HAMILTON, SAM + CHRIS O'CONNOR Tidal Dee's And Harboured Dum's (PseudoArcana) cd-r 14.98
Found a few more of these, the last copies we'll ever have...
We've had these for a while now, but are only getting around to listing it now. And unfortunately it's been so long we can't remember any of the details about who these guys are. Web searches have revealed very little as well, but as usual, it hardly matters once we get down to the sounds, which are awesome. A stumbling noiserock, light on the noise, a sort of loping, meandering postrock, the drums simple and spare, while all over the place electronics swoop and buzz, guitars clang and chime, a sort of slowcore crossed with some abstract electronic noise... Imagine a more post rock less machinelike Geronimo, or a prettier, WAY less chaotic Dead C, woozy and weary, and washed out, slow motion math rock dipped in glitch and skree and left to wander aimlessly. Really weird and atonal but pretty and subtly tripped out. There's definitely some Godspeed moments, and some distinctly Dead C sounds (or at least NZ noise rock sounds), but the way that they're arranged, it almost sounds like a normal everyday post rock band gradually and gloriously going haywire. Hard to explain, but this dusty little back room find is suddenly a new fave!
SUPER LIMITED!!!
MPEG Stream: "Punky Rice Spirit"
MPEG Stream: "Swampy Animal People"

HAMMEMIT Spires over the Burial Womb (Total Holocaust) cd 14.98
Emit were never really a proper black metal band, so much so that it often seemed quite curious that they were so embraced by that scene, when there sound was something much more abstract and ambient, ritualistic and distinctly not heavy, at least in the traditional sense. This UK horde trafficked in a sort of abstract ambient doom, there were riffs, to be certain, but they were not strung together into long buzzing progressions, instead they were banged out one at a time, often left to decay and sprawl into shimmering black ripples, and just as often there were no riffs at all, instead opting for some effects drenched dubbed out free blackness. Once in a while, the sounds and atmospheres would coalesce into something definitely black metal, but even then, the blast beats and buzzing riffs were stumbly and chaotic and doused in reverb and sent lurching though heaving seas of crunch and crumble, everything moaning and creaking and squealing and seeming to gradually implode. Emit were indeed one of a kind, and it's unclear what exactly caused them to hang it up, but a few of those Emitters went on to create this entity right here, now called Hammemit, a somewhat logical extension of Emit's more abstract ritualistic side, forgoing riffs and metal and buzz almost completely, opting instead for something much more primitive and minimal, haunting and spiritual.
Spires Over The Burial Womb unveils a mysterious black form of liturgical music, drawing heavily on traditional religious musics throughout the ages, wheezing church organs, chanted monklike vocals, choral voices, lots of echo and reverb as if these pieces were indeed performed in some sort of temple or church, some of the songs thick and swirling, dense and intense, others spare and spidery, with simple spidery melodies hovering in wide open expanses of shimmering reverb and deep cavernous echo. All of the sounds here are dark, haunting, creepy, mysterious, deep distant drones twist and turn like monstrous black shapes hidden in the shadows, the voices chant and invocate, offering up prayer perhaps to some other gods, the voices and the drones beneath inexorably interwoven. There is guitar, but it's often detuned, fractured, effected, smeared and blurred into another layer of creeping blackness. The most traditionally musical movements, sound a bit like Skepticism, but with all the distortion stripped away, the drums removed, slowed way down, and performed in some massive stone cathedral, every note slathered in natural reverb and dusty delay, allowed to drift ethereally until the next note emerges to follow along in it's ghostly black wake. While the rest of the tracks play out like ancient masses conducted by reanimated specters risen from the grave, primitive rituals performed in the black of night, in the dead of winter, in a church full of empty pews, with broken stained glass windows, and drifts of snow moving like a white sea across the cut stone floor, a swirling white abyss that swallows the black sounds drifting above.
A truly beautiful and haunting collection of blackened rites and rituals and mysterious nokturnal sonic ceremonies.
MPEG Stream: "Spires Over The Burial Womb"
MPEG Stream: "A State Of Blissful Unknowing"
MPEG Stream: "Shamelessy I Went Around"

HAMMERFALL Renegade (Nuclear Blast) cd 15.98
The Swedish cheese-metallers who've led the recent worldwide "comeback" of so-called "power metal", come back themselves with a third album, this time with big-time '80s metal producer Michael Wagener (it was recorded in the USA for goshsakes!). Nothing new really, if you liked their other albums you'll like this, and if you didn't, you won't. One thumb up (Andee), one thumb down (Allan).

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE Fields / Church Of Broken Glass (Profound Lore) 2cd 14.98
First, there was The Bastard. The ultimate over the top power metal/black metal rock opera, as far as we're concerned. Ok, so Andee here at AQ put it out on his tUMULt label... but that simply proves that he/we really like it (not that that's WHY we like it). Still Hammers' best, wethink. But their follow up The August Engine was pretty killer too. And the same with their third album Locust Years, which we hailed as the first ever fantasy metal album that was also a contemporary political allegory (about Bush and the Iraq War). With that record, Hammers settled with regal grace into a new phase, with the significant addition of '70s styled Hammond organ, taking their prog leanings to ever proggier heights, the raspy black metal aspects of their sound discarded long ago. And this new release from the acclaimed San Francisco metallers is definitely a continuation of that, despite some major lineup changes in the Hammers camp since Locust Years came out in 2006.
Of course, mainman guitarist John Cobbett (Ludicra, ex-Slough Feg) is still the with the band. Also drummer Chewy Marzolo, and keyboardist Sigrid Sheie. But now there's a new set of singers. Hammers, as you may know, have always flaunted operatic/theatrical, male and female vocals, intertwining in their compositions. There's been a few different female singers (who also played bass) over the years, but the clean male vocals until now had been handled solely by Mike Scalzi of Slough Feg, who has a distinctive voice to say the least. Taking over the female role is Jesse Quattro, a trained singer who definitely holds her own in the tradition of Hammers' female vocalists. You won't notice much difference there, though she may well be the best they've had. She doesn't play bass, however, so they've got Ron Nichols in to handle that task. More difficult, perhaps, for Hammers, was replacing Scalzi, who left to concentrate entirely on Slough Feg. Patrick Goodwin (of Dirty Power and Pansy Division) stepped up into Scalzi's shoes and while his voice is definitely different, not having the weird presence or booming depth Scalzi's, he's a capable melodic singer, yearning and emotive, and maybe his less idiosyncratic style fits better with Hammers' current direction. Long time fans will definitely notice a difference, though, and some will roll with it, some won't. Certainly the Hammers of The Bastard aren't the Hammers here.
So, now Hammers Of Misfortune obviously have a lot to prove on this new album - or, actually, albums. That's right, as if to really rise to the occasion and make a statement, they've released a double album, or what they'd have us believe is two separate albums, Fields and Church Of Broken Glass, packaged together. Each one gets its own cover art, you flip the gatefold digipack over to see each one, in the style of an old Ace Double paperback (the cover shown here is that of Fields). Though we were a bit bemused to discover that since the seven cuts on Fields clock in at just over 37 minutes, and the five songs on CoBG total about 35, it actually would have been possible to fit 'em both on a single disc! At least Profound Lore isn't making you pay any extra for this two-cd concept. And, since HoM's music can be so exhaustively epic, full of complex arrangements and keyboard busy-ness and cryptic lyrics, it's actually easier on the listener to have two shorter cds to digest than one exceedingly lengthy one, really!
As well, each disc has its own theme, a rural/urban dichotomy between Fields and Church Of Broken Glass. The best example of the latter being the moody 10 minute epic "Butchertown", painting this very city's streets in sinister fairytale shades. (Urban decay, blight and fright being territory previously explored by Cobbett's black metal outfit Ludicra, as well.) If we know Cobbett, there's probably a clever narrative or allegory at play here, encompassing both discs, leading from song to song and one disc to the next, but Hammers lyrics are poetically vague enough that we haven't puzzled it all out yet exactly. You could look at their recent interview on the Pitchfork website for more insight if you wish. We again get a political vibe from some of this, and do have the idea that Fields starts off about the plight of peasant farmers in Afghanistan, beginning with the three-part, 16-minute suite of "Agriculture", "Fields", and "Motorcade". See what you make of these lines, from the latter: "Escorting friendlies, a walk in the park/Unlock the cages as soon as it's dark/Motorcade motorcade easy to mark/Send in the snipers to swim with the sharks/Breadline is burning, the headcount's a joke/Soon they'll be feasting on mirrors and smoke/Motorcade motorcade horses to show/Fish in a barrel and ducks in a row". Hmm. And Hammers manages to turn that into singalong catchiness!
Fortunately, even with the ambitious scale of this latest project, and all the new members in the band, fans will find that Hammers hasn't changed too much, still full of blazing guitar solos and stop on a dime dynamics, memorable riffs and melodies and exquisite harmonies, musical theater moments and multilayered vocals - all the over the top-ness we love about 'em. Perhaps though the progginess has gotten even proggier, more flowery... We're reminded of Kansas, actually! Well, Kansas mixed with Megadeth, maybe. With a healthy helping of that rollicking, Deep Purplish Hammond organ first introduced on previous opus the Locust Years, as we said. And if you're into 'em for the female vocals, you won't be disappointed at all.
So, what should be Hammers' sales slogan for this album - New and Improved? Well, no, we can't quite go there, what with our feelings about the The Bastard. Well, how about Two For The Price Of One! Sure. And how about Thinking Man's (and Woman's) Metal? Definitely. But we get the idea that slogans and soundbites and all those mass media manipulative aspects of modern commercial culture are exactly what Hammers Of Misfortune stands against, so we'll just leave it with, well worth checking out.
Oh, and Hammers fans of the vinyl-buying persuasion, please note that this is also going to be coming out on lp (several of them of course), via the 20 Buck Spin label...
MPEG Stream: "Agriculture"
MPEG Stream: "Rats Assembly"
MPEG Stream: "Butchertown"
MPEG Stream: "Train"

