HALF VISCONTE s/t (Decimal Cinque) cd 8.98
Arizona's Half Visconte channel all the good things about indie/post rock (Drive Like Jehu, Rodan, Blonde Redhead, Sonic Youth) into something really great, especially considering the glut of 'post rock' bands. The first three songs are complex mathy workouts, along the same lines as Rodan, A Minor Forest and Sweep the Leg Johhny. But track four is where they really come into their own. A twenty minute epic combining post rock rhythms, hypnotic krautrock drones, ambient industrial soundscapes, and experimental click and clatter. If this strange musique concret/post-rock hybrid is where HV are headed, they will be unbeatable.

HALF-HANDED CLOUD Thy Is A Word + Feet Need Lamps (Asthmatic Kitty) cd 14.98
Half-Handed Cloud is the one man spiritual band who also goes by the name John Ringhofer. In case you couldn't tell from the album's title, we'll let ya know that his are some unconventional Bible related songs drawing his subject matter from the Old Testament. This album was recorded in a church sanctuary and incorporates pianos, woodwinds, horns, cellos, guitars and yes, church organs and choirs.

HALIFAX PIER Put Your Gloves On And Wave ( Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 13.98
Second full length from Louisville / San Francisco-based band who conjure up the warm acoustic guitar / cello / violin dark gothic sound popularized by another Lousiville band Rachel's, then add murmured vocals to bring it down to earth. It's very emotional, wistful, and sad, and fans of Rachels will love it. One wishes it was a little less predictable (starting one track with a far-off train whistle... hmm, never heard that one before).
RealAudio clip: "That Old Grizzly Thing"

HALIFAX PIER s/t (Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 13.98
Capturing the essence of the Southern Gothic, Louisville-based Halifax Pier has written a beautiful album of epic indie-rock melancholia with all of the breath-taking instrumentation of Rachel's and a vocalist whose emotive drawl recalls Camper Van Beethoven's David Lowery. What ever happened to him?

HALL OF FAME Paradise Now (The Special Registry) cd 14.98

MPEG Stream: "Sleight Of Line"
MPEG Stream: "Endless Returns"

HALL OF FAME s/t (Siltbreeze) cd 13.98
Dirty four-track recordings. Stoned post-Jandek acoustic guitar strum. Gritty layers of organ drones. That's been the default sound of the Siltbreeze label; and by and large, most things on Siltbreeze that take on this sound are pretty good at it. Hall of Fame is certainly one of these outfits, sounding a lot like the latest work from Charalambides or a poppier version of Tower Recordings. So it wouldn't be surprising to learn that Hall of Fame features members of Tower Recordings!

HALL, ARCH JR. Wild Guitar! (Norton Records) cd 14.98

HALL, MARCELLUS The First Line (Glacial Pace Recordings) lp 24.00
There's really no way to start this review without a seemingly over the top declaration. NYC's Railroad Jerk were one of the best, and sadly most unsung bands of the last 20 years. And while Railroad Jerk front man Marcellus Hall is probably better known to the world at large as an illustrator, whose done work for the New Yorker, the Atlantic Monthly, the New York Press, Time, as well as numerous covers for novels, but for us, Hall will always be the swaggery, silver tongued frontman for the late great 'Jerk.
The sound of Railroad Jerk was feral and bluesy, super rhythmic and percussive, like a stripped down, less dumb Blues Explosion (WAY less dumb and WAY more awesome), the sort of band you might see set up on a street corner on some shady street in New York, just killing it. They reminded us a little of bands like Cop Shoot Cop, but minus the industrial heft, and in it's place, something more slithery and sexy, their sound fierce and frantic, like a gritty sort of twang flecked junkyard blues, and Hall's super distinctive voice and guitar pretty much defined their sound. Post Railroad Jerk, Hall started White Hassle, whose sound was not all that far removed from Railroad Jerk's, but since then we've heard almost nothing, until now.
The First Line is the first proper release featuring Hall and his new band The Hostages, and while his voice sounds as good as ever, the sound is much more stripped down, a sort of twang flecked Americana / folk, mostly acoustic guitar, a lot of cello, some shuffling percussion, a little slide here and there, some harmonica, but as always, it's all about Hall, his voice so rich and mellifluous, but definitely unique and distinctive, still subtly swaggery, his lyrics snarky and a little brainy, but much more romantic and heartfelt than in Railroad Jerk, the arrangements simple and spare, the sort of sound that seems like it could catapult Hall beyond the underground rock ghetto he should have ruled with Railroad Jerk, but even for those of us who call that selfsame underground rock ghetto home, this still sounds pretty fantastic, think Jay Farrar, Peter Case, David Eugene Edwards, and actually, come to thing of it, Edwards might be the most apt comparison, the same sort of fire and passion, a similarly super unique voice, a vocal style that's equal parts crooning and testifying, but unlike the apocalyptic fire and brimstone of Edwards outfit, Hall's combo is something else altogether, much more subdued, mellow and strummy, but in some ways just as intense and passionate.
Fantastic stuff, we can't get enough of Hall's voice, and while we love love love The First line, we'll never stop missing Railroad Jerk...
Super swank packaging, the cd in a fold out digipak, alongside a 44 page book of illustrations by Hall, all housed in a full color slipcover. The lp version includes a similar book, albeit in a large format 12 page version, is pressed on 180 gram vinyl, and comes with a download card.
MPEG Stream: "The First Line"
MPEG Stream: "Star Position"
MPEG Stream: "Neon, Not The Night"
MPEG Stream: "Laughing With You"

