ANIMAL COLLECTIVE Sung Tongs (Fat Cat) cd 15.98
The mysteriously eccentric Animal Collective have returned bearing / baring their Sung Tongs. They continue along their quirky, meandering rough-hewn path, yet on this album they seem ever so slightly more focused and (dare we say?) accessible than on previous recorded endeavors. However, that's not to say that they're not plenty 'out there'. This 'Collective is definitely not for everybody. It just sounds as though they've set aside their eclectic genre palette (psych, jazz, prog, noise, etc) for the time being, keeping their sound for the most part within the mossy folk realm. Perhaps they've spent a stretch of time deep in the woods far from civilization? This does make for a much less haphazard, much less disarming listen than those of past A.C. releases. That said, odd details still punctuate the songs like cackling laughter, whooping vocalizations, textural ambient noises -- hazily drifting in and out of lucidity. Furthermore, as if to not fully alienate those who dug their Here Comes the Indian and Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished / Danse Manatee releases, they end on a more characteristically strange note with the trippy track "Whaddit I Done".
MPEG Stream: "Kids On Holiday"
MPEG Stream: "Whaddit I Done"

ANIMAL COLLECTIVE Sung Tongs (Fat Cat) lp 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Now on vinyl! The mysteriously eccentric Animal Collective have returned bearing / baring their Sung Tongs. They continue along their quirky, meandering rough-hewn path, yet on this album they seem ever so slightly more focused and (dare we say?) accessible than on previous recorded endeavors. However, that's not to say that they're not plenty 'out there'. This 'Collective is definitely not for everybody. It just sounds as though they've set aside their eclectic genre palette (psych, jazz, prog, noise, etc) for the time being, keeping their sound for the most part within the mossy folk realm. Perhaps they've spent a stretch of time deep in the woods far from civilization? This does make for a much less haphazard, much less disarming listen than those of past A.C. releases. That said, odd details still punctuate the songs like cackling laughter, whooping vocalizations, textural ambient noises -- hazily drifting in and out of lucidity. Furthermore, as if to not fully alienate those who dug their Here Comes the Indian and Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished / Danse Manatee releases, they end on a more characteristically strange note with the trippy track "Whaddit I Done".
MPEG Stream: "Kids On Holiday"
MPEG Stream: "Whaddit I Done"

ANIMAL COLLECTIVE Water Curses (Domino) cd ep 6.98
Initially, it's difficult to appreciate Water Curses on its own merits, and not as the follow up to staggering records like Feels, Sung Tongs, and Panda Bear's Person Pitch, whose influence on contemporary indie music will be felt for a long time to come. In this context, it falls flat, but if you can find the patience to discover it on its own terms, it's not really a bad little ep, and quite possibly even a good one. Fans of Panda Bear's distinctive croon will be disappointed however, as Avey Tare is at the vocal helm of every track, though PB's influence is certainly felt through the nobs and dials of his Dr. Sample. Truly, the title track is as perfect a piece of out-there pop as Animal Collective have ever made, barring perhaps the classic "Who Could Win A Rabbit." It's intoxicatingly catchy, and sends you through a captivating gauntlet of shifts in momentum leaving you delightfully exhausted. The remaining three tracks are all spare in comparison, but each with its own specific charm. "Street Flash" is spacious with sudden screaming accents, and some fantastically wacked vocal processing. Also memorable perhaps for its pathos-enriched lyrics including the standout: "Does anyone in here get hit with inside fevers?"
"Cobwebs" has its roots in sampling, with only a little bit of guitar work, but some fantastic vocal hooks, and exalted whoops and hollers. The final track, "Seal Eyeing", the only track that wasn't tracked in the Strawberry Jam sessions, is a gentle tour of aquatic tableaus and marine communiques, perhaps most noteworthy for its mournfully placid tone, a place Animal Collective hasn't really taken us since the latter half of Sung Tongs. Each song on this ep has its own distinct allure, but in comparison to the revelations embedded in the band's previous work, it's a bit limp. What's difficult to determine, is whether unseasoned ears would find this work as mesmerizing as earlier Animal Collective, or whether there really is something missing. We're not sure. But needless to say, Water Curses will get its far share of spins, if only because it is so damn pleasant.
MPEG Stream: "Water Curses"
MPEG Stream: "Street Flash"

ANIMAL COLLECTIVE Water Curses (Domino) lp 10.98
Now on vinyl!
Initially, it's difficult to appreciate Water Curses on its own merits, and not as the follow up to staggering records like Feels, Sung Tongs, and Panda Bear's Person Pitch, whose influence on contemporary indie music will be felt for a long time to come. In this context, it falls flat, but if you can find the patience to discover it on its own terms, it's not really a bad little ep, and quite possibly even a good one. Fans of Panda Bear's distinctive croon will be disappointed however, as Avey Tare is at the vocal helm of every track, though PB's influence is certainly felt through the nobs and dials of his Dr. Sample. Truly, the title track is as perfect a piece of out-there pop as Animal Collective have ever made, barring perhaps the classic "Who Could Win A Rabbit." It's intoxicatingly catchy, and sends you through a captivating gauntlet of shifts in momentum leaving you delightfully exhausted. The remaining three tracks are all spare in comparison, but each with its own specific charm. "Street Flash" is spacious with sudden screaming accents, and some fantastically wacked vocal processing. Also memorable perhaps for its pathos-enriched lyrics including the standout: "Does anyone in here get hit with inside fevers?"
"Cobwebs" has its roots in sampling, with only a little bit of guitar work, but some fantastic vocal hooks, and exalted whoops and hollers. The final track, "Seal Eyeing", the only track that wasn't tracked in the Strawberry Jam sessions, is a gentle tour of aquatic tableaus and marine communiques, perhaps most noteworthy for its mournfully placid tone, a place Animal Collective hasn't really taken us since the latter half of Sung Tongs. Each song on this ep has its own distinct allure, but in comparison to the revelations embedded in the band's previous work, it's a bit limp. What's difficult to determine, is whether unseasoned ears would find this work as mesmerizing as earlier Animal Collective, or whether there really is something missing. We're not sure. But needless to say, Water Curses will get its far share of spins, if only because it is so damn pleasant.
MPEG Stream: "Water Curses"
MPEG Stream: "Street Flash"

ANIMAL COLLECTIVE Who Could Win A Rabbit? (Fat Cat) 7" 7.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
So... what would your answer be to the question posed in this record's title? Well my (Cup's) response would be another query, "who would want to if the bunny is the one in the cover photo?" He's a disturbing, evil clown rabbit, rivalling the one in Donnie Darko. Yikes! Anyways, this is the new single from eclectic eccentrics Animal Collective, a band you'd normally want to spend some time with, immersing yourself in their often quite strange musical world. And to be frank, the all-too-brief 7" single is not particularly the most conducive format to achieve this. Nor terribly economical. That said, what we did hear we liked quite a bit. The A-side is a typically ramshackle folksy singalong complete with off-kilter handclaps. The B-side "Baby Day" sounded like the Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations" mashed through an odd tribal filter.