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE Fields / Church Of Broken Glass (20 Buck Spin) 2lp 22.00
Now on vinyl!! A hefty gatefold double lp thing, which also includes a coupon to download all the music for free if you want mp3s as well. Here's more-or-less what we said about the 2cd version recently released via the Profound Lore label:
First, there was The Bastard. The ultimate over the top power metal/black metal rock opera, as far as we're concerned. Ok, so Andee here at AQ put it out on his tUMULt label... but that simply proves that he/we really like it (not that that's WHY we like it). Still Hammers' best, wethink. But their follow up The August Engine was pretty killer too. And the same with their third album Locust Years, which we hailed as the first ever fantasy metal album that was also a contemporary political allegory (about Bush and the Iraq War). With that record, Hammers settled with regal grace into a new phase, with the significant addition of '70s styled Hammond organ, taking their prog leanings to ever proggier heights, the raspy black metal aspects of their sound discarded long ago. And this new release from the acclaimed San Francisco metallers is definitely a continuation of that, despite some major lineup changes in the Hammers camp since Locust Years came out in 2006.
Of course, mainman guitarist John Cobbett (Ludicra, ex-Slough Feg) is still the with the band. Also drummer Chewy Marzolo, and keyboardist Sigrid Sheie. But now there's a new set of singers. Hammers, as you may know, have always flaunted operatic/theatrical, male and female vocals, intertwining in their compositions. There's been a few different female singers (who also played bass) over the years, but the clean male vocals until now had been handled solely by Mike Scalzi of Slough Feg, who has a distinctive voice to say the least. Taking over the female role is Jesse Quattro, a trained singer who definitely holds her own in the tradition of Hammers' female vocalists. You won't notice much difference there, though she may well be the best they've had. She doesn't play bass, however, so they've got Ron Nichols in to handle that task. More difficult, perhaps, for Hammers, was replacing Scalzi, who left to concentrate entirely on Slough Feg. Patrick Goodwin (of Dirty Power and Pansy Division) stepped up into Scalzi's shoes and while his voice is definitely different, not having the weird presence or booming depth Scalzi's, he's a capable melodic singer, yearning and emotive, and maybe his less idiosyncratic style fits better with Hammers' current direction. Long time fans will definitely notice a difference, though, and some will roll with it, some won't. Certainly the Hammers of The Bastard aren't the Hammers here.
So, now Hammers Of Misfortune obviously have a lot to prove on this new album - or, actually, albums. That's right, as if to really rise to the occasion and make a statement, they've released a double album, or what they'd have us believe is two separate albums, Fields and Church Of Broken Glass, packaged together. Each one gets its own cover art, you flip the gatefold over to see each one, in the style of an old Ace Double paperback (the cover shown here is that of Church).
Each disc has its own theme, a rural/urban dichotomy between Fields and Church Of Broken Glass. The best example of the latter being the moody 10 minute epic "Butchertown", painting this very city's streets in sinister fairytale shades. (Urban decay, blight and fright being territory previously explored by Cobbett's black metal outfit Ludicra, as well.) If we know Cobbett, there's probably a clever narrative or allegory at play here, encompassing both discs, leading from song to song and one disc to the next, but Hammers lyrics are poetically vague enough that we haven't puzzled it all out yet exactly. You could look at their recent interview on the Pitchfork website for more insight if you wish. We again get a political vibe from some of this, and do have the idea that Fields starts off about the plight of peasant farmers in Afghanistan, beginning with the three-part, 16-minute suite of "Agriculture", "Fields", and "Motorcade". See what you make of these lines, from the latter: "Escorting friendlies, a walk in the park/Unlock the cages as soon as it's dark/Motorcade motorcade easy to mark/Send in the snipers to swim with the sharks/Breadline is burning, the headcount's a joke/Soon they'll be feasting on mirrors and smoke/Motorcade motorcade horses to show/Fish in a barrel and ducks in a row". Hmm. And Hammers manages to turn that into singalong catchiness!
Fortunately, even with the ambitious scale of this latest project, and all the new members in the band, fans will find that Hammers hasn't changed too much, still full of blazing guitar solos and stop on a dime dynamics, memorable riffs and melodies and exquisite harmonies, musical theater moments and multilayered vocals - all the over the top-ness we love about 'em. Perhaps though the progginess has gotten even proggier, more flowery... We're reminded of Kansas, actually! Well, Kansas mixed with Megadeth, maybe. With a healthy helping of that rollicking, Deep Purplish Hammond organ first introduced on previous opus the Locust Years, as we said. And if you're into 'em for the female vocals, you won't be disappointed at all.
So, what should be Hammers' sales slogan for this album - New and Improved? Well, no, we can't quite go there, what with our feelings about the The Bastard. Well, how about Two For The Price Of One! Sure. And how about Thinking Man's (and Woman's) Metal? Definitely. But we get the idea that slogans and soundbites and all those mass media manipulative aspects of modern commercial culture are exactly what Hammers Of Misfortune stands against, so we'll just leave it with, well worth checking out.
MPEG Stream: "Agriculture"
MPEG Stream: "Rats Assembly"
MPEG Stream: "Butchertown"
MPEG Stream: "Train"

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE The August Engine (Cruz Del Sur) cd 14.98
Ready for some harmonies and heaviness? Pure, prog-tastic METAL for the long, dark winter? We know you are, 'cause it's been a long while. But now, it's here. The Hammers come down for the second time with this long-awaited new album, the follow-up to their acclaimed (and already out-of-print, for now) debut The Bastard released on our own Andee's tUMUlt label back in 2001. Whereas The Bastard was a full-on rock opera, The August Engine only *sounds* like a rock opera, it isn't actually one. There's no narrative, unifying concept to the songs this time, which puts HoM's eclectic metal mixture in danger of losing focus, being too unpredictably psychedelic and epic for their own good. Wait, what are we saying? That's no problem! As diverse as their songwriting and sonic palette can be, everything here sounds like Hammers and nothing else (well, except Slough Feg), which can only be the mark of a brilliant band.
Bursting out of the gates with an adrenalized instrumental opener that thrashes like Megadeth while remaining as gloriously 'classical' and over the top as anything on The Bastard, we can't say The August Engine never lets up. It does, but only in the sense that some decidedly unusual, and sometimes mellow avenues are explored. But for every non-metallic moment of sweet singing and pleasant acoustic guitars, you get plenty of shredding electric ones, with pounding drums, dramatic male and female vocals on a grand scale, and headbanging riffage. Advanced metal mastery here folks. Pretentious? Indulgent? Arrogant? No, simply mighty. The 10-out-of-10 review this album has already garnered from veteran metal scribe Martin Popoff likened them to a psychedelic version of the best of Iron Maiden, who are we to argue?
Hammers still consist of John and Mike from The Lord Weird Slough Feg, plus drummer Chewy. On this recording, Janis Tanaka plays bass and sings like an angel, though when you go see Hammers live now, they have a new lineup including not only a foxy new bassist/singer but another female vocalist who plays Hammond organ as well!
The vinyl (on tUMULt) has different cover artwork than, but the same tracks as, the compact disc version, released in a black-and-silver digipak edition by upstart Italian metal label Cruz Del Sur. Both sport cool Voivod-ish liner art by mastermind John Cobbett himself. Of course, recommended.
MPEG Stream: "The August Engine pt. 1"
MPEG Stream: "A Room And A Riddle"
MPEG Stream: "Insect"