HALL, MARCELLUS The First Line (Glacial Pace Recordings) cd+book 16.98
There's really no way to start this review without a seemingly over the top declaration. NYC's Railroad Jerk were one of the best, and sadly most unsung bands of the last 20 years. And while Railroad Jerk front man Marcellus Hall is probably better known to the world at large as an illustrator, whose done work for the New Yorker, the Atlantic Monthly, the New York Press, Time, as well as numerous covers for novels, but for us, Hall will always be the swaggery, silver tongued frontman for the late great 'Jerk.
The sound of Railroad Jerk was feral and bluesy, super rhythmic and percussive, like a stripped down, less dumb Blues Explosion (WAY less dumb and WAY more awesome), the sort of band you might see set up on a street corner on some shady street in New York, just killing it. They reminded us a little of bands like Cop Shoot Cop, but minus the industrial heft, and in it's place, something more slithery and sexy, their sound fierce and frantic, like a gritty sort of twang flecked junkyard blues, and Hall's super distinctive voice and guitar pretty much defined their sound. Post Railroad Jerk, Hall started White Hassle, whose sound was not all that far removed from Railroad Jerk's, but since then we've heard almost nothing, until now.
The First Line is the first proper release featuring Hall and his new band The Hostages, and while his voice sounds as good as ever, the sound is much more stripped down, a sort of twang flecked Americana / folk, mostly acoustic guitar, a lot of cello, some shuffling percussion, a little slide here and there, some harmonica, but as always, it's all about Hall, his voice so rich and mellifluous, but definitely unique and distinctive, still subtly swaggery, his lyrics snarky and a little brainy, but much more romantic and heartfelt than in Railroad Jerk, the arrangements simple and spare, the sort of sound that seems like it could catapult Hall beyond the underground rock ghetto he should have ruled with Railroad Jerk, but even for those of us who call that selfsame underground rock ghetto home, this still sounds pretty fantastic, think Jay Farrar, Peter Case, David Eugene Edwards, and actually, come to thing of it, Edwards might be the most apt comparison, the same sort of fire and passion, a similarly super unique voice, a vocal style that's equal parts crooning and testifying, but unlike the apocalyptic fire and brimstone of Edwards outfit, Hall's combo is something else altogether, much more subdued, mellow and strummy, but in some ways just as intense and passionate.
Fantastic stuff, we can't get enough of Hall's voice, and while we love love love The First line, we'll never stop missing Railroad Jerk...
Super swank packaging, the cd in a fold out digipak, alongside a 44 page book of illustrations by Hall, all housed in a full color slipcover. The lp version includes a similar book, albeit in a large format 12 page version, is pressed on 180 gram vinyl, and comes with a download card.
MPEG Stream: "The First Line"
MPEG Stream: "Star Position"
MPEG Stream: "Neon, Not The Night"
MPEG Stream: "Laughing With You"