ANIMAL HOSPITAL s/t (Mr. Records) cd 12.98
Loop-based one man band Animal Hospital (Kevin Micka) creates a mesmerizing and lush soundworld on this debut self-titled release. Chock full of post rock delights, warm swelling soundscapes, hypnotic arpeggiated guitar lines, pounding crunchy drum beats... And what's super cool is that he is able to replicate all of this live, all by himself! Armed with only a guitar, a drum kit and a shitload of loop pedals and effect processors, he builds these tracks from a single loop into a dense and triumphantly heavy postrock jam. Droney and dirgey and dreamily melancholy, Mr. Micka has produced an album that is at once angular and technical while maintaining a vibe of lonesome sadness, which ends up being pretty damn powerful and at moments, straight up beautiful. The actual recording is amazing as well (his engineering is on par with his soundcraft), producing a warm and glistening sound.
Great rainy day post rock!
MPEG Stream: "Architeuthis"
MPEG Stream: "Below The Ocean"

ANIMALS & MEN Revel In The Static (Hyped To Death) cd 13.98
Here's one of the full-lengths mentioned in our review of the Messthetics Greatest Hits compilation last list, and it's also quite recommended. We first heard Animals & Men (named for an early Adam & The Ants Song) on one of the old Messthetics cd-r comps. Later Hyped To Death released a 21-song cd-r collection of pretty much everything that this band ever recorded both under the name Animals & Men and in their later incarnation Terraplanes. That disc has now been revamped, retitled, and reissued on cd, with four extra tracks tacked on! Plus a mpeg video clip of a live performance of "Evil Going On" as a bonus.
What're they all about? Female-fronted DIY art/blues/punk from rural England, totally charming and catchy and homemade, comparable to Kleenex/LiLiPUT, Delta 5 and the Vaselines. And that's right, their wide array of influences included black American blues...and the novels of J.G. Ballard, which would explain "Car Crash Blues".
The cd booklet features in-depth liner notes detailing the band's saga as New Wave coulda-woulda beens, with patrons like John Peel and their long-time pal Adam Ant. Obscure though they remained, that should definitely not inhibit but rather enhance your enjoyment of this collection, for lack of commercial success allowed wonderful idiosyncrasies to flourish in their songwriting.
PS. what's a Terraplane you might be wondering? It's an American automobile from the '30s, immortalized in Robert Johnson's "Terraplane Blues". And Animals & Men's "Terraplane Fixation".
MPEG Stream: "Terraplane Fixation"
MPEG Stream: "Evil Going On"

ANIMIST ORCHESTRA Wuwei (Anomalous) cd 14.98
Following the incredibly tiny improvisations with carefully chosen sticks, rocks, and shells on his "Second Attention" solo album, the Seattle sound artist Jeph Jerman expanded those actions within the context of a larger ensemble called the Animist Orchestra with Dave Knott, Jeffery Taylor, Marina Granger, Mike Shannon, and Robert Mills. As before, the sounds on the Animist Orchestra's "Wuwei" are entirely caught up in the spontenaeity of the moment paralleling the pure, expressive goals of free-jazz. But as Jerman explained in the press release to the album, "the use of natural objects (stones, shells, pine cones etc.) as opposed to more conventional musical instruments, can help the players to not fall back on learned habits of musical play." The activities of Jerman's Animist Orchestra are sustained yet hushed rustings of those natural elements, unveiling a vast array of interwoven patterns and textures. Concentrated listenings are neccessary.
RealAudio clip: "excerpt 1"
RealAudio clip: "excerpt 2"
RealAudio clip: "excerpt 3"

ANIMOSITY + DRUMCORPS Altered Beast (Man Alive) 10" 11.98
We went a little crazy for Aaron Spectre's Drumcorps project, a crazed manic electronic workout featuring live metal guitars and chopped to bits metal and grindcore, all mashed up into some incredibly head spinning, neck snapping, dancefloor destroying moshpit annihilating heaviness.
So the latest bit of Drumcorps brutality, finds Spectre teaming up with Bay Area thrashmetal titans Animosity for a 3 track one sided 10", which takes up right where the Drumcorps record left off and pushes this whole metal / electronic hybrid even further out. This time, Animosity wrote three tracks, and Spectre got to fuck them up. But weirdly enough, unlike on the last Drumcorps disc, where it sounded like a record assembled from bits of metal and grind and breakbeats, this disc sounds more like an Animosity record, where they just happen to be incorporating bits of jungle and techno and drill+bass and whatever grinding buzzing weirdness Spectre could come up with. And the results are pretty stellar. And its core, this is a grindmetal record, but the guitars are super clipped and processed, often stuttering and chopped up into impossible rhythms, the beats are revved up and transformed into frantic breakbeats, some of the super fast blast beats just keep getting faster and faster until they turn into impossible digital stutters. Huge riffs grind and churn, often separated by squalls of jungle, freaky beats, it's a mash up, but neither side is in control, it veers back and forth from metal to jungle to grind to breakbeat often exploding into everything at once. This is the sort of shit that could get us non dancers out on the floor. Or maybe get you dancers into the pit. Either way, fucking awesome.
And we talk about insane packaging all the time, but once again, holy shit, these guys are pushing the limits of how over the top you can get - eye popping full color screened sleeves, incredible, garish illustrations, inside and out, but it's the vinyl, some are clear and white swirled, some are red and blue and clear swirled, but then the non playing side features and abstract thick metallic ink silkscreened image, either gold or silver, it's hard to explain, but the first time we slipped one out of the sleeve, everyone working had to gather around to see.
CRAZY LIMITED. We got a bunch, but odds are these are the last copies we'll be able to get.