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE The August Engine (tUMULt) lp 11.98
Ready for some harmonies and heaviness? Pure, prog-tastic METAL for the long, dark winter? We know you are, 'cause it's been a long while. But now, it's here. The Hammers come down for the second time with this long-awaited new album, the follow-up to their acclaimed (and already out-of-print, for now) debut The Bastard released on our own Andee's tUMUlt label back in 2001. Whereas The Bastard was a full-on rock opera, The August Engine only *sounds* like a rock opera, it isn't actually one. There's no narrative, unifying concept to the songs this time, which puts HoM's eclectic metal mixture in danger of losing focus, being too unpredictably psychedelic and epic for their own good. Wait, what are we saying? That's no problem! As diverse as their songwriting and sonic palette can be, everything here sounds like Hammers and nothing else (well, except Slough Feg), which can only be the mark of a brilliant band.
Bursting out of the gates with an adrenalized instrumental opener that thrashes like Megadeth while remaining as gloriously 'classical' and over the top as anything on The Bastard, we can't say The August Engine never lets up. It does, but only in the sense that some decidedly unusual, and sometimes mellow avenues are explored. But for every non-metallic moment of sweet singing and pleasant acoustic guitars, you get plenty of shredding electric ones, with pounding drums, dramatic male and female vocals on a grand scale, and headbanging riffage. Advanced metal mastery here folks. Pretentious? Indulgent? Arrogant? No, simply mighty. The 10-out-of-10 review this album has already garnered from veteran metal scribe Martin Popoff likened them to a psychedelic version of the best of Iron Maiden, who are we to argue?
Hammers still consist of John and Mike from The Lord Weird Slough Feg, plus drummer Chewy. On this recording, Janis Tanaka plays bass and sings like an angel, though when you go see Hammers live now, they have a new lineup including not only a foxy new bassist/singer but another female vocalist who plays Hammond organ as well!
The vinyl (on tUMULt) has different cover artwork than, but the same tracks as, the compact disc version, released in a black-and-silver digipak edition by upstart Italian metal label Cruz Del Sur. Both sport cool Voivod-ish liner art by mastermind John Cobbett himself. Of course, recommended.
MPEG Stream: "The August Engine pt. 1"
MPEG Stream: "A Room And A Riddle"
MPEG Stream: "Insect"

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE The Bastard (tUMULt) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Finally re-pressed and available again! Here's what we had to say first time around:
Our own Andee proves himself, and his tUMULt label, to be truly dedicated to the Heaviest of Metal with this new release! Following on from prior tUMULt metal-oriented releases (the grim and trancelike black metal genius of Weakling, the blackened grind of free-jazz fans Hatewave, the noisecore assault of Burmese...), the debut full-length album from San Francisco's Hammers of Misfortune takes the Metal to an entirely new level. It's a full-on metal opera, stirring everything into the cauldron, majestic male and female vocals, acoustic guitar breaks, Maidenesque harmonies, black metal vocal rasps, headbanging riffs and classical motifs. Next to seeing them live (where the leather-clad band, a mere four-piece, belts all this out and more), "The Bastard" is serious metal fun. Black, death, power, prog, epic: it seems like almost all styles of metal are represented in Hammers' songs, which flow non-stop from one to the next in a complex 3-act saga telling a crazy fantasy tale about a cursed bastard child raised by forest-spirits, who travels into the Underworld to find the Blood-Axe and slay his father, an evil tyrant, in the name of the Chaos Godess...or something like that. If you need help figuring it out, the 24-page booklet includes the "liberetto" as well as some excellent wood-cut style illustrations -- indeed the whole thing (a digipack) is a very handsome package.
Formerly known as Unholy Cadaver, Hammers of Misfortune is the demented brainchild of local metal master John Cobbett, who also plays guitar in the cult SF "celtic epic metal" outfit The Lord Weird Slough Feg. Mike from Slough Feg is also in Hammers, playing guitar and providing the "clean" male vox. And we must mention the contribution of Janis Tanaka (ex-Stone Fox) on bass and the exellent female vocals. "The Bastard" comes across like a mixture of Cradle of Filth and Blind Guardian, or Slough Feg and Opeth, or Satyricon and Mercyful Fate: it's that eclectic, that classic, that amazing.
MPEG Stream: "The Dragon Is Summoned"
MPEG Stream: "The Bastard Sapling"
MPEG Stream: "You Should Have Slain Me"
MPEG Stream: "Sacrifice / The End"

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE The Locust Years (Cruz Del Sur) cd 14.98
People have been waiting a long time for this, the third opus from SF's own Hammers Of Misfortune, one of the most ambitious, audacious, bodacious, bombastic, maybe even slightly ludicrous bands in the metal realm...and metal this is, through and through, even as it pushes the envelope right over the edge into, I don't know, musical theater... 2003's The August Engine was pretty amazing, as was (our favorite) their year 2000 debut, The Bastard (released by Andee's tUMULt label we should note). The Locust Years has a lot to live up to.
And live it up they do here. Just check out the band photos for evidence of that (funnier if you know these folks). There's a shocking formal portrait on the back cover, everybody dressed up in tuxedos and evening gowns, hair pulled back. And then inside the cd booklet, you see 'em letting their hair down in a glammy, rock n' roll fantasy shot. It's nice to see that they don't take themselves too seriously, that should keep people guessing about this band. Not so pretentious as some might think, joking but no joke.
Quick intro first for those just tuning in/turning on to this band: Hammers is a rock-operatic heavy metal juggernaut with harmonizing lead guitars, pounding Hammond organ (new!), and majestic male and female vocal lines. The band features members of The Lord Weird Slough Feg past and present, and mainman John Cobbett is busy too with his other band black metallers Ludicra (new ep elsewhere on this list) plus he's been playing with the likes of Amber Asylum and even Jarboe of late... As you might imagine from all of this, Hammers is an especially eclectic mix of '70s prog, '80s metal, black metal (without the black metal vocals), classical music, avant-chamber-rock, Mary Poppinsy musical showtuneage, Opethian loud/soft, fast/slow dynamics...
Basically, everything (and more) that already earned mucho plaudits for the Hammers' first two albums is present here: the sweeping melodic grandeur, metallic excitement, complex arrangements, virtuoso playing, intelligent lyrics, many moods, and attention to idiosyncratic detail -- which is evident from the packaging, with its Thomas Woodruff cover painting and aforementioned photography, to the music, for instance the track "War Anthem" that features a whole hired drum line arranged by Hammers drummer Chewy. Or it's actually Chewy multitracking his own one man drum line. Either way, it's pretty darn Tusk!!
And lyrically, while it's not a storytelling narrative like The Bastard, it's somewhat more of a cohesive "concept album" than was August Engine... the concept being, near as we can tell, a very allegorical, cryptic protest against the awful person and policies of our president, George W. Bush!! Or at least that's what we get from lyrics like "Death - death to the infidels / sons of our servants shall serve and serve us well / and gifted with endless war / flags and fanatics forevermore" (from "War Anthem") or, "If people wonder at the suffering you cause / and your massive avarice has left them at a loss / if by chance they notice your bloody, snapping jaws / the blood upon your claws / your shifty eyes and laws / the nauseating flaws in all you've said / trot out the dead" (from "Trot Out The Dead") -- no that's not Satan they're singing about, not exactly. We're pretty sure that makes The Locust Years the world's first POLITICAL epic fantasy prog power metal album!!
Recommended of course.
MPEG Stream: "The Locust Years"
MPEG Stream: "We Are The Widows"
MPEG Stream: "War Anthem"

