NATH, PANDIT PRAN Earth Groove: The Voice Of Cosmic India (Change / Mississippi) lp 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
***MISSISSIPPI RECORDS!!!***MISSISSIPPI RECORDS!!!***MISSISSIPPI RECORDS!!!***MISSISSIPPI RECORDS!!!***
Like a Pavlovian bell, just the mere utterance of this vinyl-only Portland label gets everyone aflutter, ready to eagerly acquire, no matter what the sounds contained inside. We suppose if they put out a record solely of sounds made by cement mixers, back-hoes or traffic noises and packaged it in a sweet homemade album cover with nostalgic photos of antique construction equipment, and called it something like "My Heart Belongs To The Public Works", we'd sell out of them just as fast as their awesome compilations of pre-war blues or their reissues of obscure post-punk groups. As cool as that actually sounds, the not one, but TWO Mississippi releases we have this week are both super stellar and we know everyone is going to want at least one if not both of them.
Earth Groove is a reissue of the debut 1968 recording by Master Hindustani classical singer Pandit Pran Nath. Considering his major influence on the giants of twentieth-century minimalist composition and drone music of all forms, as well as the amazing dearth of available recordings on cd let alone on vinyl, this is a MUST HAVE!! Featuring two fantastic side long ragas, Raaga Bhoopali designed for meditation after sunset and Raaga Asavari designed for meditation after sunrise, this is spiritual music of the highest order made for the purpose of destroying negative energy. But it is its amazing sounds of buzzing tamboura drones and tabla rhythms with Pran Nath's perfectly intonated and slowly unfolding vocal style that should please all fans of otherworldly cosmic sounds.
Master of the Kirana Ghirana school, it is believed that Pran Nath spent five years of his life in a cave perfecting his austere intonated singing style. Heavily emphasizing the alap, the opening section of the raga that is unmetered, improvised and unaccompanied (except for the tamboura drone), that sets up a slow tempo and can often last more than an hour. Pran Nath's unwavering adherence to the principles of his vocal style was not that popular to the ears of modern Indians, but it is this recording that reached the open minds of minimalist composer La Monte Young and visual artist Marion Zazeela who persuaded Pran Nath to move to America and start his own school of music in New York. Just rattling off the names of his top students shows what an indelible influence Pran Nath was to late twentieth century music: Terry Riley, Charlemagne Palestine, Henry Flynt, Jon Hassell, Douglas Leedy, Don Cherry, Lee Konitz, Jon Gibson, Yoshi Wada, Rhys Chatham, Michael Harrison, W. A. Mathieu, Sufi Pir Shabda Kahn, Catherine Christer Hennix, and Simone Forti. Enough said.
After being completely enraptured with the extensive and expensive double disc Midnight we reviewed a while back, some folks may not have had the time or means to see what we were raving about, so it's really nice to have this perfect and affordable introduction to Pran Nath's intense and penetratingly beautiful sound world, while they last!

NATH, PANDIT PRAN Midnight / Raga Malk (Just Dreams) 2cd 41.00
This recording, the musical life of Pandit Pran Nath, his influence on Western minimalism, his importance to music, both modern and traditional, is steeped in history, but just as important, if not harder to describe, is the sound. A warm drifting dreamscape, layers of buzz and hum and drone, Nath's perfectly intonated vocals, hovering weightless above a thick swirl of Sitar string buzz and slowly shifting drones. This is true drone music. Warm and rich, thick and effervescent. Densely layered but light and airy. Truly difficult to describe, but a record that has immmediately become one of the most played / listened to records around these parts. Nath spent most of his life studying and performing in India, and became well known for his strict adherence to the authentic rendering of traditional ragas and an unwillingness to change his style or sound to be more 'modern'. His focus on the slower 'alap' sections of ragas was an obvious influence on seventies minimalists like La Monte Young and Terry Riley (both students of his), and other students / followers included Don Cherry, Rhys Chatham, Henry Flynt and many others. He eventually became a US citizen and continued performing, composing and teaching right up until his death. There is a definite dearth of recordings, considering how long Nath had been performing, this 2 disc set was originally released in 2002, and has luckily been reissued. The price tag is steep, but once these sounds hit your ears, any thoughts of price or money as well as all of your other earthly worries will just drift away. Both of these performances, one from 1971 recorded in San Francisco, the other in NYC in 1976, feautre Nath accompanied by Western musicians, Terry Riley, Ann Riley, La Monte Young and Marian Zazeela, who seem perfectly in tune with Nath's sound and vision. Anyone who loves the music of Chalk, Coleclough, Mirror, Ora, Organum, any of that minimal drone music, would do well to dig deep and discover the roots of that music. This is most definitely some of the most beautiful, transcendental drone music we have ever heard.
MPEG Stream: "Midnight (4 VIII 71 SF)"

NATH, PANDIT PRAN The Raga Cycle, PalaceTheatre, Paris 1972 (Sri Moonshine) cd 15.98

MPEG Stream: "Untitled 1 (Excerpt 1)"
MPEG Stream: "Untitled 1 (Excerpt 2)"

NATHAMUNI BROTHERS Madras 1974 (Fire Musem) cd 14.98

NATION OF ULYSSES The Embassy Tapes (Dischord) cd 11.98
What's this?! New N.O.U. on Dischord? Yes, it's true. These are 4-track recordings from back in '92 committed to tape at their Embassy. Be forewarned, the sound quality isn't perfect. As you probably know the members can now be heard in The Fucking Champs and The Make-Up, but back then the tightly-wound musical chemistry between these four young men was undeniable. The results were an awesome, furious collection of songs and a live show that kicked my ass... hard. Ten songs of volatile, untethered music.

NATIONAL, THE Boxer (Beggars Banquet) cd 9.98
Oh man are people freaking out over this one. Admittedly, we hadn't heard this record, but people kept coming in the store and asking for it so we decided to give it a go. With a name like The National and having seen pictures of the five well-dressed boys from Brooklyn, we half expected another bland '80s rock redux sound that has continued to get more and more popular over the last few years. It started out innocently enough with some good records from The Rapture, Interpol, Bloc Party etc. but it's gotten a little tired by now. We're guessing many agree with this assessment considering all of the hype surrounding The National's Boxer which might be a much needed variation on the theme started by the aforementioned bands and continued on and on and on and on and on by many others. Boxer contains a coupla songs that push the post-new wave cart, but most are slowed down considerably. Some songs border on Americana folk, while others see the band painting a perfect alt-rock picture pairing chugging rock with arranged orchestral strings, piano, and horns to compliment the beautifully baritone voice of lead singer Matt Berninger. Berninger's voice may be the selling point for many (as it was for some of us) and could easily be compared to Leonard Cohen or Tom Waits at times, with moments where not only the tone but bittersweet stream of consciousness lyrical style of Stephin Merritt come to mind. Overall, we were pleasantly surprised and highly recommend this record for fans of Magnetic Fields, Midlake, Antony and The Johnsons, Arab Strap or Deerhunter.
MPEG Stream: "Fake Empire"
MPEG Stream: "Ada"