ANIMUS Poems For The Aching, Swords For The Infuriated (Ars Magna Recordings) cd 11.98
Similar to our neverending quest for the ultimate in demented and damaged black metal weirdness, we are also constantly on another quest, a search for the darkest, deepest, most depressive, massive, emotional, suicidal, bleak, utterly hypnotic, droney and transcendental blackened BUZZ. We sometimes do find it, but then it's not too long before we need more, and so we begin the search again. Sometimes it's harsh high end and brittle upper register shimmer, other times it's murky low end chest rattling rumble. But we tend to lean toward the fuzzy and lo-fi, the super thick, the dense and foggy, smeary smudgey and washed out. A black metal that instead of borrowing from Burzum (sigh) or Darkthrone (yawn) finds sonic inspiration in My Bloody Valentine, or M83 or even in Jeck or Basinski or Hecker or Fennesz. A buzz that is just not guitar distortion, but is instead a glacier, or a wall, or a swirl, some sort of densely striated monolith, each layer a fuzzy piece of the larger dream like whole. Past masters of the BUZZ, who were able to satiate our hunger, include Velvet Cacoon, Xasthur and Make A Change... Kill Yourself, and on the more doom drenched BUZZ side of things, slower but no less BUZZy, Celestiial, Skepticism, Corrupted even Boris.
Then there are the non metal, but still incredibly heavy masters of the BUZZ, Hjarnidaudi, Nadja, Asva, The Angelic Process...
We could go on and on and on. Needless to say. The BUZZ, and thus the drone that is inherently part of it, is critical, crucial, without the BUZZ, music, nay life! Would have no meaning.
So thus we have the latest in a long line, a member of a mysterious sect known only as Keepers Of The BUZZ. Sworn to their sacred duty, passed down from generation to generation.
Animus is the name used by a young man from Israel, who has chosen the vessel of Animus, with which to protect the BUZZ. And to protect this sacred sonic disruptor, he has fashioned one of the most amazing records of ultra bleak, super personal, fuzzy and muddy, blown out and blissed out (in sound only, certainly not in mood) dirgey midtempo black metal we have heard in ages. Lilting melancholy riffs and simple drum machine rhythms are buried under a super thick wash of murky ambience, a bit like the warm fuzz of M83, but with all the sparkle and shine scrubbed off, leaving a burnished blackened gloom, hugging the lurching riffs like a dense morning fog, every element sounding muffled and distant. But this isn't really lo-fi at all. The sound here is dense and thick, heavy and strangely lush, The all encompassing and mysteriously overpowering BUZZ is draped over all of the other elements, the drums and fuzzed out riffs, drifting and pulsing, throbbing and beating, always nestled snugly beneath the surface, only the distorted howls come close to piercing the black sonic veil. Soundwise, Animus remind us of Thergothon and Skepticism, but where as those bands trudge at a truly funereal pace, Animus tends toward the midtempo, a relentless drone drenched black metal, harsh and harrowing, mournful and miserable, but so absolutely and stunningly beautiful.
Essential for all worshippers of the BLACK BUZZ!!!
MPEG Stream: "One"
MPEG Stream: "Two"
MPEG Stream: "Three"

ANKERSMIT, THOMAS / JIM O'ROURKE split (Tochnit Aleph) lp 17.98
A very interesting split LP for several reasons, not the least of which being the almost 20 years separating the two recordings. Thomas Ankersmit is a young composer, who splits his time between the saxophone and analogue synthesizers, having spent a good portion of his young career touring the globe with Phill Niblock. His performances are as transcendent as they are physical, with him tugging and re-plugging patch cables into his modular synth at a dizzying speed all the while generating a refined blur of arcing drones and potent electricity. Despite the sax, jazz, this is not! In many ways, Ankersmit's loping compositions resemble those early pieces by Jim O'Rourke, especially his impressive Scend and Tamper albums from the early '90s. So perhaps that's why a contemporary Ankersmit composition got teamed up with an archival (and possibly unreleased until now) piece from O'Rourke from that very time period.
Ankersmit's piece incorporates both sax and synth, with cracked electricity fizzing and popping with electroshock capacity only to be consumed by a laser beam of analogue synth tones swarmed by searing hiss of white noise. The saxophone appears as a sustained squawk of circular breathing techniques with the edges thoroughly roughed up by a litany of distortion pedals. O'Rourke's piece seems to be all guitar, with a midrange distortion enveloping the choppy riffs that eventually coalesce into a thick morass of drone-dirge that looks forward to the likes of Ambarchi and O'Malley, although not nearly as heavy. We've been told this is rare. We've been told this is limited. We can tell you this is great!

ANN, KEREN s/t (Delabel) cd 17.98
Keren Ann's fifth album, the follow-up to her U.S. breakthrough album the English and French sung Nolita (as well as numerous inclusions of her songs on TV programs), is sure to win her more admirers. While all of the photos we've seen of her have presented her in a dewy waif light, her voice, lyrics and music are actually much more womanly. This English sung self-titled album easily secures her a plush seat alongside the likes of distinctive female singers such as Beth Orton, Beth Gibbons, and Hope Sandoval. Perish the thought, but you can also hear the potential for a more mainstream appeal a la Dido or Norah Jones. All eeeks aside though, this is lovely.
MPEG Stream: "Lay Your Head Down"
MPEG Stream: "Where No Endings End"

ANNA PLANETA s/t (Betley Welcomes Careful Drivers) 2cd 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The UK's Anna Planeta (a band) presents a double cd of recordings they made in a derelict Catholic school house that has been empty since 1980. The band improvises on a number of acoustic instruments and guitars powered by cheap battery powered amps in the once-grandiose assembly hall of the school that is now filled with shattered glass, empty beercans, and spent glue-sniffing bags. It sounds like any number of, to use our coined terminology, "pipe fight" or "lithium drone" bands (No Neck Blues Band, Organum, or Skullflower) recording one of their albums with the microphone right next to a electric transformer or a buzzing light bulb. Very nice work, combining improv "outsider rock" with atmospheric environmental recording. Oversized silkscreened cardboard packaging, and a nice price for 2 cds!