HAMMOND JR., ALBERT Yours To Keep (New Line Records) cd 14.98
Now available domestically (this album was actually released last year in the U.K. of Rough Trade, and a single was released on iTunes in September)! Includes two bonus tracks (covers of Guided By Voices' Postal Blowfish" and Buddy Holly's "Well... All Right").
Takin' a break from your very recognizable, very popular band to do a solo album comes with its own list of baggage requirements. Sure it's pretty much a given that the album is going to be met with an automatic built-in adoring audience. Most of said band's fans are simply gonna scoop it up without any hesitation. However, if you wanna: 1.) keep the favor of said fans; 2.) win legions of your own admirers; and 3.) not be totally chastised by critics, you've kinda got to do something completely different without sounding completely alienating. Don't know if all that concerns Strokes' guitarist Albert Hammond Jr., but On Yours To Keep he is pretty much playin' safely by those rules. He's made a solid sweet'n'easy pop record filled with lots of his unmistakable jangleful guitars and an occasional horn. It sits in comfortably alongside recent albums by Money Mark and Sean Lennon. Most immediately evident are the pervading pop influences of Brian Wilson and the Beatles with a little Sound & Vision era Bowie and Uncle Tupelo-esque scruffy country rock rounding off Hammond's overall sound. For those looking for one, the sixth song "101" sounds the closest to Strokes territory, albeit gentler and prettier with better posture. Hammond's earnest, unshaven vocals are sort of a cross between Jeff Tweedy and Spoon's Britt Daniel. He's brought in a few ringers to ice the cake: the abovementioned Lennon as well as Ben Kweller, Fountains Of Wayne's Jody Porter, The Mooney Suzuki's Sammy Davis Jr., and his bandmates Julian Casablancas, Josh Lattanzi and Matt Romano.
MPEG Stream: "Cartoon Music For Superheroes"
MPEG Stream: "Well... All Right"

HAMMOND, JOHN Wicked Grin (Pointblank) cd 16.98
New album from white blues heavyweight John Hammond that consists solely of Tom Waits covers. If Tom Waits' own endorsement of Hammond as an artist -- "John has a blacksmith's strength and rhythm and the kind of soul and precision it takes to cut diamonds or to handle snakes" -- isn't enough for you, then maybe knowing that the album was produced by Mr. Waits himself would be persuasive. Featuring a backup band consisting of Charlie Musselwhite on harmonica, Larry Taylor on bass, Stephen Hodges playing percussion, Augie Meyers on accordion and piano, and even Tom sitting in on guitar and "plucked piano" here and there, the sound of Tom Waits' best known songs have a much more smoothed out and "bluesy" quality that may suit some more than the unique abrasive eccentricity of Waits' own voice and arrangements. Personally I prefer to listen to Tom Waits' own versions of his songs, but it's a good effort anyhow.
RealAudio clip: "16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought Six"
RealAudio clip: "Shore Leave"

HAMPSON, ROBERT Vectors (Touch) cd 15.98
Back in the early '90s, Robert Hampson made a very conscious transition in how he made music, willfully deconstructing the hypnotic psychedelia he pioneered in his defunct, but still awesome band Loop (whose last two records have just been reissued and are 2 of this week's Records Of The Week!). Initially, these deconstructed songs recorded under the new guise of Main spatialized texturally looped guitars, tricked out electronic effects, and heavy-lidded drones against an architecture of Spartan drums and downtuned bass lines. The first two albums - Hydra-Calm and Motion Pool - offered a competing strategy for what might be defined as 'post-rock,' nestling with the contemporary sounds in Disco Inferno, Seefeel, and the last Slowdive record as a confluence of avant-garde electronics, dark shoegazing ephemera, and British post-punk experimentation. There were hints of Loop's cyclical song-structure flickering within Main's barren albums, and Hampson seemed inclined to make a slow retreat from those rhythmic structures, leaving behind swarms of amorphous tones and vast expanses, razor cut into an homage to the musique concrete masters. Even though Hampson ended the Main project back in 2006, the same strategies are at work in Robert Hampson's "solo" venture. On Vectors, Hampson teases with repetitions of astronaut bleeps, electrical warblings, digitally vaporous static, and wisps of sound design that could build into something off of Hydra-Calm or Motion Pool, but don't. Many folks (including some here) have been frustrated by Hampson's work after Motion Pool, and that sentiment probably won't be changed with Vectors. The three lengthy pieces on Vectors are all commissions with lofty goals of avant electronics; and two of the commissions came by way of the legendary GRM studio in France. In this context as opposed to the Loop / Main axis, Vectors turns out to be a smoldering musique concrete album with acousmatic allusions to the work of Michel Chion and Luc Ferrari.
MPEG Stream: "Umbra"
MPEG Stream: "Ahead - Only Stars"
MPEG Stream: "Dans Le Lointain"

HAMPSON, ROBERT & STEVEN HESS s/t (Crouton) cd ep 11.98
After Robert Hampson dissolved the blackened psychedelic ensemble Loop, he quickly returned with the hypnotic, riff-heavy, drone spaces of Main. The template from the first few albums by Main (Hydra-Calm and Motion Pool, both of which are criminally out of print) still resonates loudly through the work of Black Boned Angel, Nadja, Troum, and even tricked-out digital sculptors such as Christian Fennesz and Tim Hecker. Yet after those albums, Hampson plunged into the realms of thoroughly obtuse electro-acoustics, culminating in a oblique whirlpool of a collaboration with Janek Schaeffer called Comae. Many have pined for Hampson to pick up the guitar again as an instrument for chugging propulsion; and for those of you with such a nostalgia for Hampson's early work, the collaboration with Steven Hess may not entirely float your boat. That said, this eponymous collaboration does exhibit a much greater reliance upon a skeletal structure of chiming loops (perhaps the closet things that Hampson will come to the early Main guitar work) and Harry Bertoia-esque vibrations coddled into a web of overlapping patterns. Hess and Hampson push the brief 19 minute composition up to a dense kaleidoscope of ring modulated tonalities and paranoiac drones. Quite nice indeed.
MPEG Stream: "Track Two"
MPEG Stream: "Track Three"

HAMPTON GREASE BAND Music To Eat (Legacy) 2cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
It's going to be hard to do this one justice... We just got a few copies in of this actually out-of-print double cd. Cheap, too! The Hampton Grease Band released this, their debut and only album, in 1971, to almost universal disinterest and, even, active dislike. It was, famously, the second worst selling album in Columbia history. It might not have helped that Columbia's marketers, doubtless confused by the dadaistic hippy rock weirdness of the Hampton Grease Band, pitched it to stores as a comedy album. It certainly is funny -- funny ha ha and otherwise -- but it's as an avant-garde rock record that we recommend it. Imagine Zappa, Beefheart and a southern rock band all rolled into one absurd, palpitating, guitar-totin' ball. The end result: gorgeous, dissonant, textural guitar-based instrumentals that wouldn't sound out of place on the best Polvo record you've heard, plus the raving loony vocal 'stylings' of one Bruce Hampton (who has kept up his antics as the leader of Col. Hampton's Aquarium Rescue Unit, which we definitely aren't recommending). He's untrained and maniacal and his screechy voice makes this sound at times like Sam Kinison fronting the Allman Brothers. An acquired taste, perhaps, we'll warn you -- it even took a few listens for Allan (the biggest, and maybe only, Hampton Grease Band fan here) to get into this originally. And he doesn't like Zappa, either. But annoyance soon gave way to enjoyment. There's definitely some stoopid stuff on here, but then there's the several extended (around 20 minutes long, three of 'em are) compositions/improvs in complex, interlocking time signatures and whatnot. Not normal rock, not jazz, certainly not jazzrock. Instrumentally, amazing. Lyrically, certainly odd -- Hampton often sang "found lyrics" from whatever text was at hand, like an encyclopedia entry about Halifax or the back of a can of spray paint. As it says in the cd booklet liner notes, the HGB were "an intensely musical group with an intensely non-musical singer".
Speaking of the liner notes, they're hilarious, full of great stories, like about the time the HGB was playing live, and their drummer suddenly stood up and froze in place, holding that pose for over an hour as the band finished their set without drums and most people left the venue! Somehow these gonzo guys got to open for the likes of Beefheart & the Magic Band, the Allmans, Country Joe & the Fish, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Alice Cooper -- and then somehow got signed to a brief, illfated stint on Columbia Records that produced this album.
Humor in music is a difficult thing. When these guys tried to be funny, it wasn't, but they didn't have to try to be weird, and it was. Surely some of you out there will want or need this! Lots more won't and that's fine too. We only have three, presently.
RealAudio clip: "Halifax"

HANATARASH 5 (Shock City/Polystar) cd 25.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Colorfully packaged, long-awaited album from Eye of the Boredoms infamous solo noise project. Unlike the violent noise and/or musical collage of prior Hanatarash recordings, 5 is one long whooshing track that sounds like a rocket blasting off, speeding up, entering hyperspace, slowing down, speeding up again, then spiralling off through another galaxy. Relentless and beautiful.