NATIONAL, THE High Violet (4AD) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The National broke out big with their last album from a few years ago, Boxer, so we are always nervous/excited to see how a band follows up a record that hurl them into a whole new world, with a new level of attention and acclamation. And guess what, they've done it totally right, making a record that might even surpass Boxer. Right from the stunning opener "Terrible Love" we were stopped in our tracks as it's one of those songs that you know when you hear it for the first time you are about to become totally obsessed with it and play it for everyone you know, as we have in the last couple weeks. Luckily the record maintains the strong emotional and driving quality of that song, managing to create songs that are bittersweet, brooding and dour, yet which flow which such ease.
High Violet captures a similar spirit to so many of our favorite '90s records by folks like Red House Painters, American Music Club, Tindersticks and Low. And we even think about what Interpol or The Editors might sound like if they were doused with a healthy amount of valium and brought in a much more stark, emotional quality to their music. We've got a feeling this is going to end up on a lot of year end best lists and it will be totally deserved!
MPEG Stream: "Terrible Love"
MPEG Stream: "Anyone's Ghost"
MPEG Stream: "Afraid Of Everyone"

NATIONAL, THE High Violet (4AD) 2lp 19.98
The National broke out big with their last album from a few years ago, Boxer, so we are always nervous/excited to see how a band follows up a record that hurl them into a whole new world, with a new level of attention and acclamation. And guess what, they've done it totally right, making a record that might even surpass Boxer. Right from the stunning opener "Terrible Love" we were stopped in our tracks as it's one of those songs that you know when you hear it for the first time you are about to become totally obsessed with it and play it for everyone you know, as we have in the last couple weeks. Luckily the record maintains the strong emotional and driving quality of that song, managing to create songs that are bittersweet, brooding and dour, yet which flow which such ease.
High Violet captures a similar spirit to so many of our favorite '90s records by folks like Red House Painters, American Music Club, Tindersticks and Low. And we even think about what Interpol or The Editors might sound like if they were doused with a healthy amount of valium and brought in a much more stark, emotional quality to their music. We've got a feeling this is going to end up on a lot of year end best lists and it will be totally deserved!
MPEG Stream: "Terrible Love"
MPEG Stream: "Anyone's Ghost"
MPEG Stream: "Afraid Of Everyone"

NATIONAL, THE High Violet (Expanded Edition) (4AD) 2cd 14.98
Now reissued with tons of bonus material (1 alternate version, 2 new songs, 2 B sides and 3 live recordings) and slightly altered packaging...
The National broke out big with their last album from a few years ago, Boxer, so we are always nervous/excited to see how a band follows up a record that hurl them into a whole new world, with a new level of attention and acclamation. And guess what, they've done it totally right, making a record that might even surpass Boxer. Right from the stunning opener "Terrible Love" we were stopped in our tracks as it's one of those songs that you know when you hear it for the first time you are about to become totally obsessed with it and play it for everyone you know, as we have in the last couple weeks. Luckily the record maintains the strong emotional and driving quality of that song, managing to create songs that are bittersweet, brooding and dour, yet which flow which such ease.
High Violet captures a similar spirit to so many of our favorite '90s records by folks like Red House Painters, American Music Club, Tindersticks and Low. And we even think about what Interpol or The Editors might sound like if they were doused with a healthy amount of valium and brought in a much more stark, emotional quality to their music. We've got a feeling this is going to end up on a lot of year end best lists and it will be totally deserved!
MPEG Stream: "Terrible Love"
MPEG Stream: "Anyone's Ghost"
MPEG Stream: "Afraid Of Everyone"

NATIVE IN BLACK At The Mystic Gates Of Eternal Winter (Cold Breath Of Silence) cd 9.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
We most definitely have a thing for Russian black metal, Old Wainds, Stielhas Storhett, Forest, Branikald, Raven Dark, Nav, Ithdabquth Qliphoth, we could go on and on. So we're always psyched to discover some new band we had never heard, or heard of before, such was the case with Native In Black, whose 2008 disc At The Gates Of Eternal Winter we just managed to get in, and it's a killer, but the cool thing is it's a whole different take on black metal than we're used to, especially from Russian bands.
Their sound is cold and grim and frosty and buzzy, but it's not really furious or fast, it's also not stripped down or raw, instead it's almost like some weird variant of classic eighties metal, mixed with a little blackness, and a lot of thrash. It's hard to describe, but much like the Ruins cd reviewed elsewhere on this list, the more we listen to this the better it sounds. Most black metal is droney or blurry, barely headbangable, but this shit is epic, and totally rocking, midtempo most of the time, and when it is fast, it's not blast beats, but more furious and sort of punk rock. Lurching and lumbering, pounding fists in the air. The vocals are awesome too, definitely a black metal shriek, but also frenzied and super dramatic, a bit like Mr. Doctor or something, giving the black metal a distinctly over the top Devil Doll vibe. In fact the more we dig into this record, the less distinctly black metal it sounds, and the more it sounds like some fucked up noise rock band, who just so happen to have some metal roots, a tangled mathy buzz, wrapped around those crazy vox, and shot through with a bit of stumbly punk rock, and streaks of blackened grimnity. Live these guys could easily either be corpsepainted and bespiked, or a bunch of bearded dudes in jeans and tshirts, leaping all over the stage, flailing wildly and stage diving, hardly matters, either way this shit rules!
MPEG Stream: "Blackest Northern Orchestra"
MPEG Stream: "At The Mystic Gates"
MPEG Stream: "Ladies And Gentlemen"

NATTEFROST Terrorist (Season Of Mist) cd 15.98

NATURAL DREAMERS s/t (Frenetic) cd 13.98
Natural Dreamers is made up of Chris from Deerhoof and Curtains, John from Deerhoof and Gorge Trio, and Jay from Dilute. Their first release makes a lot of sense in terms of a sort of instrumental midway point between Curtains and Deerhoof, containing the open spaces and pauses of Curtains' minimal approach grafted onto the chunkier, fuller sound of two guitars. A French website enthused (via automatic translation): "One likes this small end of spring freshness, these small airs which do not pay a mine but which exploits the naturalness of people, without claim, where all is based on the listening of the other! Power, naturalness and emotion..." Ahh, naturalness, emotion and spring freshness indeed! A really nice, satisfying record from some very talented Bay Area players.
MPEG Stream: "The Singer"