ANNA, DJ Live At The Den Of Iniquity (Beta Lounge) cd-r 9.98

ANNIE Anniemal (679 Recordings) cd 14.98
Here's Annie! Cruisin' along in her '80s dance pop revival mobile with the top down and the stereo on 10. The songs on Anniemal are not unlike modernized versions of those by formulaic party girl combos the Belle Stars, Bananarama, Men's Room or early Madonna, but Annie's also got the additional cache of being from Norway. Oooh! Unlike other current female dance music singers (such as Kylie Minogue), Annie's tracks are far less slick and hugely produced and considerably more heavy on the saccharine. She floods the dancefloor with lip-smackin' marshmallow fluff. There's a time and place for the deliciously vacant, and it seems like that time is now. We could get all grumpy about this and dismiss it as yet another force-fed hipster flavor of the day, but really, how would you rather expend your energy during these summer months? Dancin' yer ass off or stompin' your foot in disapproval?
MPEG Stream: "Chewing Gum"
MPEG Stream: "Anniemal"

ANNIHILATION TIME III: Tales Of The Ancient Age (Tee Pee) cd 13.98
Grab a brew, it's Annihilation Time! This is their third album (duh) but their first for Tee Pee (and thus the first we've heard, even though they're from right over in the East Bay... must mean we're more stoner rock than punk). The standard issue spiel about AT is that, as you might have guessed from their name, they're big time Black Flag and Bl'ast! fans, crossing over into the retro-thrash movement, with some classic '70s cock rock moves a la KISS or Thin Lizzy thrown in. Think fellow retro rockin' Oaklanders Drunkhorse, but more punk and skater-ly.
So, do such blurbs tell the truth? And if so, does this supposed hybrid of Deep Purple and D.R.I. sound better on paper than on your stereo? Well check out the twin guitar leads towards the end of track 2, "About To Snap", there's shades of Iron Maiden's Smith/Murray right there, and you'll find plenty more in the way of tasty '70s/'80s metallic guitar action elsewhere on the disc, usually smack in the midst of some much more basic, punk styled riffage... while their music ain't rocket science, it is definitely some good times rock n' roll. Not the second coming of anybody, but still a neat mix of elements, glorious guitar harmonies coexisting with hoarse punk rock vox... even if it's hard to know if we're supposed to be pogoing or headbanging. It can't quite approach the shreddingness of their live shows, but it's fun nonetheless.
MPEG Stream: "About To Snap"
MPEG Stream: "Jonestown"
MPEG Stream: "Bad Luck"

ANNIVERSARY / SUPERDRAG (Vagrant / Heroes & Villains) cd 10.98
Two power-pop groups join forces on this split cd dedicated to the memory of all those lost on September 11th. The Anniversary isn't terribly inspiring without any of the Get Up Kids emo explosiveness found on their previous recordings, instead they offer a limp recombination of third rate Beatles imitations and crowd pleasing '70s lite rock. Superdrag on the other hand has all of the energy with more of their uptempo indie-rock jangliness sounding sort of like Silver Sun without the complex vocal harmonies.
RealAudio clip: ANNIVERSARY "Up In The Sky"
RealAudio clip: SUPERDRAG "I Guess It's American"

ANNIVERSARY, THE Designing a Nervous Breakdown (Heroes & Villains) cd 12.98
Last night we were playing this in the store and the consensus amongst customers and staff is that The Anniversary sounds like a mix of Modest Mouse, Rainer Maria, PEE and the Get Up Kids. Makes sense since this is on the Get Up Kids' Heroes and Villains label. Dueling girl/boy vocals over angular melodic shards. Super catchy. From Lawrence, Kansas.

ANNIVERSARY, THE Devil on Our Side: B-Sides & Rarities (Vagrant) 2cd 14.98
Yay! It's been a while since we last heard from these dandy emo popsters - and actually the last time we did (2002's hyper-dramatic pop album Your Majesty) we weren't quite sure where our hearts sat with them - but this double disc of odds'n'ends compilation has renewed our warm fuzzy fondness for them. It's been about five years since the band split, and our indie emo pop itch has been in need of a good scratch! Heck, we'll even ignore the questionable omen that crossed our paths like a black cat when researching the band recently - the first thing that popped up on Google was a listing on the Hot Topic store website! Yikes. Anyhoo... pert, pretty, poppy and unfalteringly earnest, The Anniversary kept us all of us bopping along in our collegiate thrift store cardigans and Converse sneakers even if only in our imagination. Nestled into the punchy punky pop assembly of guitars, bass and drums you'll find fancy frills from woozy keyboards and violins, but it's the slouchy anxious boy/sweetie pie girl vocals that seal the deal! The contrasting voices were definitely a defining factor in the genre itself (you can hear it these days in bands such as Vancouver's Young & Sexy and Immaculate Machine). Disc 1 features b-sides and rarities from 1998, and disc 2 spans the quintet's career from 1999 through 2003 (including a cover of John Fogerty's "Lodi"). Awww, The Anniversary, we still heart you!
MPEG Stream: "Alright For Now"
MPEG Stream: "Diamonds And Daisies"

ANNIVERSARY, THE Your Majesty (Vagrant) cd 14.98
What the hell happened here? The Anniversary has poised themselves as the heir apparents to the emo / power pop throne now occupied by labelmates the Get Up Kids, yet with their second album "Your Majesty," these kids from Lawrence, Kansas suddenly think they're Noel and Liam, constructing a bombastic album of baroque pop with lots of harmonizing choruses, extended guitar solos, dramatic piano chords, and distant nods to The Pixies and Supertramp. This record was a real slow burner. In the beginning we all hated it, wondering what happened to our emo pop anniversaries, but the more we listen, the more we began to understand. I began catching Jim listening to it when they thought no one was the wiser. And Windy is pretty much playing it nonstop in her car. So now, we give it a thumbs up. The only bummer is the one guy singer who whispers in a earnest croon and ends up sounding lame. Outside of that, they're probably the best Brit pop band America has. A few painfully public inter-band squabbles and loads of coke and the sky's the limit!
RealAudio clip: "The Siren Song"
RealAudio clip: "Sweet Marie"

