aube, Shizuka, & Jojo Hiroshige. The God Mountain and Japan Overseas labels are profiled, and there are pages and pages of reviews. In addition, the highlight of issue #1, Mason's Japan tour diary, has a sequel here. THE WIRE #156 5.50 Autechre on the cover, plus John Zorn For Beginners, The Orb, George Crumb. ********************************************************************** From beloved mail-order customer Frederic Madre: It's probably too late for it [nah...] but here's my list of 10 things that will keep me going in 97: 1. Brand new bottle of Jubilaeums Aalborg Akvavit 2. An unexpected kiss on a train platform 3. Noir Desir '666.667 Club' 4. My Yashica T5 camera 5. Ryu Murakami's 'Coin Locker Babies' 6. An APC yellow pull-over (one size too small) 7. Writing 8. The quest for Kim Fowley's 'Born to be wild' 9. Documenta X in Kassel 10. A free transatlantic rountrip ticket ********************************************************************** ...... we are selling Bimbo's tickets ...... ...... at $10.50 cash only ...... ...... for the following events ...... Thee Headcoats : Thursday February 20 Archers of Loaf : Thursday February 27 Spring Heel Jack : Friday March 7 ********************************************************************** The Aquarius Records new arrivals list has 1,027 readers. Please forward this list to those who will appreciate. Aquarius Records <><><><> 1055 Valencia Street San Francisco, California 94110 USA tel 415.647.2272 <><><><> store@aquariusrecords.org "Do we need critics to review a revolution? When is life a game to be judged and reviewed by critics? We devote our entire existence to creation and creativity, only to have it maligned by deaf and blind critics. Critics who usually have not published a book or written anything that would advance civilization one inch. Critics are part of the system we wish to change. 'Vision for the 21st Century Arts Festival' was reviewed as 'a throwback to Woodstock/a showcase for 60's music.' The audience was criticized for liking the music. Criticized as they cheered and jumped for joy." --William Parker in the new issue of Halana, on the 1996 festival which included performances by Joseph Jarman, John Zorn, Matthew Shipp, Peter Brotzman, David S. Ware, Thurston Moore, Charles Gayle, etc. Love, Allan & his fellow "customer-service freaks" at Aquarius Records (although Windy hereby takes responsibility for any hurt feelings Neva 'I Listen To Luscious Jackson On Repeat' Chonin or Bill 'Nightmare Come True' Wyman or Michael 'Has Gone' Batty may suffer as result of her comments)