NATURAL FOOD s/t (Porter Records) cd 16.98

NATURAL SNOW BUILDINGS Chants Of Niflheim (Blackest Rainbow) cd 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

NATURAL SNOW BUILDINGS Laurie Bird (Students Of Decay) cd-r 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Natural Snow Buildings is another one of those bands almost every one had heard of, but almost no one had actually heard. A handful of meticulously packaged and criminally limited cd-r's that disappeared before most of us even knew they existed. But everyone spoke in hushed tones, about the amazing sounds of Natural Snow Buildings, that's a lot of hype, and huge potential for a let down, as all of those records are finally being reissued in slightly less limited editions, this being the first readily available one, but we're happy to report, this dup truly does live up to the hype.
Their sound, as all great sounds are, is quite difficult to describe. Their sound is abstract and ambient, but active and busy, propulsive yet minimal and almost static, rife with melodies, but dense and droney, soft and shimmery and so so pretty.
The first track here is enough to enchant even the most jaded of listeners. A glistening, effulgent soundscape of glimmering prismatic tones, and deep soft whirs, dreamy streaks of major key melodies draped over the constantly shifting sea of warm whirls. It's like a more organic version of the first track on Oval's Diskont record, but where that track sounded underwater, this one sounds sun dappled and windswept, a bit of a raga really, but its buzz and drone is spread out into a downy bed of fallen leaves, the listener falling back into the Autumn's embrace, the sun sparkling through the latticework of branches overhead. Not ominous or dark, this is joyous and rich and bursting with a warm organic glow, the layers and melodies constantly slipping and sliding in this huge mass of billowy soft sound. As the song progresses, if it were even possible, it seems to get more and more blissful, everything wreathed in haunting halos of sound, UNTIL the drums kick in. and the whole thing explodes into a jagged splatter of angular atonal feedback, and grinding distortion, a chaotic squall that dissipates almost as quickly as it came on, leaving the duo to wind back down, meandering dreamily to the next track.
The second track is a bit dirgier, darker, a pounding rhythm, and a rumbling gurgling low end bass growl, underpinning the weirdly tribal jam, bells, chimes, voices, some fragments of guitar, but mostly a droning rhythmic groove, eventually joined by a chorus of angelic vocals turning a dark drone into some sort of pastoral hymn.
The final track is the most minimal, an understated drone, layers of softly overlapping overtones, shifting tonal colors, warm and buzzy, and nearly bursting with some internal heat, the tones growing more and more feverish, the sounds threatening to crumble, until the tones do break free and splinter into streaks of feedback, and woozy shimmering slabs of high end skree, noisy and staticky, with strange alien sounding chanted voices.
Truly fantastic, and gorgeous, challenging, and wondrously unique. And again, well worth the hype. So recommended.
BUT!!! Still limited to only 100 copies!! Why??? Why not 500? Or 1000? These will be gone again way too fast, so don't delay, you'll be sorry...
MPEG Stream: "Cockmotherfighting"
MPEG Stream: "Orisha's Laments"

NATURAL SNOW BUILDINGS Shadow Kingdom (Blackest Rainbow) 2cd + comic book 25.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We love super limited collectable releases as much as the next person, but it really does seem to be getting out of hand. Cd-r's, tapes, vinyl, limited to 1000, to 500, to 50, 33, even 12 in some cases. Sure it makes sense that there is a limited audience for a lot of music, so maybe 12 or 33 or 50 is enough, but once it's obvious that you've moved beyond such a limited fanbase, it's time to ramp it up. A band who routinely sells thousands of records, can not (or at least SHOULD not) release a record limited to 100 copies. All it does is piss off all the fans who love your music. And by the same token, bands who DO release ultra limited releases, well, when those releases begin to sell out in a matter of hours, or minutes, or if those releases end up on eBay the next day and sell for hundreds of bucks, well, then similarly, it's time to give up on the limited release. It's partially the listeners' fault, clamoring for ANYTHING limited, sometimes it seems like how limited something is, is vastly more important to folks than what it sounds like.
But why discuss this here, in a review of dynamic drone duo Natural Snow Buildings? Well, because these guys have LONG surpassed the point at which they should be doing pressings any smaller than 500, heck, any smaller than 1000. So far, every NSB record or NSB sideproject record we've gotten, has been so limited that A. We were not able to get as many as we wanted. B. They all were practically out of print by the time they landed at aQ, and worst of all, C. Loads of folks who wanted the music and could care less about collectability and were just big fans of the band ended up shit out of luck, and had to buy it on eBay for some crazy amount of money, if they wanted to hear it at all.
Shadow Kingdom is not as limited as many of the past NSB jams, but is still limited enough that we could only manage a smallish chunk, and it's yet to be determined if we can get more once these sell out, but we'll for sure try.
Which when you break it down is really a bummer, cuz music this good, sounds this dark and intense and incredible need to be heard by as many people as possible. Shadow Kingdom is at its core, a drone record, but NSB's take on the drone is so lush and expansive and epic, slow burning, but burning bright, effulgent and incendiary, guitars blurred into thick glimmering streaks, the various layers, pulse and throb and undulate, and those drones are shot through with flecks of folk, bits of twang, dreamy vocals, buzzing sitar, shimmering ambience, and those epic swaths of dronemusic are set amidst more song based sounds, the record slipping from nearly half hour walls of drone, to delicate fluttery folky ambience, to skittery sun dappled free folk, to washed out new age whir, to warm gauzy dream pop, all of those various permutations constantly drifting into one another, overlapping, intertwining, changing shape, melodies bleeding into other melodies, tones and chords drifting and whirling, it's all very otherworldly, and mesmerizing, meditative and so so so dreamy. A double cd is perfect for NSB, as they can indulge themselves, letting pop songs sprawl into disembodied hazy space-y anti-pop, allowing warm bits of forest folk, to blossom into ever expanding fields of flickering fluttery sonic shimmer. It's hard to listen to music this beautiful, and emotional, and exquisitely crafted, and imagine it only being heard by a handful of people. So yeah, another fantastic disc of drone folk loveliness from this French duo, grab one if you can, and c'mon guys, make as many copies as there are people who want to hear it, at the very least, someone should gather up all the out of print tapes and lps and cds and assemble a massive bargain priced boxset, for all the fans who missed out on so much music from a band they love. So gorgeous, and in case you hadn't figured it out by now, very, very, very limited.
MPEG Stream: "The Fall Of Shadow Kingdom"
MPEG Stream: "For Fear They May Come Back/Childrens Of The Seventh Circle/The Dark Road"
MPEG Stream: "Gauled Ones And Birth Rugs"
MPEG Stream: "The Crystal Bird"