ANNIVERSARY, THE Your Majesty (Vagrant) lp 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
What the hell happened here? The Anniversary has poised themselves as the heir apparents to the emo / power pop throne now occupied by labelmates the Get Up Kids, yet with their second album "Your Majesty," these kids from Lawrence, Kansas suddenly think they're Noel and Liam, constructing a bombastic album of baroque pop with lots of harmonizing choruses, extended guitar solos, dramatic piano chords, and distant nods to The Pixies and Supertramp. This record was a real slow burner. In the beginning we all hated it, wondering what happened to our emo pop Anniversaries, but the more we listen, the more we began to understand. I began catching Jim or Cup listening to it when they thought no one was the wiser. So now, we have to give it a thumbs up. The only bummer is the one guy singer who whispers in a earnest croon and ends up sounding lame. Outside of that, they're probably the best Brit pop band America has. A few painfully public inter-band squabbles and loads of coke and the sky's the limit!
RealAudio clip: "The Siren Song"
RealAudio clip: "Sweet Marie"

ANNUALS, THE Be He Me (Ace Fu) cd 12.98
Thought we had this band figured out during the first song, but we weren't even close!
From that track's aggressive youthful male angst vocals and bristly guitars, The Annuals turn on a dime and deliver some of the sunshiniest West Coast-y perfect pop! Comparisons to Modest Mouse and Built To Spill will invariably pop up, but The Annuals manage to come up with way more than the mere hero worship that taints many a young band. They bring other variables into the shuffling mix which on their own aren't particularly original but together make Be He Me sound super fresh. Cool.
MPEG Stream: "Brother"
MPEG Stream: "Dry Clothes"

ANODYNE The Outer Dark (Escape Artist) cd 14.98
Thrashy noisy hardcore GONE METAL?! Woo Hoo! Seems like all those punk kids have GONE METAL. But who am I to complain? I mean, I -do- like metal more than punk. And this -is- good, just not terribly groundbreaking. Think equal parts, Coalesce, Converge, Dillinger Escape Plan with a HUGE helping of Neurosis! Definitely for fans of the above.
RealAudio clip: "Lucky Sky Diamond"

ANOMOANON Asleep Many Years in the Wood (Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 13.98
Sometimes the hardest records to review are the good ol' regular rock albums. Whether it's good or not, saying "2 guitars, drums, bass" just isn't scintillating reading. So how to express how thoroughly enjoyable this new Anomoanan record is. Hm. And this from a band that's, well, never made such a good impression on me before -- I found their earlier efforts unremarkable but with "Asleep Many Years...", the band's __th record, it's all come together. Led by Ned Oldham (yep, brother to Will Oldham, who makes several prettily broken-voiced appearances here, and producer Paul Oldham), the band plays with a tuneful confidence resulting in an instantly classic sound -- the music is a familiar AM-radio sort of lite rock, with lovely warbly harmonies, a southern country rock vibe reminding me of my favorite Bread, America, Eagles and Neil Young tracks. Yeah, it's that good! Excellent, accessible hooks augmented with the occasional sweet cowbell clock-clocking, twangy slide guitar, organ and sweet viola. Give the soundclips a try -- the songs will instantly grab you, if'n you're inclined to love the abovementioned bands as well as Tom Petty, Robbie Fulks, Handsome Family, Richard Buckner, etc. And DEFINITELY get this if you're a Will Oldham fan at all -- it's like Palace only "easier to talk to". Recommended by Windy and Cup!
RealAudio clip: "Ain't Skeert"
RealAudio clip: "Kick Back"

ANOMOANON Envoi Villon (Galaxia) cd 10.98
2002's Anomoanan release Asleep Many Years in the Wood was, in my opinion, their high point, but this li'l EP ain't bad either. Led by Ned Oldham (yep, brother to Will Oldham), the sound is a familiar AM-radio sort of lite rock, with lovely warbly harmonies, comforting harmonica, and sleepy guitars. But while Asleep... had a rockin' cowbell knockin' vibe, Envoi Villon is a less hook-ridden, more laid back affair remarkably similar to Will Oldham and other downer twang outfits like Songs:Ohia. Lyrics on the four songs are all by Francois Villon, the oft-jailed, 13th century renegade French poet.
MPEG Stream: "Ballade of Good Doctrine to Those of Ill Life"

ANOMOANON, THE Joji (Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 14.98
My oh my! Already a new release from The Anomoanon! Their last album The Derby Ram (released just a few months ago) was a fine, drifting atmospheric soundscape-y work that, after hearing this new full length, now seems to have been more of a brief detour rather than the previously suspected complete change in direction. Joji brings Ned Oldham and co. back to their more song-oriented past with its very '70s California rock sound -- more akin to Eagles, Tom Petty and Fleetwood Mac than their formerly more Grateful Dead jam leanings. Although the album's pretty solid from start to finish, the album's best one-two punch comes early with the second song "Leap Alone". It's a fine example of the band's range, starting out all slow, frail and despairing and then breaking into a more rockin' clip. The tempo stays at that pace for the third song "Mr. Train". On both numbers the band's unmistakable somber vocal and guitar harmonies are in top form. Those bleary, expressive vocals are truly an Oldham family trademark. Sure to please the clan's many fans.
MPEG Stream: "Leap Alone"
MPEG Stream: "Mr. Train"

ANOMOANON, THE Joji (Temporary Residence Ltd.) lp 11.98
My oh my! Already a new release from The Anomoanon! Their last album The Derby Ram (released just a few months ago) was a fine, drifting atmospheric soundscape-y work that, after hearing this new full length, now seems to have been more of a brief detour rather than the previously suspected complete change in direction. Joji brings Ned Oldham and co. back to their more song-oriented past with its very '70s California rock sound -- more akin to Eagles, Tom Petty and Fleetwood Mac than their formerly more Grateful Dead jam leanings. Although the album's pretty solid from start to finish, the album's best one-two punch comes early with the second song "Leap Alone". It's a fine example of the band's range, starting out all slow, frail and despairing and then breaking into a more rockin' clip. The tempo stays at that pace for the third song "Mr. Train". On both numbers the band's unmistakable somber vocal and guitar harmonies are in top form. Those bleary, expressive vocals are truly an Oldham family trademark. Sure to please the clan's many fans.
MPEG Stream: "Leap Alone"
MPEG Stream: "Mr. Train"

ANOMOANON, THE Mother Goose (Drag City) cd 13.98
23 Mother Goose rhymes set to vaguely British-Isles-style folk by Ned Oldham, Will's brother.

ANOMOANON, THE s/t (Palace Records) cd 14.98
Singer/songwriter Ned Oldham (brother of Palace's Will Oldham y'know) presents his band's third full-length.