HANAYO Gift (Geist) cd 16.98
Now domestically priced: Japanese avant-chanteuse Hanayo (whom some will recall from her collaboration with German electronica hotboy Panacea) here presents another collaborative work, this time with a whole host of international electronic/experimental artists, including Terre Thaemlitz, Curd Duca, Merzbow, Patric Catani, Stilluppsteypa, Christophe de Babalon, and others. So it's a varied mix of digital hardcore, electronic pop, abstract noise, and everything in between, with Hanayo's little-girl voice holding forth over all, whether her collaborators provide atmosphere or chaos...nice.

HANCOCK, HERBIE Fat Albert Rotunda (Rhino) lp 15.98

HANCOCK, HERBIE Headhunters (Columbia) lp 15.98

HANCOCK, HERBIE Sextant (Columbia) cd 6.98
Finally available domestically in the US! Sextant, by what was known as Herbie & Mwandishiis an Afro-funk/fusion/ambient/electo/jazz recording from 1972. So far ahead of its time it ain't even funny; you will be amazed. So funky, so strange and so recommended!

HANCOCK, HERBIE Thrust (Columbia) cd 12.98
Finally available domestically in the US! Thrust is the 1974 follow-up to Headhunters. Deep, deep keyboard-heavy funk with grooves to ride 'til dawn. So far ahead of its time it ain't even funny; you will be amazed.

HANCOCK, HERBIE, RON CARTER, JONATHAN KLEIN, THAD JONES... Hear, O Israel: A Prayer Ceremony In Jazz (Trunk) cd 16.98
Most likely you don't immediately connect Modern Jazz with Jewish Ritual, but this gorgeous reissue of a long lost private pressing of a 1968 Friday night service may have you rethinking those ideas. Written by Jonathan Klein, a then 17 year-old son of a Massachusetts Rabbi, who was asked to compose music for a service dealing with "Sects and Symbols Within Judaism". The music and service were so popular that the Synagogue incorporated the piece into every Friday night service, and Klein assembled a group to tour various New England Universities. For the debut performance in New York, Klein managed to get the finest New York Jazz musicians to perform his piece, including Herbie Hancock on piano, Ron Carter on bass, Grady Tate on drums, Jerome Richardson on flute and saxophone and Thad Jones on trumpet and flugelhorn with Antonia Lavanne and Phyllis Bryn-Julson on soprano and contralto voices respectively. Thankfully it was all recorded. Unlike the Christian Youth movement who used spiritually minded rock and folk music to sway new converts, the music for this service doesn't pander to youthful audiences. The music swings in unexpected ways for a religious ceremony but its full intent is an abstract spiritual openness. Even with the Hebrew recitations by Rabbi David Davis, the message is divine, universal and inspired. Rejoice!
MPEG Stream: "Matovu - Bor'chu"
MPEG Stream: "Sanctification"
MPEG Stream: "Kiddush"

HANCOCK, HERBIE, RON CARTER, JONATHAN KLEIN, THAD JONES... Hear, O Israel: A Prayer Ceremony In Jazz (Trunk) lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.Most likely you don't immediately connect Modern Jazz with Jewish Ritual, but this gorgeous reissue of a long lost private pressing of a 1968 Friday night service may have you rethinking those ideas. Written by Jonathan Klein, a then 17 year-old son of a Massachusetts Rabbi, who was asked to compose music for a service dealing with "Sects and Symbols Within Judaism". The music and service were so popular that the Synagogue incorporated the piece into every Friday night service, and Klein assembled a group to tour various New England Universities. For the debut performance in New York, Klein managed to get the finest New York Jazz musicians to perform his piece, including Herbie Hancock on piano, Ron Carter on bass, Grady Tate on drums, Jerome Richardson on flute and saxophone and Thad Jones on trumpet and flugelhorn with Antonia Lavanne and Phyllis Bryn-Julson on soprano and contralto voices respectively. Thankfully it was all recorded. Unlike the Christian Youth movement who used spiritually minded rock and folk music to sway new converts, the music for this service doesn't pander to youthful audiences. The music swings in unexpected ways for a religious ceremony but its full intent is an abstract spiritual openness. Even with the Hebrew recitations by Rabbi David Davis, the message is divine, universal and inspired. Rejoice!
MPEG Stream: "Matovu - Bor'chu"
MPEG Stream: "Sanctification"
MPEG Stream: "Kiddush"

HANDFUL OF DUST, A Now Gods, Stand Up For Bastards / The Philosophick Mercury (No Fun Production) 2cd 16.98
Killer reissue of two long out of print full lengths from this long running New Zealand free noise duo, consisting of Bruce Campbell, he of the mighty Dead C, and longtime aQ fave Alastair Galbraith, shedding his usual songsmithery for something a lot more abstract and noisy.
The two have been performing on and off together since the early nineties, these two discs collect The Philosophick Mercury from 1994, and Now Gods, Stand Up For Bastards, from 1995. Both recorded live, utilizing guitars, violin, electronics and voice, with the occasional bit of drumming from yet another NZ noise luminary, Peter Stapleton, who's played in pretty much every NZ band of note, from Dadamah to Pin Group to Flies Inside The Sun to The Terminals.
The template for A Handful Of Dust seems to be long drawn out tones, plenty of space, loads of feedback, letting the amp and the body of the guitar and the room shape the sounds as much as the player. Later groups like Sunroof! would harness this same sort of free music energy, this primal ur-drone, but there's something about A Handful Of Dust, that makes the sounds seem more alive, more feral, dangerous and dense. There's plenty of scrape and skree, mostly high end, layers upon layers, overtones shifting and drifting and billowing up in huge clouds of static buzz and shimmering squiggles of violin. The pace is glacial, but this music is not about movement or momentum so much as space and time, when there are drums, they don't really propel the song, instead they offer up a sort of loose framework, a crumbling skeleton around which the various buzzing strings and howling amps hang their shimmering sheets of sound. It's hard not to hear some Dead C in the be-drummed tunes (there are only two), but the drums here are WAY more loose, almost free jazz in feel, lending a psychedelic vibe to a music already pretty fucking psychedelic.
A few of the tracks offer up some low end rumbles and deep drone, but those sounds are soon infused with streaks of jagged shriek and sharp hissy high end, the two sides not so much battling as swirling warily around each other eventually becoming one, and on rare occasions, melding into something almost rifflike. The closing track on No Gods begins as a total guitar destroying free for all, before transforming into some super tripped out buzz drenched psychedelic warped krautdrone, but only briefly, before it slips back into fractured deconstructed free noise once again.
No Gods is definitely the more refined of the two (but only just barely). Philosophick is way more brittle and bizarre, two 30 minute jams, the first features lots of amp buzz, and stuttery shards of feedback, plenty of Derek Bailey like scrabbling, strange processed vocals, some sort-of-chanting, very minimal and textureal considering how noisy it is. The second track is total chaos, a band going all out in a huge room, all the instruments rendered blurs and smears by the distorted amps and the room reverb, the long stretches of feedback and the low low low fidelity recording only add more hiss and blur and texture. The guitars sounding alternately like accordions or bagpipes, sometimes like lowing cattle, the pound of the drums a buried muffled pulse, the cymbals glazing the cacophony with another sizzly layer of sibilance.
Beautiful oversized Japanese style mini lp gatefold style packaging with new liner notes from Marc Masters.
MPEG Stream: "The Book Nature: Chapter The First"
MPEG Stream: "Oration On The Dignity Of Man"
MPEG Stream: "The Lullian Art"

HANDFUL OF DUST, A Spiritual Libertines (Crank Automotive) cd 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Bruce Russell of the Dead C and Alastair Galbraith's improvised noise project, 2 tracks previously unreleased, the rest from out-of-print 7"s and cassettes...