NATURAL SNOW BUILDINGS The Dance Of The Moon And The Sun (Students Of Decay) 2cd 23.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Originally released in two editions, one limited to 32 copies, another 19 copies, France's Natural Snow Buildings had arguably created their masterwork, a sprawling two and a half hour epic, that seemed destined to only be heard by those 51 people. But making more at that point was an impossibility, as each one was hand painted, painstakingly assembled, and the magic and mystery of The Dance Of The Moon And The Sun seemed to be lost forever. That is until now. Students Of Decay, spent months putting together this deluxe reissue, which again, was way too limited, with only 500 copies pressed, and is already sold out and out of print from the label. We have 25 copies, and that's all we'll ever have.
Some of you might remember the three way split The Snowbringer Cult, which featured the duo of Mehdi Ameziane and Solange Gularte, aka Natural Snow Buildings filling two discs with their folky drones and drone drenched folk, one disc a proper NSB release, the other split between each member's solo project, Isengrind and Twinsistermoon. The Dance Of The Moon And The Sun, while ostensibly credited to NSB, plays a bit like The Snowbringer Cult, as it covers all sorts of ground, from fluttery strum and croon, to deep buzzing drone, to drifty druggy spaciness, to motorik kraut jams, to sun dappled forest folk, and every possible stop in between. Makes sense really, as 150 minutes is a lot of sonic space to fill, and the two fill it to overflowing with a luxurious array of gorgeous sounds, from light and airy to dark and brooding, it really seems foolish to go into too much detail, as these will probably disappear in a matter of minutes, but for the uninitiated, it can't hurt to dig a little deeper.
The duo dip their toes in reverb drenched sixties female folk, quickly switching gears and unfurling a fifteen minute krautjam constructed from simple metallic percussion, and ominous buzzing drones, before immediately switching back for some ramshackle lo-fi bedroom strum and croon, and then slipping smoothly into a gorgeously blissed out slow motion space drone drift, all glimmering long tones and soft blurred shimmers. And the thing is, no matter what the sound, or what sort of sonic otherworld the duo are exploring, they manage to imbue the sound with innocence and wonder, while seeming to master it completely, and making it their very own. The dronemusic here is epic and understated and utterly divine, the folk and pop parts are gorgeous, catchy, intimate and emotional, and when the two collide, they create something else entirely, and the band are able to take it in any direction, a brief fragment, burning bright and then gone, or a stretched out sprawling epic, simple figures, subtle melodies, allowed to drift and blossom, the pop elements, and the folk elements, transformed into perfect parts of an even more perfect whole.
Packaged in a gorgeous fold over black white and yellow cardstock sleeve, adorned with the band's eye popping artwork, inside, a 6 panel black and white insert on thick paper, with liner notes, more wild images and liner notes from Time-Lag's head honcho Nemo.
Again, LIMITED TO 500 COPIES. ALREADY SOLD OUT AND OUT OF PRINT. THESE ARE THE LAST COPIES EVER!
MPEG Stream: "Cut Joint Sinews & Divided Reincarnation"
MPEG Stream: "Wisconsin"
MPEG Stream: "Dance Of The Moon & The Sun"

NATURAL SNOW BUILDINGS The Dance Of The Moon And The Sun (Students Of Decay) 2cd / 2 x cd-r / 2 x 3"cd-r 45.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This is the insanely limited, and pretty pricey, super deluxe version of Natural Snow Buildings' The Dance Of The Moon And The Sun. It was limited to 120 copies. It is out of print. Sold out. We only got a very few of these (as in 5), and will not be able to get more. The deluxe version features normal double disc version, PLUS, 2 more full length cd-r's, and 2 three inch cd-r's for a total of SIX DISCS. The extra discs are housed in a cardstock fold over sleeve, each one hand painted by the band, hand numbered, inside are 4 full color inserts, all of the discs held together by a printed full color obi. WE ONLY HAVE 5 COPIES OF THIS. IT WILL UNDOUBTEDLY SELL OUT IMMEDIATELY. AS IN MERE MINUTES! ONCE THESE ARE SOLD OUT, YOU WILL AUTOMATICALLY RECEIVE THE STANDARD, CHEAPER, TWO DISC VERSION. IF YOU ABSOLUTELY DO NOT WANT THE STANDARD VERSION, AND ARE ONLY INTERESTED IN THE DELUXE $45 VERSION, THEN PLEASE PUT A NOTE IN THE COMMENTS SECTION OF THE ORDER FORM TO THAT EFFECT.
Originally released in two editions, one limited to 32 copies, another 19 copies, France's Natural Snow Buildings had arguably created their masterwork, a sprawling two and a half hour epic, that seemed destined to only be heard by those 51 people. But making more at that point was an impossibility, as each one was hand painted, painstakingly assembled, and the magic and mystery of The Dance Of The Moon And The Sun seemed to be lost forever. That is until now. Students Of Decay, spent months putting together this deluxe reissue, which again, was way too limited, with only 500 copies pressed, and is already sold out and out of print from the label. We have 25 copies, and that's all we'll ever have.
Some of you might remember the three way split The Snowbringer Cult, which featured the duo of Mehdi Ameziane and Solange Gularte, aka Natural Snow Buildings filling two discs with their folky drones and drone drenched folk, one disc a proper NSB release, the other split between each member's solo project, Isengrind and Twinsistermoon. The Dance Of The Moon And The Sun, while ostensibly credited to NSB, plays a bit like The Snowbringer Cult, as it covers all sorts of ground, from fluttery strum and croon, to deep buzzing drone, to drifty druggy spaciness, to motorik kraut jams, to sun dappled forest folk, and every possible stop in between. Makes sense really, as 150 minutes is a lot of sonic space to fill, and the two fill it to overflowing with a luxurious array of gorgeous sounds, from light and airy to dark and brooding, it really seems foolish to go into too much detail, as these will probably disappear in a matter of minutes, but for the uninitiated, it can't hurt to dig a little deeper.
The duo dip their toes in reverb drenched sixties female folk, quickly switching gears and unfurling a fifteen minute krautjam constructed from simple metallic percussion, and ominous buzzing drones, before immediately switching back for some ramshackle lo-fi bedroom strum and croon, and then slipping smoothly into a gorgeously blissed out slow motion space drone drift, all glimmering long tones and soft blurred shimmers. And the thing is, no matter what the sound, or what sort of sonic otherworld the duo are exploring, they manage to imbue the sound with innocence and wonder, while seeming to master it completely, and making it their very own. The dronemusic here is epic and understated and utterly divine, the folk and pop parts are gorgeous, catchy, intimate and emotional, and when the two collide, they create something else entirely, and the band are able to take it in any direction, a brief fragment, burning bright and then gone, or a stretched out sprawling epic, simple figures, subtle melodies, allowed to drift and blossom, the pop elements, and the folk elements, transformed into perfect parts of an even more perfect whole.
Packaged in a gorgeous fold over black white and yellow cardstock sleeve, adorned with the band's eye popping artwork, inside, a 6 panel black and white insert on thick paper, with liner notes, more wild images and liner notes from Time-Lag's head honcho Nemo.
Again, LIMITED TO 500 COPIES. ALREADY SOLD OUT AND OUT OF PRINT. THESE ARE THE LAST COPIES EVER!
MPEG Stream: "Cut Joint Sinews & Divided Reincarnation"
MPEG Stream: "Wisconsin"
MPEG Stream: "Dance Of The Moon & The Sun"