ANOMOANON, THE Songs From Robert Louis Stevenson's A Child's Garden Of Verses (Palace) cd 14.98
Ned Oldham (Will's bro) sets quaint children's poetry by R.L. Stevenson to music, with the help of, among others, Aram Stith, Will Oldham, Paul Oldham, and David Pajo. No, Long John Silver does not make an appearance, but poems like "Land of Nod" and "Fairy Bread" are delightfully rendered in musical form. For ages 3 to 30, and up...

ANOMOANON, THE The Derby Ram (Box Tree) cd 14.98
On their sixth album, Anomoanon rises with the sun, waking you up not with a rooster's call, but with the perky, flute-y sounds of the tune "Little Birdy". Then, they lead you out the garden gate and beyond. This folky acoustic album is the aural equivalent of a lengthy roaming stroll that takes you through overgrown bushes, across rolling fields and into dried up creekbeds. It meanders with no specific destination in mind and pausing every so often to gaze at the clouds or to stumble across some lyric fragments to "Scarborough Fair". Revisiting their feathered friends later in the album, the fifth song "Mary Had A Pretty Bird/Bluebirdy Jam" gently drifts away from traditional song structure and melody into rootsy jam territory -- a return to their past Grateful Deadish tendencies. Broodingly strummed and picked guitars form much of the instrumental foundation of each song with an occasional faint undercurrent of noodly keyboards. A worthy follow-up to their excellent 2002 full length Asleep Many Years In The Wood.
MPEG Stream: "Little Birdy"
MPEG Stream: "For Every Evil"

ANONYMOUS Inside the Shadow (Aether) lp 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
If you prefer vinyl, the Anonymous record is available here (although not with the J.Rider tracks which are on the *cd* reissue of it).
Heavily influenced by the psychedelic sounds of the Byrds, the Beatles, Crosby Stills & Nash, Heart, the Mamas and Papas, etc. If this material had been released in the late '60s instead of '77, he would've had a hit on his hands, but instead the records languished in obscurity until being reissued this year. Lush 12-string guitarwork, unison male/female vocals, epic song structures and a heavy California psych vibe permeate the music in a really good way. Very fresh and pretty.
RealAudio clip: "J. Rider"
RealAudio clip: "Who's Been Foolin"

ANONYMOUS / J. RIDER Inside the Shadow / No Longer Anonymous (Aether) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Two ridiculously-collectible albums ($600!) one on cd, ostensibly by the groups Anonymous and J. Rider, who were basically the same bands headed by Ron Matelic, who was heavily influenced by the psychedelic sounds of the Byrds, the Beatles, Crosby Stills & Nash, Heart, the Mamas and Papas, etc. If this material had been released in the late '60s instead of '77, he would've had a hit on his hands, but instead the records languished in obscurity until being reissued this year. Lush 12-string guitarwork, unison male/female vocals, epic song structures and a heavy California psych vibe permeate the music in a really good way. Very fresh and pretty.
RealAudio clip: ANONYMOUS "J. Rider"
RealAudio clip: ANONYMOUS "Who's Been Foolin"
RealAudio clip: J. RIDER "Sunday's Hero"

ANOREXIA NERVOSA New Obscurantis Order (Osmose) cd 14.98
Once you get past the mildly problematic naked-little-girl album cover, and the STUPID band name, you'll discover probably one of the best black metal records of the year. Furious and relentless, amazingly aggressive, and FAST. With catchy riffs, fucked song structures, crunching downtuned guitars and just enough keyboards to make things interesting. Definitely in the same league as Dimmu Borgir and Cradle OF Filth, but less theatrical, and way more angry and venomous sounding. Catchy songs buried under an avalanche of blazing blast beats, shrieking howls, Maiden-esque guitar melodies, almost Pantera-style drop-d riffage, sinister and occasionally almost circus-y keyboards, bizarre background vocals that veer from creepy Marilyn Manson-ish growls to full on operatic choruses, and what I swear sounds like a trombone. Definitely a record of the year. Black metal records have started to blend together into one big old generic blob, but this record manages to take all the stuff that sounds so tired in black metal, and not necessarily reinvent them, as much as reinvigorate them. A whirling, ultra-heavy, dizzyingly-complex, weird and almost perfect metal masterpiece.
RealAudio clip: "Mother Anorexia"
RealAudio clip: "Chatiment De La Rose"

ANOREXIA NERVOSA Redemption Process (Listenable) cd 16.98

ANOREXIA NERVOSA The September E.P. (Listenable) cd ep 13.98

ANTAEUS Blood Libels (Norma Evangelium Diaboli) cd 15.98
Another blackened jewel in Norma Evangelium Diaboli's elite black metal crown. Rapidly becoming the only label that really and truly matters in black metal, NED has unleashed upon the world, some of the best (and is some cases, only) recordings from Deathspell Omega, Funeral Mist, Katharsis and now French black horde Antaeus. Even way back in 2000, when they released their brilliant debut, appropriately titled Cut Your Flesh And Worship Satan, it was easy to tell there was something special (and strange) about these guys. At their core, they were pure black metal, very Mayhem influenced for sure, but that record was peppered with weird ambient interludes and fucked up not entirely black metal parts, they were true enough for the grim BM hordes, but their sound hinted at something much weirder, which of course hooked us.
So here we are, nearly 7 years later, and Antaeus have embraced that weird fucked up side, and ended up positioned perfectly along side their black sonic brethren on NED. And it is a perfect fit. Not as weird and post rocky as Deathspell, not as harsh and buzzy as Katharsis, somewhere right in between, closest sonically probably to Funeral Mist, with their blend of ultra creepy ambience and ultra dense, impossibly fast and heavy buzz. And that's the thing, some of this stuff sounds IMPOSSIBLE! It's so fucking fast, but so intricate and complicated at the same time. Furious and thick and dense and incredibly lightning fast. Dizzying bursts of black buzz that constantly threaten to completely splinter into jagged black shards.
All the while, within and between the blasts of bleak grimness and the soul shearing fury, are lots of awesome midtempo grooves, super catchy riffs that lope along all waltzy and seasick, super catchy and memorable, before exploding back into lightspeed motion. Also here and there are long stretches of processed guitars and black ambience, with creaking atmospheres, deep drones and strange keening harmonics.
A super weird, super grim expanse of totally black brilliance. Could very well be one of THE black metal records of the year. Only a few weeks to discover something more heavy or more black. Seems unlikely.
Gorgeous packaging too (as with all NED releases). Black digipak, with bloody hands reaching for the sky, the bands logo, some dripping blood and a crown of thorns sort of tangle, all printed over the top in a barely visible reflective varnish. Includes a big booklet, also gorgeously laid out, with lyrics, printed vellum, and some truly gruesome band photos.
MPEG Stream: "Rot"
MPEG Stream: "Cyklik Torture"
MPEG Stream: "Colliding In Ashes"