HALL, NATE A Great River (Neurot) cd 14.98
It doesn't always work out that when frontmen from heavy bands begin to fancy themselves troubadours, ditching all the distortion and metallic bombast and laying everything bare, it's the sort of thing that in the worst case can reveal all the shortcomings that are disguised by all that volume, and all those other instruments, we've seen plenty of ultra painful unplugged sets, that were just begging to be plugged back in. But in the best cases, like this, the solo debut from Nate Hall, frontman for psychedelic heavies US Christmas, it can demonstrate just why the heavy stuff is so compelling, cuz there are actual songs lurking underneath, and a vocalist who can actually sing, and has a knack for classic songsmithery. To be fair, it's not like the singer from Cannibal Corpse making a psych folk record (oh how we want to hear that now!), since US Christmas is essentially just a supercharged cranked up more metallic version of a psych folk band anyway. And plenty of the songs here actually sound like they could easily have been retooled into proper US Christmas jams, but that doesn't take away from how good they sound. Hall's voice is a slightly raspy croon that reminds us a bit of Nikki Sudden, ragged and rough around the edges, but it's perfect for USX and perfect for these songs here. Rooted around simple strummed acoustic guitar, but wreathed in thick swaths of distorted effected psych guitars, theremin here and there, a bit of slide guitar, plenty of echo and reverb, the songs droned out and a little druggy, there's even a killer cover of Townes Van Zandt's "Kathleen", and Hall definitely makes it his own, adding some cavernous reverb, but for the most part playing it straight. Helps that it's such a great song, and Hall's got the kind of voice that can do justice to a song that was basically already perfect (not sure why Hall wasn't included on the recent three way Townes Van Zandt tribute with Scott Kelly, Steve Von Till and Wino).
But not all the tracks are so psychedelic, a handful of the songs here are even more stripped down, no electric guitars, just straight up Appalachia, steel string guitar and banjo, and those tracks kill as well.
Folks into other psych folk should check this out for sure, and heck who knows, this might be the gateway that gets you into US Christmas that gets you into other heavy stuff, it's a slippery slope, but we're all waiting for you down here at the bottom!
MPEG Stream: "The Earth In One Cell"
MPEG Stream: "Dark Star"
MPEG Stream: "Kathleen"

HALL, NATE A Great River (Neurot) lp 17.98
NOW ON VINYL!!
It doesn't always work out that when frontmen from heavy bands begin to fancy themselves troubadours, ditching all the distortion and metallic bombast and laying everything bare, it's the sort of thing that in the worst case can reveal all the shortcomings that are disguised by all that volume, and all those other instruments, we've seen plenty of ultra painful unplugged sets, that were just begging to be plugged back in. But in the best cases, like this, the solo debut from Nate Hall, frontman for psychedelic heavies US Christmas, it can demonstrate just why the heavy stuff is so compelling, cuz there are actual songs lurking underneath, and a vocalist who can actually sing, and has a knack for classic songsmithery. To be fair, it's not like the singer from Cannibal Corpse making a psych folk record (oh how we want to hear that now!), since US Christmas is essentially just a supercharged cranked up more metallic version of a psych folk band anyway. And plenty of the songs here actually sound like they could easily have been retooled into proper US Christmas jams, but that doesn't take away from how good they sound. Hall's voice is a slightly raspy croon that reminds us a bit of Nikki Sudden, ragged and rough around the edges, but it's perfect for USX and perfect for these songs here. Rooted around simple strummed acoustic guitar, but wreathed in thick swaths of distorted effected psych guitars, theremin here and there, a bit of slide guitar, plenty of echo and reverb, the songs droned out and a little druggy, there's even a killer cover of Townes Van Zandt's "Kathleen", and Hall definitely makes it his own, adding some cavernous reverb, but for the most part playing it straight. Helps that it's such a great song, and Hall's got the kind of voice that can do justice to a song that was basically already perfect (not sure why Hall wasn't included on the recent three way Townes Van Zandt tribute with Scott Kelly, Steve Von Till and Wino).
But not all the tracks are so psychedelic, a handful of the songs here are even more stripped down, no electric guitars, just straight up Appalachia, steel string guitar and banjo, and those tracks kill as well.
Folks into other psych folk should check this out for sure, and heck who knows, this might be the gateway that gets you into US Christmas that gets you into other heavy stuff, it's a slippery slope, but we're all waiting for you down here at the bottom!
MPEG Stream: "The Earth In One Cell"
MPEG Stream: "Dark Star"
MPEG Stream: "Kathleen"