NATURAL SNOW BUILDINGS The Wheel Of Sharp Daggers (Digitalis) cassette 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We always talk about how someday, with a record we know everybody is gonna want anyway, we're just gonna say "Here it is. A new Record by so and so. It's pretty great. You should buy it." Or something almost that succinct.
So here you go. French duo Natural Snow Buildings. A brand new tape, Super limited, like maybe 100 copies or something. We got about 30 of them. It's already out of print and unavailable almost everywhere. It's intense, majestic, epic and sort of heavy in a really mysterious way. Beautiful full color covers. It's really pretty great. You should buy it.

NATURAL SNOW BUILDINGS Waves Of The Random Sea (Blackest Rainbow) cd 14.98
We got a tiny handful of these a few weeks back, the brand new record from this French psych folk drone duo, and we were happy to get even those, considering how criminally limited NSB releases usually are. Those flew out of here and we figured they were just gone for good. But lo and behold, a batch somehow made it across the sea to one of our distributors and we snatched up all the copies we could, although that wasn't really all that many, so if you're an NSB fanatic, best act fast.
And if you're not a fanatic, well, then why the hell not. This duo conjures up some of the most fantastic otherworldly psychedelia we've ever heard. Long tracks that ooze and sprawl and drift, folk songs blurred and smeared into ambient outer space shimmer, drones undulate beneath clouds of slow swirling melody, effects whir and thrum, meditative and tranquil and dreamily druggy, the songs slipping from that sort of untethered psych drift to something much more earthbound, a woozy forest folk, tangled steel strings, minimal percussion, but still wreathed in the same sort of spaced out haze that seems like at any moment could blossom into full on heart of the sun ambient abstraction, and often does.
The one thing we can say about NSB, is that their records all sound like they were cut from the same sonic cloth, a glorious, fantastical, psychedelically colored cloth sure, but the sound remains quite similar, as if each record is less like a proper new album, and more like the next movement in some multi part epic, which is fine with us, this must be part 10 or 11 by now, but the sound remains so hypnotic and enthralling. The perfect blend of dark witchy psych folk, and deep shimmering dronemusic, of swirling psychedelic new age and ritualistic foresty primitivism, sun dappled and dew scented, all the sounds prismatic and crystalline, whether floating weightlessly in a field of hushed minimal thrum, or roiling darkly in a cloud of reveberating low end, Natural Snow Buildings are masters at creating this other world, conjuring up a soundtrack to takes us there with them and as always, the results are utterly breathtaking, and fantastically captivating.
ALREADY SOLD OUT AT THE LABEL!! These could very well be the last copies we get...
MPEG Stream: "The Waves Of The Random Sea"
MPEG Stream: "The Ice Fortress"

NATURAL YOGURT BAND Away With Melancholy (Jazzman /Now-Again) cd 17.98
Natural Yogurt Band??? So many associations come to mind of what kind of band would name themselves that, but without hearing them, you probably wouldn't guess right off jazz, funk or soul. Or if you did, you might think they were of a hippie jam band mentality and not this amazingly tight British jazz combo mining the sounds of late sixties Verve label cool jazz stalwarts like Cal Tjader, Lalo Schifrin, Gary McFarland, and Jimmy Smith. Rife with psychedelic flutes, vibes and organs, Away With Melancholy takes us through a vibrant cinematic sound world propelled by funky Latin rhythms and kaleidescopic compositions. The band isn't merely aping their influences, but extracting their key ingredients and repurposing them into something modern. El Michaels Affair and Clutchy Hopkins may be covering similar territory, but not nearly with the amazing aplomb and spot-on musicianship these guys have. And if you like those groups, the artists mentioned above, that Spiritual Jazz compilation we reviewed a while back, or anything on the Stones Throw label, you should definitely check this out! And, by the way, we've got to say something about the packaging, the metallic silver gatefold mini-LP style sleeve that this cd comes in is eye-catchingly gorgeous, adorned with delicate purple op-art spirals. We had people asking about it in the store just 'cause of the cover! Nice job, Jazzman.
MPEG Stream: "Chapter One"
MPEG Stream: "Pipe Dreams"
MPEG Stream: "Broken Rose"
MPEG Stream: "Lament For Piano"

NATURAL YOGURT BAND Away With Melancholy (Jazzman / Now-Again) 2x10" 21.00
Here's the (double 10") vinyl edition of this, cd listed last time. The packaging is gorgeous for this format as well, AND there's two songs included here that aren't on the cd version!
Here's our review of the cd:
Natural Yogurt Band??? So many associations come to mind of what kind of band would name themselves that, but without hearing them, you probably wouldn't guess right off jazz, funk or soul. Or if you did, you might think they were of a hippie jam band mentality and not this amazingly tight British jazz combo mining the sounds of late sixties Verve label cool jazz stalwarts like Cal Tjader, Lalo Schifrin, Gary McFarland, and Jimmy Smith. Rife with psychedelic flutes, vibes and organs, Away With Melancholy takes us through a vibrant cinematic sound world propelled by funky Latin rhythms and kaleidescopic compositions. The band isn't merely aping their influences, but extracting their key ingredients and repurposing them into something modern. El Michaels Affair and Clutchy Hopkins may be covering similar territory, but not nearly with the amazing aplomb and spot-on musicianship these guys have. And if you like those groups, the artists mentioned above, that Spiritual Jazz compilation we reviewed a while back, or anything on the Stones Throw label, you should definitely check this out!
MPEG Stream: "Chapter One"
MPEG Stream: "Pipe Dreams"
MPEG Stream: "Broken Rose"
MPEG Stream: "Lament For Piano"