ANTAEUS Blood Libels (Norma Evangelium Diaboli) lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Another blackened jewel in Norma Evangelium Diaboli's elite black metal crown. Rapidly becoming the only label that really and truly matters in black metal, NED has unleashed upon the world, some of the best (and is some cases, only) recordings from Deathspell Omega, Funeral Mist, Katharsis and now French black horde Antaeus. Even way back in 2000, when they released their brilliant debut, appropriately titled Cut Your Flesh And Worship Satan, it was easy to tell there was something special (and strange) about these guys. At their core, they were pure black metal, very Mayhem influenced for sure, but that record was peppered with weird ambient interludes and fucked up not entirely black metal parts, they were true enough for the grim BM hordes, but their sound hinted at something much weirder, which of course hooked us.
So here we are, nearly 7 years later, and Antaeus have embraced that weird fucked up side, and ended up positioned perfectly along side their black sonic brethren on NED. And it is a perfect fit. Not as weird and post rocky as Deathspell, not as harsh and buzzy as Katharsis, somewhere right in between, closest sonically probably to Funeral Mist, with their blend of ultra creepy ambience and ultra dense, impossibly fast and heavy buzz. And that's the thing, some of this stuff sounds IMPOSSIBLE! It's so fucking fast, but so intricate and complicated at the same time. Furious and thick and dense and incredibly lightning fast. Dizzying bursts of black buzz that constantly threaten to completely splinter into jagged black shards.
All the while, within and between the blasts of bleak grimness and the soul shearing fury, are lots of awesome midtempo grooves, super catchy riffs that lope along all waltzy and seasick, super catchy and memorable, before exploding back into lightspeed motion. Also here and there are long stretches of processed guitars and black ambience, with creaking atmospheres, deep drones and strange keening harmonics.
A super weird, super grim expanse of totally black brilliance. Could very well be one of THE black metal records of the year. Only a few weeks to discover something more heavy or more black. Seems unlikely.
Gorgeous packaging too (as with all NED releases). Black digipak, with bloody hands reaching for the sky, the bands logo, some dripping blood and a crown of thorns sort of tangle, all printed over the top in a barely visible reflective varnish. Includes a big booklet, also gorgeously laid out, with lyrics, printed vellum, and some truly gruesome band photos.
MPEG Stream: "Rot"
MPEG Stream: "Cyklik Torture"
MPEG Stream: "Colliding In Ashes"

ANTARCTICA 81:03 (File 13) 2cd 15.98
Not downer slo-mo indie-rock as you might surmise from the band name and minimalist Seam/Codeine styled artwork, not at all. This is actually two discs of early '80s inspired synth/new-wave songsmithery, reminding us of Depeche Mode, Xymox, and especially New Order. No wonder the "kids" are clamoring for it. Well, I do wonder, but this is pretty well done, and at least a surprise.

ANTENA Camino Del Sol (Numero) cd 16.98
A very welcomed reissue of this wonderful, incredibly obscure band's music from 1982. Although it's called Camino Del Sol (the title of their 5-song mini-lp debut), this cd includes lots of other material (compilation tracks and the like) as well as an additional three bonus tracks, swelling the total song count to fourteen swoonsome delights!
Back in the day, when he first heard Antena's breezy Brazillian tropicalia styled tunes crafted with unexpected instrumentation (early puttering drum machines and analog synthesizers), former British music journalist / Pet Shop Boy Neil Tennant tagged them 'electro-samba'. And the label suits them well, they even do a spaced-out, jazzy version of "Girl From Ipanema" (renamed "Boy From Ipanema" and produced by John Foxx). Imagine if seminal electro-punk duo Suicide were suddenly magically transformed into a light, airy female-sung group, and you'd have a pretty accurate picture of Antena's sound. Blending genres and instrumentations way ahead of the pack, the stylish trio can easily be seen as a French precursor to such groups as Stereolab. You can also hear where young Brit upstarts Electrelane probably got ample birdlike vocal inspiration on the song "To Climb The Cliff". Fans of the Gilberto family (Joao, Astrud and Bebel) will surely also want to check out Antena too. Really, this album sounds perfectly fresh today.
MPEG Stream: "Camino Del Sol"
MPEG Stream: "The Boy From Ipanema"

ANTENNA FARM s/t (Phthalo) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Working with a huge arsenal of equipment (the press release lists guitars, the springs from an old reverb unit, shortwave static, VLF signals, closed circuit feedback loops, turntables, surface damaged CDs, etc.), Antenna Farm offers an album of grim collages from digital signal processing reconstructions of that source material. Twitching timestretched scrapings and harsh noises develop into interlocking loops, emerging as a dynamic convolution of the Raster-Noton structuralist glitch mixed with Merzbow's molten explosiveness. Antenna Farm is the work of Alastair Leslie and David Howell (who I believe runs Fat Cat Records), and they recently released an album in collaboration with Main.
RealAudio clip: "Smoked Out / Dead River"
RealAudio clip: "Hesh Round"
RealAudio clip: "Prowler"

ANTENNA FARM / MAIN AF_M (split cd) (Staalplaat) cd 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
About 10 years ago, Robert Hampson dissolved his incendiary psych-rock outfit Loop, and ever since has been gradually shedding the layers of his once volatile sound. Recorded under the moniker Main, the first experiments in Hampson's dismantling process succeeded through their swarming guitar drones and rolling basslines, and were heralded as the vanguard recordings for the early 90's Isolationist school. Since then, Hampson has continued to distance himself from the structuralism of rock, removing rhythm, melody, and anything that could be qualified as part of a song. Unfortunately, Main's recent output has merely sounded indifferent, rather than pensive or restrained. Perhaps he's realized this design flaw and has therefore been looking for inspiration by actively collaborating with a number of artists such as Organum, Janek Schaeffer, and now Antenna Farm. In all three instances, Hampson's previous success in creating dis-quiet and dis-ease through a sparse use of sound have once again returned.
Hampson's collaboration with Antenna Farm (the duo of Alastair Leslie and David Howell, recently responsible for a very good album on Phthalo) marks the first release on Staalplaat's Brombrom series of collaborative works. "AF_M" originates from recordings of VLF crackle, shortwave modulations, and various domestic events, yet the three slowly pixillate these sounds into spiralling collages of smoldering electronics and muddled glitches. Quite nice.
RealAudio clip: "Track One"
RealAudio clip: "Track Three"