HANDFUL OF DUST, A Urbanpsychogeography Vol. 2 (Jerusalem) (Corpus Hermeticum) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Possibly also titled "Jerusalem: Street Of Graves"...this New Zealand experimental trio's new recording is far more structured than previous A Handful of Dust productions of scrape-drone-and-bang style free noise. Peter Stapleton has well infiltrated the band with his freewheelin' drum work that ebbs and flows with a controlling direction over Alastair Galbraith's violin shriek and the feedback of Bruce Russell (Dead C).

HANDSOME BOY MODELING SCHOOL So, How's Your Girl? (Tommy Boy) cd 16.98
Here we have Dan the Automator (of Dr. Octagon fame) and Prince Paul (of De La Soul fame) hamming it up, as the proprietors of a fictional modeling school, wearing tuxedos, hanging with models, smoking cigars, riding in limos, and living the life. Dan assures us that it's all a big joke. But we're not so sure. One thing is for sure though, this record is no joke (except, of course, for the occasional skit, and the samples from Chris Eliott's 'Get a Life' sitcom, which is where the HBMS name came from). Awesome production, sick beats and a pretty amazing set of guests: Del, Cibo Matto, Mike D, Grand Puba, Sadat X, DJ Shadow, DJ Quest, Sean Lennon, Money Mark, Alec Empire, Kid Koala, Sensational, Paula Frazer (Tarnation), Josh Hayden (Spain) and more.

HANDSOME BOY MODELING SCHOOL White People (Atlantic) cd 17.98
Handsome Boy Modelling School (aka Prince Paul and Dan the Automator) again offer up quite a cast on White People, their second album. De La Soul, Chester Bennington, Mike Patton, RZA, Mars Volta, Dres (Black Sheep), Alex Kapranos (Franz Ferdinand), Cat Power, Julee Cruise, Pharrell Williams, John Oates(!) and others contribute in unpredictable ways throughout the album. You'll even hear a testimonial by Father Guido Sarducci! Due to the light-hearted and jokey nature of much of this album, any lyrics about real issues are a bit hard to swallow with any legitimacy, but hey, who's counting. Let's PARTY!!!!!!!!! The songs involve a pop-music quality but only by way of its servitude to hip-hop. And of course, the production is as exemplary as would be expected by this duo. Released in conjunction to an amazing instrumental version of the album.
MPEG Stream: "If It Wasn't For You"
MPEG Stream: "Are You Down With It"

HANDSOME BOY MODELING SCHOOL White People (Instrumental) (Atlantic) cd 17.98
Personally, I think, on a very consistent level, the instrumental versions of most hip-hop records are absolutely amazing. In some cases, superceding the original tracks. Being the influential producers they are, Prince Paul and Dan the Automator (aka Handsome Boy Modelling School) have rightfully released an instrumental album version of their second full-lenth, White People. It rules. And it rules hard. Handsome's production shines here without the jokiness of the album's lyrics. I kind of even prefer these instrumentals over their music-celeb and lyric-driven counterparts but, hey, that's just me. Anyway, both versions of White People are totally great. So, the choice is yours!!
MPEG Stream: "If It Wasn't For You (Instrumental)"
MPEG Stream: "Are You Down With It (Instrumental)"

HANDSOME FAMILY In The Air (Carrot Top) cd 14.98
New album from Chicago based no depression country duo. Slow, contemplative ballads, rounded out with hollow body guitar, then steeped in smokey reverb and boomy bar room bass - the occasional guest vocal gives this cd an almost Sons of the Pioneers feel. The end result is a very authentic sounding country record (and it was all recorded on a G3... Go figure.) On Archer Prewitt's Carrot Top label.

HANDSOME FAMILY Live At Schuba's Tavern (DCN) cd 16.98
As the title states this is a live recording of the old country and bluegrass-y couple known as the Handsome Family (aka Brett and Rennie Sparks). This intimate show took place in Chicago (their hometown since '89) shortly before they relocated to New Mexico, and as such it's steeped in heartfelt sentiment. Plenty of warm, down to earth banter filled with kooky tales comes mainly from the mouth of Mrs. Sparks, while Mr. Sparks' singing thunders deep and thick with reverb like a voice from beyond set over an earthy, twangful backdrop. Very haunting. Having written some of the most beautiful, somber ballads of the last decade - some of which have been performed by a few of their friends like Sally Timms - the Handsome Family can take you directly from a hilarious story about magic balls to the absolute depths of dramatic despair. Note: If you're altogether new to this duo you might want to start with one of their great earlier studio albums such as In The Air or Through The Trees before proceeding to this live one.
RealAudio clip: "My Sister's Tiny Hands"
RealAudio clip: "The Sad Milkman "
RealAudio clip: "I Know You Are There"

HANDSOME FAMILY Singing Bones (Carrot Top) cd 14.98

HANDSOME FURS Plague Park (Sub Pop) cd 13.98
Yet another new combo joins the rambunctious parade of young'uns wearin' their influences prominently on their sleeve. Think: Bright Eyes circa Digital Ash In A Digital Urn meets U2 circa "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For". Or The Alarm meets 16 Horsepower meets The Arcade Fire. That comparison actually hits much closer to home as one of the Handsome Furs happens to be Dan Boeckner who also happens to be a member of The Arcade Fire's buddies / soundalikes Wolf Parade who happen to also be on Sub Pop which might explain this album's appearance on that label. Oh connections, that's a no brainer easy sell! Anyways, Plague Park is all very 'now' sounding, world weary pop with an exhaustive emotiveness. Not poorly executed, but also not original in any big way. If you're simply looking for 'more' of the above... check it out!
MPEG Stream: "Sing! Captain"
MPEG Stream: "Dead + Rural"

HANDSOME FURS Plague Park (Sub Pop) lp 12.98
Yet another new combo joins the rambunctious parade of young'uns wearin' their influences prominently on their sleeve. Think: Bright Eyes circa Digital Ash In A Digital Urn meets U2 circa "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For". Or The Alarm meets 16 Horsepower meets The Arcade Fire. That comparison actually hits much closer to home as one of the Handsome Furs happens to be Dan Boeckner who also happens to be a member of The Arcade Fire's buddies / soundalikes Wolf Parade who happen to also be on Sub Pop which might explain this album's appearance on that label. Oh connections, that's a no brainer easy sell! Anyways, Plague Park is all very 'now' sounding, world weary pop with an exhaustive emotiveness. Not poorly executed, but also not original in any big way. If you're simply looking for 'more' of the above... check it out!
MPEG Stream: "Sing! Captain"
MPEG Stream: "Dead + Rural"

HANGAR 18 The Multi-Platinum Debut Album (Definitive Jux) cd 14.98

HANGEDUP Clatter For Control (Constellation) cd 15.98
Clatter For Control is the third potent full length by this unconventional viola and percussion duo from the Godspeed You Black Emperor clan. Their passionate, aggressive music once again easily draws comparisons to The Ex. From the first few measures of the very first track they charge forth from the crowd. Their fevered performance is made more so by the addition of electric bass played by Harris Newman (also of Hrsta and Sackville) and 'vocals' screamed into the viola's pickup -- truly generating enough imposing energy to knock the wind out of you. The eighth track "Fuck This Place" is as bluntly forceful as its title, ending with a blistering squall. When it ceases all that you're left with are a subdued scattering of percussion and solitary bowed notes. Taken separately each interlude is stunning, and when combined the effects are breathtaking. Recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Klang Klang"
MPEG Stream: "Fuck This Place"