NATURAL YOGURT BAND, THE Tuck In With... (Now-Again) cd 18.98
It's the return of the hard hitting British jazz duo with the really dumb name but the funkiest old school breaks augmented by organ, flutes and marimba. So how could we complain? Sounding like a revival of noirish jazz with occasional Latin tinges from the sixties and seventies, like the best of Creed Taylor's Verve label productions for Lalo Schifrin and Cal Tjader and a host of other cool cats, but with a futuristic twist of Moog-y delight. This new release doesn't change the formula so much from their last one as it expands upon it, including at the end of the the album proper, 18 or so additional "Biscuits" (sort of like J Dilla's "Donuts"), short sketches of organ and Moog squelches or drum breaks for you to sample and manipulate yourself. Cinematic and tightly knit, another score for the Now-Again label!
MPEG Stream: "Invisible Ink"
MPEG Stream: "Tweed Suit"
MPEG Stream: "Psalm"
MPEG Stream: "Forever Drowning"

NATURAL YOGURT BAND, THE Tuck In With... (Now-Again) 2x10" 21.00
It's the return of the hard hitting British jazz duo with the really dumb name but the funkiest old school breaks augmented by organ, flutes and marimba. So how could we complain? Sounding like a revival of noirish jazz with occasional Latin tinges from the sixties and seventies, like the best of Creed Taylor's Verve label productions for Lalo Schifrin and Cal Tjader and a host of other cool cats, but with a futuristic twist of Moog-y delight. This new release doesn't change the formula so much from their last one as it expands upon it, including at the end of the the album proper, 18 or so additional "Biscuits" (sort of like J Dilla's "Donuts"), short sketches of organ and Moog squelches or drum breaks for you to sample and manipulate yourself. Cinematic and tightly knit, another score for the Now-Again label!
MPEG Stream: "Invisible Ink"
MPEG Stream: "Tweed Suit"
MPEG Stream: "Psalm"
MPEG Stream: "Forever Drowning"

NAUGHTIEST GIRL WAS A MONITOR, THE s/t (Vinyl On Demand) lp 26.00
The self-titled album by this lengthily and peculiarly named* obscure early '80s band has been reissued by Vinyl On Demand. If we were taking the label's name at face value, we'd wonder who has been demanding this vinyl. Heh Heh, just kidding.
Anyways, The Naughtiest Girl Was A Monitor were a group from Sheffield whose music sounds like Human League tangled in a knot with David Bowie. Or if you're lookin' for a contemporary reference point, you might wanna imagine Ariel Pink going full-on new wave! Off-kilter, breezy tunes filled with analog synthesizers, drum machines and strings too! Limited pressing of 600!
*FYI: their name is actually the title of an Enid Blyton book!

NAUTICAL ALMANAC Cisum (Heresee) picture disc lp 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Nice looking picture disc from Wolf Eyes cohorts and Hanson Records superstars Nautical Almanac. Lots of warbly, ultra processed vocals, brain shredding feedback, clinking and clattering random percussion, half formed melodies smashed to bits and scattered haphazardly all over the place, retardedly strummed guitars, damaged electronics blooping and buzzing and screeching, clumsy abstract rhythms, strange ambient drones, all mixed into a huge whirling, convusing, throbbing, pulsing, ear-hurting, gut-punching beautiful mess.

NAUTICAL ALMANAC Rooting For The Microbes (Load) cd 13.98
From reading the recent article in The Wire about this new Nautical Almanac record we weren't sure whether to expect some noisy free rock phenomenon, or a frustratingly average noise record. Sadly it's a little closer to the latter. Talk of "anti-knowledge" and "chance experiments" cannot disguise the fact that this is just a noise record. No different than that RRR cassette you ordered through the mail 10 years ago. Bragging about how one knows nothing about music and can't play any instruments and doesn't ever want to learn, is the sort of rhetoric that only works if the result somehow transcends the equation. But, unfortunately, this DOES in fact sound like two people who can't play and don't know what they're doing. A sloppy, noisy, chaotic mess. Ear piercing shrieks, super distorted howled vocal skree, kitchen sink clatter, and just all sorts of abrasive noxious noise. Could be impressive if the bar hadn't been set much higher by countless other noise records (even the earlier NA records had a bit more to offer). But as with any improvised music, it's hit or miss, that's part of the excitement and urgency. This just happens to sound a bit like a miss. One of those records that ineveitably has you scratching your head and wondering why YOU aren't in your basement making a horrible racket and getting written up in The Wire. Well, why aren't you!? Depending on how you answer that question, you might actually want to check this out.
MPEG Stream: "Mind Of Sharp Mind"
MPEG Stream: "Exterior Beaten"

NAUTICAL ALMANAC Transcriptedivisions (Hanson) lp 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Second LP from the mysterious Chicago duo (I think), who create destructive lo-fi electronics music. Not "electronic music", but modified Casios and Speak & Spells and cryptic tape manipulations assembled in a fucked up, nonlinear pastiche of ataxia. Such volatile eccentricities and an arhythmic approach unfortunately make not for a record that sounds great, but a record that has great sounds. You know you want one, but you don't know why. Limited to 500 vinyl-only copies on the ever-so-fashionable Hanson Records of Ann Arbor, MI.

NAV From Nav To Jav (ASSAVLT) cd 12.98
For those of you patiently awaiting the newest opus from Russian black metallers Old Wainds, expected any day now, this might just hold you over. Two demos of ultra raw black buzz from Old Wainds offshoot Nav, fronted by OW drummer Izbor, available on cd for the first time. Nav's last record, the surprisingly polished and weirdly melodic The Wolf Sun, definitely rubbed a few people the wrong way, with a sound way more NWOBHM than black metal, not so much blasting and buzzing as riffing and rocking. Sure it was unexpected, but we dug it anyway. Maybe precisely because it was so awesomely confounding.
But this is something else entirely. Something more like the Nav (and the Old Wainds) we know and love. Imagine the first Nav, Halls Of Death, via Old Wainds' Wither Of The Wainds, and you'll get something very much like From Nav To Jav, the sound on these demos, originally released in 1996 / 1997 is raw raw raw, super lo-fi, chaotic and frenzied, the guitars are murky and muddy, the riffing surprisingly complex, but plenty blurry and washed out, the drums wild and splattery, the vocals a harsh demonic croak, with long swaths of fuzzy warbly keyboards, the recording in the red and ultra distorted, causing the songs to seemingly warp and crumble as they come careening out of the speakers. Sort of like the EEE un-black releases, the recording here is as much a part of the sound as the songs. A sound so saturated and fucked up, it almost sounds like Faxed Head, but still with that unmistakable Russian sound, so distinctive and evocative, hateful and harsh, shot through with a drone drenched buzz, killer riffing, everything completely fried and fractured and gloriously blown out.
Essential obviously for fans of all things Nav, Wainds, Russian and black, but maybe just as crucial for anyone into raw metallic chaos, and droney distorted buzz (lots of overlap there wethink), or heck, even if you just wished Faxed Head were deadly serious and way more heavy, then this is most definitely for you.
MPEG Stream: "A Hymn To Cold Silence"
MPEG Stream: "The Warriros Of The Icy Wilderness"
MPEG Stream: "From Nav To Jav"