ANTENNE #2 (Korm Plastics) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This is an odd release for Korm Plastics, a subsidiary of Staalplaat, who have, in the past, released some truely nasty pieces of electro-shock noise. Antenne is a Danish trip hop ensemble which completes rainy electronic grooves with bleary-eyed female vocals that sound an awful lot like Heidi Berry. The album opens with an cover of Nick Drake's "Black Eyed Dog." Strange.
RealAudio clip: "Black Eyed Dog"

ANTHONY B Love Triangle (Special Remix) 7" 2.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Hip hop remix. Rhythm = "I'm A Thug" (Trick Daddy).

ANTHRAX Spreading The Disease (Megaforce) cd 10.98
We couldn't resist. What better time than now to list one of Allan and Andee's favorite metal records?
Metalheads argue a lot. Which band is heavier. Which singer was the best. Who painted what album cover. Which bands are true metal. And one argument that rages on (at least around here) is which Anthrax singer was/is the best. While Allan and I both agree that current Anthrax throat John Bush (former Armored Saint frontman) is a great vocalist, we also both agree that he isn't very good in Anthrax. Allan tends to lean toward Neil Turbin, who sang on the first two, more decidedly thrash albums, and those records definitely contain some of Anthrax's finest moments. But it was Joey Belladonna who took Anthrax to the next level. His super high pitched wail added some melody to their thrash and opened a lot of people's ears to heavy music. And 'Spreading The Disease' is definitely the best of the Belladonna-era, pre baggy shorts and post 'new yawk hawdcoah'. Super heavy and surprisingly catchy, this record has stood the test of time far better than most eighties metal. A speed metal classic, highly recommended.
RealAudio clip: "A.I.R"
RealAudio clip: "Armed and Dangerous"

ANTHRAX The Greater Of Two Evils (Sanctuary) cd 14.98

ANTIBALAS Liberation Afro*Beat Vol. 1 (Ninjatune) cd 15.98
In the time since we first listed this (a few weeks ago), the original indie-label disc went out of print and was re-released worldwide by Ninjatune! Now with different art and two bonus tracks! But otherwise, it's the same record, so this is what we said about it before:
Antibalas is a music cooperative out of Brooklyn. The same group (more-or-less) was formerly known as The Daktaris, who you may recall as the modern-day '70s styled faux-African funk combo who cut an excellent disc for the Desco label, one that's made many a JBs and Ethiopiques fan happy. Drawing both their musical and political influences from the dearly departed Fela Kuti, Antibalas continue the tradition and produce some very convincing, very butt-shaking Afro-Beat funk that would make Mr. Kuti proud. All the essential elements are here: horn section, organ (not icky synth), guitar, bass, drums and various percussion, all tightly and patiently fleshing out ostinato melodies with brief bursts of instrumental soloing. Unlike Fela's pieces, which generally had a duration of about 20 minutes -- or the length of one side of a long playing record -- these cuts all stay under 10 minutes long, with the shortest being 6 and a half minutes... important stuff to think about when making mix tapes, right?
RealAudio clip: "Dirt And Blood"
RealAudio clip: "Uprising"

ANTIBALAS Security (Anti) cd 14.98
Wow! There is no doubt that Antibalas have always been really good at what they do. One of the few bands carrying the torch of Afro-beat in honor of the late great Fela Kuti, and doing it better then pretty much anyone here in the states. But with this most recent release they have taken things a step further and expanded their sound from merely being capable clones to constructing one of the most lively and rich sounding soul/funk/afro-beat records we've heard in FOREVER. With John McEntire (Tortoise) manning the controls, this is the kind of fusion record all the post-rockers of the 90's wish they had the soul to create. Rich and dirty organs, wild horns, and killer breakbeats all coming together to ignite an undeniable groove. The opening track "Beaten Metal" is for sure one of our favorite songs of '07, but the entire album is pretty much just as mind blowing!
MPEG Stream: "Beaten Metal"
MPEG Stream: "Filibuster XXX"

ANTIBALAS Talkatif (Ninja Tune) cd 16.98
Here at AQ we try as often as possible to review records without quoting or paraphrasing from the press releases (and when we do it makes us feel kind of dirty). But in the case of New York-based Antibalas, their self-written bio says it better than I can:
"Antibalas (Spanish for "Bulletproof" literally "Anti-bullets") is the next generation of afrobeat in the tradition of the Black President, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti. This fourteen-plus piece band hits hard with the left and the right -- monstrous horns and bass layered over funky polyrhythmic beats and breaks coupled with furious lyrics challenging and attacking the dehumanizing capitalist system and inciting insurrection in English, Yoruba, and Spanish. Antibalas formed in May 1998 of members of Desco Records' Soul Providers and Daktaris. This union of Latinos, whites, Afro-Americans, Africans and Asian-Americans resides in New York, spread out over Brooklyn, Harlem, and the Bronx."
So, if you don't already have some Fela albums, by all means get one or two or twenty before you acquire Antibalas. But if you're already familiar with Fela's Afrobeat sound, how wonderful is it that a modern band can replicate the sound so joyously and exactly. This group must be *amazing* to see live.
RealAudio clip: "War is a Crime"

ANTIBALAS Who Is This America? (Ropadope) cd 16.98
These excellent Afrobeat merchants from Brooklyn are back, with their third album of booty-shaking, politically-minded jams in the vital tradition of the late great Fela Kuti. They haven't lost a step since their last disc Talkatif. A mixed race, very muliticultural group with all the ingredients: hot horn section, polyrhythmic percussion, groovy keyboards, socially conscious singing and chanting. Even the longest tracks (up to 20 minutes) are packed with an excess of energy. Even the angriest anti-Bush rhetoric on here still sounds like a party. Weirdly jazzy, funkifed good times. Funk and Fela fans will want both this record and a ticket to Antibalas' next concert (and they are great live, as this and their other discs would lead you to imagine).
MPEG Stream: "Pay Back Africa"
MPEG Stream: "Indictment"