HANGEDUP Kicker In Tow (Constellation) cd 14.98
Expanding immensely upon their self-titled debut in interesting ways is this Montreal instrumental duo (yes, they are comrades of Godspeed, Fly Pan Am et al). Hangedup create a storming industrial soundscape (note: definitely not "industrial" a la WaxTrax, Ministry or Front 242). Each song drills, thunders and spits fiery sparks in wonderfully stirring torrents. Flaring up and simmering darkly, they do so with the minimum of instruments - a lone viola and raw percussion. The distinct, furiously bowed strings once again are joined by the steady shuffling drums and chime-clank metallic percussion. Often bringing to mind the unparallelled fervor of The Ex, Kicker In Tow is an album of vitality and immediacy. Recommended.
RealAudio clip: "Kinetic Work"
RealAudio clip: "Losing Your Charm"

HANGEDUP s/t (Constellation) cd 14.98
A new addition to the Constellation Records family which as you may know includes such impressive abstract soundscapers as Godspeed You Black Emperor, Do Make Say Think and Fly Pan Am. Fellow-Montrealers Hanged Up travel in a very similar carriage. Spare, often metallic percussion and sinewy, on-the-verge-of-feedback strings are combined in dramatic, minimal improvisations. Viola swells and washes and repetitive rhythms come together, lock in, hesitate and drift apart. Recorded, mixed, and augmented by, you guessed it, GYBE guitarist Efrim.
RealAudio clip: "Bring Yr Scuba Gear"
RealAudio clip: "Powered By Steam"

HANGING THIEF s/t (Digitalis Ltd.) cassette 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
So as Barn Owl made their way home from Austin, Texas this past spring, they made a pit stop in the ominous town of Tulsa Oklahoma to hang out with friend and owner of Digitalis records, Brad Rose. They got into Tulsa just in time, as a huge storm had followed in their wake. And with a dark looming sky of black clouds and the threat of a tornado touching down any second, what else could they do besides stay inside and record some dark psychedelic drooooones? And this they did, and the result is a new project called Hanging Thief, named after the giant, praying mantis-like insect that frequents Rose's porch. Barn Owl, Rose and his wife Eden together sculpt a slow rising monolith that gently creeps up from the cracked Oklahoma soil. Hazy vocals, faint synth sorcery and heavy guitar droning melt together into two 30 minute sides of slow building, grim atmospheric psychedelia. Limited to an edition of 150, this tape is pro-dubbed and decked out in killer hand drawn artwork by Eden, don't be sorry you missed out on this ritual offering of analog sorcery!

HANK IV Third Person Shooter (Hook Or Crook) cd 13.98
Not to be confused with Hank III, aka Hank Williams the third, although there are bits of twang here and there, especially the first 10 second. But after that it's just blast after blast of scuzzy, sing along, snot-nosed garage rock stomp. Which makes sense when you consider that Hank IV is made up of equal parts Icky Boyfriends, Duh, Leather Uppers, Bum Kon and The Roofies.
Recorded right here in SF by Tim Green of the Champs, Hank IV kick out some serious sub-Stooges jams. Simple, bouncy, propulsive, grungy basement RAWK, with looping melodies over stripped down scuzzy stomps, peppered with chunks of angular riffing and gruff howled vocals. These guys must kill live!
MPEG Stream: "Melonhead"
MPEG Stream: "Oyster"
MPEG Stream: "Family Adam"

HANK IV Third Person Shooter (Hook Or Crook) lp + cd 13.98
Not to be confused with Hank III, aka Hank Williams the third, although there are bits of twang here and there, especially the first 10 second. But after that it's just blast after blast of scuzzy, sing along, snot-nosed garage rock stomp. Which makes sense when you consider that Hank IV is made up of equal parts Icky Boyfriends, Duh, Leather Uppers, Bum Kon and The Roofies.
Recorded right here in SF by Tim Green of the Champs, Hank IV kick out some serious sub-Stooges jams. Simple, bouncy, propulsive, grungy basement RAWK, with looping melodies over stripped down scuzzy stomps, peppered with chunks of angular riffing and gruff howled vocals. These guys must kill live!
MPEG Stream: "Melonhead"
MPEG Stream: "Oyster"
MPEG Stream: "Family Adam"

HANNA, KATHLEEN Julie Ruin (Kill Rock Stars) cd 11.98
Former member of now defunct Bikini Kill breaks out with her own solo album, wherein she makes all the music and vocals. New to her sound is an emphasis on loops and manufactured beats.

HANNIBAL PETERSON AND THE SUNRISE ORCHESTRA Children Of The Fire (Universal Sound) cd 21.00
A long overdue reissue of this lost jazz classic, originally self released in 1974. Hannibal Peterson isn't much of a household name, even among jazzheads, which is a bit odd considering he's played with Roland Kirk, Elvin Jones, Archie Shepp, Pharoah Sanders and loads more. And it's a shame because this record is something else! Beautiful and bizarre. Traditional sounding at times, but quite experimental at others. A lush and tripped out orchestral free jazz with swelling strings, wild and clattery tribal percussion, some killer drumming, all joyful and jubilant, until about halfway through, when the orchestra fades out leaving just the sounds of bombs dropping, wild repetitive piano and a mournful female vocalist wailing operatically, eventually the vocals fade leaving a dense instrumental bed of buzzing sitar, tinkling chimes, fluttering flute, completely tranquil and dreamlike. The nearly twenty minute "Aftermath" though is the sonic centerpiece of the record, the first half a skittering post bop free jazz workout, almost funky in parts, the second half, an elegiac dirge of throbbing bass, moaning cello, wailing trumpet and a sizzling percussive crescendo, with gorgeous plaintive vocal coda.
MPEG Stream: "Rhythm Ritual"
MPEG Stream: "Song Of Life"
MPEG Stream: "The Bombing"

HANNU Worms In My Piano (Osaka) cd 17.98
Oh, how we were hoping this record would actually sound like worms crawling around inside a piano. Besides being a super evocative image, it also would have been the easiest review EVER. "Hannu's Worms In My Piano actually sounds like worms inside a piano..." or whatever. And to be honest, there are a few moments, where maybe it doesn't quite sound like regular worms, but possibly some sort of effervescent alien glowworms slithering up and down gently vibrating strings, like beads of water on one of those weird water lamps your grandma had...
Speaking of your grandma, a lot of this is soft and shimmery, spacey and so relaxed and laid back, not entirely unlike  a more hip Lawrence Welk were he still alive and signed to Type or Carpark. This is most definitely easy listening. So so so so easy... Everything warm and soft, shimmering and glimmering and sparkling like stars in the night sky. Delicate melodies drifting from mysterious music boxes, little prismatic bubbles floating above some space aged ballroom, a tiny toy orchestra playing dreamy lullabies, a last dance on a moonlit dancefloor perched on the edge of a glistening galaxy, the world's slowest and dreamiest post rock band spinning dark drifting soft focus epics, that drift and dissipate like wisps of smoke. 
So dark and delicate and utterly lovely.
MPEG Stream: "Haapevesi"
MPEG Stream: "Junassa"
MPEG Stream: "Sumu"
MPEG Stream: "Suruista Suurin"

HANO, SHOJI 48 (Improvised Music From Japan) cd 17.98
The label that brought us that amazing, massive (and now out of print) Improvised Music From Japan 10-cd wooden boxed set, as well as the zine of the same name, isn't resting there. This solo effort from veteran free jazz drummer Shoji Hano is but one of their latest releases. Shoji Hano has played with the likes of Abe Kaoru, Peter Brotzmann, Toshinori Kondo, Keiji Haino, Derek Bailey, High Rise, Gary Smith, Hugh Hopper, and others -- a resume touching on the extremes of jazz and psychedelic rock. Here he gets pretty extreme all by himself, doing every drummer's dream, a 56 minute drum solo! Actually it's broken into two tracks, of 22 and 34 minutes apiece. He shakes, he rattles, he rolls. It's not exactly Moby Dick, but it's closer than you might think. The sheer scope, the length, of these tracks allow you to almost forget it's just drums you're hearing, it just becomes a sound pattern, constantly varied, energetic yet very controlled. It's like Hano is performing some personal percussive ritual. Cool...but you gotta like drums!!
MPEG Stream: "004"

HANO, SHOJI / GARY SMITH / ASAHITO NANJO s/t (Chronoscope) cd 18.98
British electric improv guitarist Smith (Mass, etc.), and Japanese psych rock bassist Nanjo (High Rise, Mainliner, Musica Transonic, etc.), team up with Japanese free jazz percussionist Shoji Hano (who's worked with Peter Brotzmann, Keiji Haino, & many others). Quite a barrage of beauty and terror results. Yeah, somewhere between jazz and psychedelic rock this is, for fans of both Mass and Musica Transonic for sure.