NAV Halls Of Death (Assault Records) cd 13.98
This bleak black slab of blown out Russian blackness from Nav (featuring folks from AQ faves Old Wainds) is back in stock...
Very much like how all the black metal bands in the Ukraine seem to be made up of the same 5 or 10 people, just in different combinations, black metal bands in Russia also tend to revolve around the same 2 or 3 visionaries, along with whatever black legions they can enlist from their little scene to help shape their black musical world.
We've reviewed a handful of discs from Russian cult underground legends Old Wainds over the last year, who as we mentioned in those reviews, are THE grim cult horde of choice among the black metal elite. And almost appropriately, all of their records seem to be way more difficult to track down than they should be, and thus of course, seem to always eventually end up seriously big ticket items on eBay.
So here we have the group Nav, also known in Russian as HABb, a black metal band made up of 50 percent of Old Wainds, primarily the project of Old Wainds drummer Izbor, so as you might imagine, the sound does not wander far from Old Wainds' grim frosty buzz. Which is of course a good thing. The same sort of fuzzed out primitivism, a gloriously murky production. But Nav add plenty of their own unique style, everything is so strangely mixed, with loud LOUD drums and guitars that swirl into a nearly impenetrable blackened haze. Demonic vocals that go from buried way down in the mix to a blown out raspy roar often within the same song, and bits of chaotic rhythmic stumble and haunting ambient weirdness, complete with the thunderous sound of horses hooves.
And unlike the straight black buzz of Old Wainds, Nav sounds a slight bit more melodic, with much of the riffing displaying a classic metal vibe, as well as rhythms that vary from the old black stand-by, the blast beat, lurching lopes, galloping thrash, pounding doom, lots of fuzzed out midtempos, all twisted amidst some strange breakdowns, where the rhythms constantly shift and the riffs contort and morph into slightly different shapes, there are even some super demented LEADS! Still, all the while the band continues to forge a wholly unique pitch black path. Fans of all things dark and frosty and cult and grim would do well to bow before the black knights of Nav!
MPEG Stream: "Halls Of Death"
MPEG Stream: "Galloping From The Blizzard's Heart"
MPEG Stream: "Icy Armour On The Peak Of The World"

NAV Halls Of Death (Forever Plagued) lp 16.98
Very much like how all the black metal bands in the Ukraine seem to be made up of the same 5 or 10 people, just in different combinations, black metal bands in Russia also tend to revolve around the same 2 or 3 visionaries, along with whatever black legions they can enlist from their little scene to help shape their black musical world.
We recently reviewed the only currently available disc from Russian cult underground legends Old Wainds, who as we mentioned in that review, are THE grim cult horde of choice among the black metal elite. And almost appropriately, all of their records, minus the just reviewed demo disc, seem to be way more difficult to track down than they should be, and thus of course, are seriously big ticket items on eBay.
So here we have the group Nav, also known in Russian as HABb, a black metal band made up of 50 percent of Old Wainds, primarily the project of Old Wainds drummer Izbor, so as you might imagine, the sound does not wander far from Old Wainds' grim frosty buzz. Which is of course a good thing. The same sort of fuzzed out primitivism, a gloriously murky production. But Nav add plenty of their own unique style, everything is so strangely mixed, with loud LOUD drums and guitars that swirl into a nearly impenetrable blackened haze. Demonic vocals that go from buried way down in the mix to a blown out raspy roar often within the same song, and bits of chaotic rhythmic stumble and haunting ambient weirdness, complete with the thunderous sound of horses hooves.
And unlike the straight black buzz of Old Wainds, Nav sounds a slight bit more melodic, with much of the riffing displaying a classic metal vibe, as well as rhythms that vary from the old black stand-by, the blast beat, lurching lopes, galloping thrash, pounding doom, lots of fuzzed out midtempos, all twisted amidst some strange breakdowns, where the rhythms constantly shift and the riffs contort and morph into slightly different shapes, there are even some super demented LEADS! Still, all the while the band continues to forge a wholly unique pitch black path. Fans of all things dark and frosty and cult and grim would do well to bow before the black knights of Nav!
We haven't been able to track down the cd, but we do have the ULTRA LIMITED vinyl version. Gatefold sleeve. Limited to 300 copies!
MPEG Stream: "Halls Of Death"
MPEG Stream: "Galloping From The Blizzard's Heart"
MPEG Stream: "Icy Armour On The Peak Of The World"

NAV The Wolf Sun (Forever Plagued) cd 11.98
Old Wainds. Maybe one of our favorite black metal bands ever. They're from Russia, and bands like Crebain and Leviathan and pretty much every metal band we know LOVE them. And while they're not fucked up and damaged and freaked out and fractured like much of the black metal we love, they manage to move us in a similarly strange way, by employing the usual black metal tropes, the buzz, the blast, the grim necro vocals, the furious riffing, but turning them into something emotional and dark and unique, which is a rarity in a genre that in many ways insists on uniformity, to remain grim and cvlt and true.
In our obsession we also discovered Nav, HABb in Russian, the project of former Old Wainds drummer Izbor, and featuring at least one other member of Old Wainds. Their sound was not all that far removed from the OW mothership, if anything they managed to sound a bit more chaotic and a lot more like classic eighties metal. More old school riffing and melodies, but that sound still somehow woven into OW's super distinctive black metal.
As we wait hopefully for word from Old Wainds, regarding the rumored new album (and while we wait for news about all of their other releases, none of which we've been able to track down for ages, sorry), we've got a brand new Nav record, 4 years on from their debut, and if anything, they've gone even more classic old school metal. So much so, that minus the vocals, and some extra grim buzz, one might be forgiven for thinking this was some unearthed blackthrash rarity from1988.
Just take the first song, starting with a lo-fi classic metal riff, that quickly ramps up to full strength, some noodly leads, a splatter of chaotic almost-blast beats, until the song lurches into a full on metal gallop, the riffing not black at all, instead totally timeless, with shouted background vocals, some woozy arpeggiated breakdowns, and then about halfway through some full on tweaked and trippy keyboards that ooze and warble and buzz and make the whole thing sound slightly maniacal. But soon the keyboards are replaced by some furious leads, until the end, when haunting swells fade in and out until the end.
And then just like that, we're hurled back into the melee, more speed metal riffing, pounding drumming, freaky spaced out keyboards, every song featuring long stretches where the band drops out and the guitarist just riffs all on his own, often 2 or 3 times per song! Plus there's even a track called "Old Wainds" which is a total slow doomy groove, almost a black metal ballad, with swooshes of synth, and a total eighties metal main riff, which does eventually give way to some buzzing blackness, but throughout the song they continue to return to the old school.
It's hard to imagine ANY metalhead that wouldn't dig this like crazy, the sound is huge and heavy, the riffs are crazy catchy, might not be black enough for some, but for what it lacks in blackness, it more than makes up for in true metal!
MPEG Stream: "Night Of Long Knives"
MPEG Stream: "Wolf's Sun"
MPEG Stream: "Old Wainds"

NAVIGATOR Nostalgia (Swarf Finger) cd 6.98
Described by some as a "Sunday morning Mogwai", this group is closer in style to some of the quieter Kranky releases. Soon-to-be-impossible-to-find import.

NAVIGATOR Nostalgia (Swarf Finger) lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Described by some as a "Sunday morning Mogwai", this group is closer in style to some of the quieter Kranky releases. Soon-to-be-impossible-to-find import.

NAVIGATOR Remixed (Amberley) 7" 5.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The first outing for Navigator since their stunning Nostalgie album from last year is a remix single of their bleak and gritty 'rock' minimalism. Both Third Eye Foundation and Fulcrum Overhaul extend the 4-track / analogue grit to their breakbeat experiments. It's sorta hard to say which speed its to be played at, and it doesn't really matter as this is a fucking great single.

NAWAHI, KING BENNIE Hawaiian String Virtuoso (Yazoo) cd 16.98
Though he was dubbed the "King of the Ukulele" and capitalized on that title throughout his career (touring extensively on the vaudeville circuit as a ukulele soloist), Bennie Nawahi was equally adept at guitar, steel guitar, mandolin and harmonica. In fact, it is his steel guitar playing that is a paramount focus on the 23 tracks found here. This cd is essentially a compilation of groups that featured Bennie as a musician or leader throughout the 20's and early 30's. Given the variety of ensembles presented here as well as Bennie's versatility with jazz, Hawaiian, ragtime, blues and country idioms the over-all tenor of this cd is of variegated unity. Recommended.

NAZGUL, THE s/t (PsiFi) cd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
A krautrock album supposedly issued in the 70s in a tiny editions of, like, 50 copies or something. The Nazgul cd is from 1975 and features 4 long tracks of droning ambience that's easily as good as any current space rock outfit could put together; i.e. Magnog, Labradford or anything else on Kranky. Bonus weirdness: the bandmembers are named Frodo, Gandalf, and Pippin.

NAZZ Open Our Eyes The Anthology (Sanctuary) 2cd 19.98

NDEGEOCELLO, ME'SHELL Comfort Woman (Warner) cd 17.98

NDEGEOCELLO, ME'SHELL Presents The Spirit Music Jamia: Dance Of The Infidel (Shanachie) cd 16.98
Me'shell Ndegeocello's seventh album marks a surprising, bold departure from the familiar sounds of her past works. In fact, The Spirit Music Jamia is her least soul pop and least solo effort to date, leaning more heavily on jazz and collaborations (hence the inclusion of the word 'presents' in the title). Heck, this is a downright jazz album, and an impressive, languid one at that. She enlists the fine talents of Cassandra Wilson, Kenny Garrett, Oliver Lake, Jack DeJohnette, Don Byron, John Coltrane's son Oran among others. On the traycard, she lists her influences for this work as being Miles Davis, Kool Herc, Carl Sagan and Holy Scripture, and she also wittily notes that "these new compositions are suitable for free minds, open hearts and shaking behinds." That said, some fans might initially feel somewhat alienated from this Me'shell album -- she doesn't sing a note on any of the songs -- but those who do approach it with an open mind will surely find it to be a richly rewarding listen.
MPEG Stream: "Mu-Min"
MPEG Stream: "The Chosen"

NDEGEOCELLO, MESHELL Cookie: The Anthropological Mixtape (Maverick) cd 17.98

NEAR The Opening Of The Primordial Whirl (De Tenebrarum Principio) cd 13.98

NEARLY GOD Heaven (Island) cd 16.98

NEARLY GOD Poems (Durban Poison) cdsingle 9.98
Tricky, Tony Hall, and Martine.

NEAVE, RICHARD You're Not Welcome (Celebrate Psi Pheomenon) cd-r 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Another batch of super limited and beautifully packaged cd-r's from Campbell Kneale's (Birchville Cat Motel) Celebrate Psi Phenomenon label. The finest in underground free noise / drone, culled mostly from New Zealand but all around the world as well. For those of you new to the CpsiP label, imagine classic Siltbreeze (Dead C, etc.) mixed with Jewelled Antler (Thuja, Blithe Sons etc.), dark and deep listening that sometimes verges on all out noise, but more often than not remains subtle experiments in avant drone and abstract sound. And when we say limited we mean LIMITED. Thes babies come in pressings of 30-80, out of which we get a whopping 10 copies!!
NZ "legend" Richard Neave finally lets his home recorded madness see the light of day. A wild concoction of atonal guitar scrabble, malfunctioning recording devices, tape hiss and drop out, squealing feedback, damaged Casio keyboards and whatever else was laying around. Sounds a bit like the guys in the Dead C shrunk down and forced to work inside a damged tape deck / clock radio, with a dying battery, desperately trying to keep things running smoothly. Or maybe Keiji Haino and Derek Bailey rolled up in a big wet carpet, being pummelled by broken synthesizers and pelted with blown out speakers. Wild and beautiful and noisy as hell.
MPEG Stream: "The Madness Of King George"
MPEG Stream: "Love Routine"

NEBEL s/t (Oaken Shield) cd 13.98

NEBULA Apollo (Liquor And Poker Music) cd 12.98

NEBULA Atomic Ritual (Liquor And Poker Music) cd 11.98

NEBULA Charged (Sub Pop) cd 15.98
Another new Nebula record. Definitely their best record although not a whole lot has changed. These ex-Fu Manchu folks play fuzzed out, drugged out, groovy stoner rock and play it well. And just because this is nothing new, doesn't mean it isn't still loads better than 90% of stoner rock. 'Cause it is.
RealAudio clip: "Do It Now"

NEBULA Dos EPs (MeteorCity) cd 13.98
This collects the two eps (duh, dos eps) from the preeminent fuzzed out stoner rock combo, Nebula. This includes their Meteor City ep and their split with Lowrider as well as 3 brand spanking new tracks. Overblown, super fuzz guitar, drawling lazy stonerboy vocals and big b i g B I G drums. Sounds as good as ever. Cruisng through the desert with the top down kind of lazy hazy summertime RAWK.
RealAudio clip: "Rocket"
RealAudio clip: "Long Day"
RealAudio clip: "Anything From You"