HANOI ROCKS All Those Wasted Years (Sanctuary) cd 14.98
I went on at great length last list about the late great Hanoi Rocks. So you know how much I love this band. Trashy, punky glam pop from Finland via the UK. An unholy mix of the NY Dolls, the Rolling Stones, Elvis Costello, and the Clash. They effortlessly and perfectly embodied glam metal (bringing T-Rex and Mott the Hoople kicking and screaming into the 80s) and were (unfortunately) responsible for the hundreds of pale imitations, Poison, Motley Crue, Guns and Roses, et al, all falling far short of the mark (see the AQ site for a complete introduction to the joys of Hanoi Rocks).
I never got to see Hanoi Rocks live, but playing live was their thing and on stage they were explosive and totally inspiring. This is their only proper live album (which is taken from the video of the same name) and features roughed up versions of all their hits as well as extended versions of 'Taxi Driver', 'Under My Wheels' (an Alice Cooper cover!) and 'Train Kept-A-Rollin'. Like all their other records, ESSENTIAL.
RealAudio clip: "Taxi Driver"
RealAudio clip: "Under My Wheels"

HANOI ROCKS Back To Mystery City (Castle Music) cd 16.98
I'm beginning to feel like the guy at AQ that tries to convince you it's okay to like those bands that for some reason you are embarassed to like. But if that is my position, then so be it. We had a Hanoi Rocks greatest hits collection a while back, but like with most great bands, the hits aren't necessarily the best songs, and as with most great records, each works as an individual set of songs, that sustain a certain mood and energy for the duration of the record. Here's what I said last time about one of my favorite bands:
Hanoi Rocks, while inadvertently helping to spawn an entire generation of MTV glam rock, managed to create an amazing and varied body of work, from trashy garage stomps to perfect little pop songs. And even with a lot of high profile attention (their drummer was killed by Motley Crue's Vince Neil in a drunk driving accident, a hit with their cover of CCR's 'Up Around The Bend, having their entire catalog reissued on Guns and Roses' label at the height of G&R's popularity) they somehow managed to stay just enough underground to miss the superstardom they so deserved. Their sound was a mix of Stooges style garage rock, good old Beatle-esque pop, and a weird reggae/dub influence most obvious in their rhythm guitar parts and dubby drum lines (like the Clash, who supplied Hanoi Rocks with their replacement bass player when Sam Yaffa moved to America to play in Jetboy). But the bottom line is always the songs, and the songs are catchy as fuck. Trust me, Hanoi Rocks are so good -- don't be swayed by their tenuous connection to the eighties hair bands (even though singer Mike Monroe was way hotter than any of his glam rock contemporaries). And mark my words, I will have Allan singing their praises in no time, even if it kills me, or him.
This is Hanoi Rocks' third and maybe best record and things get decidedly weirder, with the bizarre (and aptly titled) intro 'Strange Boys Play Weird Openings', the rollicking and insane 'Mental Beat', the stumbling chaos of 'Tooting Bec Wreck', the ultra catchy Stooges-like 'Back To Mystery City' and just a non stop barrage of fucking great songs: 'Malibu Beach Nightmare', 'Until I Get You', 'Lick Summer Love', 'Sailing Down The Tears' and more.
RealAudio clip: "Back To Mystery City"
RealAudio clip: "Mental Beat"
RealAudio clip: "Tooting Bec Wreck"

HANOI ROCKS Bangkok Shocks, Saigon Shakes, Hanoi Rocks (Castle Music) cd 16.98
I'm beginning to feel like the guy at AQ that tries to convince you it's okay to like those bands that for some reason you are embarassed to like. But if that is my position, then so be it. We had a Hanoi Rocks greatest hits collection a while back, but like with most great bands, the hits aren't necessarily the best songs, and as with most great records, each works as an individual set of songs, that sustain a certain mood and energy for the duration of the record. Here's what I said last time about one of my favorite bands:
Hanoi Rocks, while inadvertently helping to spawn an entire generation of MTV glam rock, managed to create an amazing and varied body of work, from trashy garage stomps to perfect little pop songs. And even with a lot of high profile attention (their drummer was killed by Motley Crue's Vince Neil in a drunk driving accident, a hit with their cover of CCR's 'Up Around The Bend, having their entire catalog reissued on Guns and Roses' label at the height of G&R's popularity) they somehow managed to stay just enough underground to miss the superstardom they so deserved. Their sound was a mix of Stooges style garage rock, good old Beatle-esque pop, and a weird reggae/dub influence most obvious in their rhythm guitar parts and dubby drum lines (like the Clash, who supplied Hanoi Rocks with their replacement bass player when Sam Yaffa moved to America to play in Jetboy). But the bottom line is always the songs, and the songs are catchy as fuck. Trust me, Hanoi Rocks are so good, don't be swayed by their tenuous connection to the eighties hair bands (even though singer Mike Monroe was way hotter than any of his glam rock contemporaries). And mark my words, I will have Allan singing their praises in no time, even if it kills me, or him. These reissues are remastered, have tons of photos and really great and extensive liner notes.
'Bangkok Shocks' was Hanoi Rocks debut and starts off with possibly two of their best songs, 'Tragedy', all chunky guitars and falsetto backup vocals, and 'Village Girl', probably my favorite Hanoi Rocks songs. A perfect pop song, ultra catchy chorus, unforgettable riff, and a weird dubby rhythm.
RealAudio clip: "Tragedy"
RealAudio clip: "Village Girl"
RealAudio clip: "Don't Never Leave Me"

HANOI ROCKS Decadent, Dangerous, Delicious (Castle) 2cd 18.98
"File under Sleaze/Junk." If you buy this you will make a very sad man very very happy. This purports to be a collection of "The Best of" Hanoi Rocks--but it's only 2 cds? How's that possible...?
Now that Allan is finished (for now) being a sarcastic bastard, i will once again defend one of my all time favorite bands.
Hanoi Rocks, while inadvertently helping to spawn an entire generation of MTV glam rock, managed to create an amazing and varied body of work, from trashy garage stomps to perfect little pop songs. And even with a lot of high profile attention (their drummer was killed by Motley Crue's Vince Neil in a drunk driving accident, a hit with their cover of CCR's 'Up Around The Bend, having their entire catalog reissued on Guns and Roses' label at the height of G&R's popularity) they somehow managed to stay just enough underground to miss the superstardom they so deserved. Their sound was a mix of Stooges style garage rock, good old Beatle-esque pop, and a weird reggae/dub influence most obvious in their rhythm guitar parts and dubby drum lines (like the Clash, who supplied Hanoi Rocks with their replacement bass player when Sam Yaffa moved to America to play in Jetboy). But the bottom line is always the songs, and the songs here are catchy as fuck, from the mournful piano driven 'Dead by Christmas', to the rollicking 'Problem Child', to the impossibly catchy 'Village Girl'. Trust me, this is so good, don't be swayed by their tenuous connection to the eighties hair bands. Although singer Mike Monroe was way hotter than any of his contemporaries. And mark my words, I will have Allan singing their praises in no time, even if it kills me, or him.

HANOI ROCKS Lean On Me (Sanctuary) cd 12.98
'Lean On Me' is a singles /rarities collection that was originally released in 1992 (shortly after the death of Razzle, and after an aborted attempt at Hanoi Rocks mk. 2 with the Clash's Terry Chimes failing to fill Razzle's shoes).
This one's mostly for the Hanoi completists, seeing as half the tracks are previously released. But it's awfully exciting to finally hear 7 unearthed, unreleased rarities, some of them outtakes from their last record and major label debut. 'Two Steps From The Move'. And as with all outtakes collections, some of the tracks should have maybe remained unreleased, but most of them are pretty great, and all of them are a welcome addition to the Hanoi Rocks canon, some of the most vibrant and under appreciated rock and roll of the last 25 years.
RealAudio clip: "Oriental Beat"
RealAudio clip: "Menaced By Nightengales"
RealAudio clip: "Fast Car"