HALL, TERRY & MUSHTAQ The Hour of Two Lights (Astralwerks) cd 17.98

HALLO GALLO 2010 Blinkgurtel / Drone (Vampire Blues) 7" 6.50
Does that name sound familiar to you? It should. After all, "Hallo Gallo" was the opening track on Neu!'s legendary debut album. So who would have the gall to name their band after a Neu! track (besides Negativland we mean), well, Hallo Gallo 2010 just so happens to be the new band of Neu!'s Michael Rother, who is joined by Sonic Youth's Steve Shelley (whose Vampire Blues label released this) and Aaron Mullen from Tall Firs, for some modern day krautrocking, Neu! style, and somehow it does manage to channel the classic sound and spirit of the original with something more dense and psychedelic. Motorik and rhythmic (of course), "Blinkgurtel" is gorgeous and hazy and washed out and mesmerizing, Shelley's simple solid drumming perfectly locked in with Mullen's warm fluid basslines, and Rothers's incendiary guitars, thick thrumming riffs, soaring psychedelic melodies, all gently phased and flanged into something gorgeously trippy and otherworldly, getting downright rocking near the end.
"Drone Schlager" is much more muted and restrained, a simple pulse like groove, with little rhythmic flurries here and there, the bass a deep throb, the guitars, cyclical and looped, strange production has the guitars dropping out and swooping into the foreground, totally stripped down and utterly mesmerizing, another one of those tracks that could go on forever, but instead, winds down after 5 minutes, pretty much ensuring you'll have to play it again. So good, and not just past laurels good, this is as dark and mesmerizing and hypnotic as anything out today. Circle fans especially will probably go nuts for this.
LIMITED TO 1000 COPIES, housed in hand screened covers, comes with a download card too!

HALLOCK HILL Union / A Hem Of Evening (Mie) 2lp 31.00
Latest from upstart UK import label MIE, who have been killing it lately. The recent reissue of Gate's Dew Line, which we made a Record Of The Week, the even more recent Pelt double lp, also records from Part Wild Horses Mane On Both Sides and Pelican offshoot Chord, and now this, a vinyl reissue of Hallock Hill's debut, a gorgeous collection of layered slowburn psychedelia, acoustic and electric guitars, reverb and echo and delay, all deftly woven into sweetly smoldering, improvised soundscapes, that remind us alternately of Scott Tuma, Jack Rose, Steven R. Smith, Ben Chasny. Hallock Hill is a fellow named Tom Lecky, a name you probably don't know, but after hearing this, we can't imagine it will be too long before he's mentioned in the same breath as Tuma and Rose and Chasny and all the rest.
The tracks here all seem to bleed into one another, from echo drenched abstract psychedelic drifts, to dark brooding folk flecked shimmer, to lush dense intricate Appalachia. Haunting and hushed one second, loose and freeform the next, little flurries of notes wreathed in drifting harmonics, strings are scraped and plucked, the body of the guitar thumped, lots of buzz and hum and shimmer, but all wrapped around gorgeous bits of melancholic melody, notes allowed to ring out, swimming in swirling seas of overtones, the occasional backward studio swoop adding some subtle trippiness, but for the most part, it's Lecky's deft arrangements that drive these lovely landscapes of psychedelic folk, a hazy early evening, cloud cloaked sky sort of vibe that occasionally blossoms into something sunshinier, but utterly dreamy throughout.
Another essential addition to your modern psych / psych guitar collection.
Packaged in a super swank heavy gatefold, and includes a glossy book of photos and poetry (lyrics?).
MPEG Stream: "I Began To Lose Myself Within A Wonder"
MPEG Stream: "Sand In My Eyes"
MPEG Stream: "Ausable"
MPEG Stream: "Grow"
MPEG Stream: "Downstairs, Up Hearing"

HALLOW Soundtrack (Totalvernichtung) cd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Woah! We still have a few of these left, which doesn't seem possible. Limited to 220 copies, folks! Awesome music, awesome packaging. Here's the review from when we listed it back in May...
We listed the vinyl version of this a while back, a super deluxe (and quite expensive) double lp, the soundtrack to an art show by Hallow mainman (only man?) Mark McCoy, who is also fronts aQ faves Ancestors (the noisy black metal Ancestors, not the stoner one), Hallow sounding not surprisingly like a meaner, less black metal, way more fucked up hardcore Ancestors. And as we mentioned before, anyone, and we mean ANYone who loves those Ancestors records, absolutely needs this as well.
In addition to fronting multiple metallic behemoths, McCoy also creates some super intense artwork, strange assemblages of ruined buildings, of crumbling riggings, collapsing structures suspended in space, intricate to the point of being the work of a madman, these drawings are captivating, incredible, precise and ultra detailed, and in their own way, they are imbued with some sort of fucked up energy, they seem, sad, they seem violent, abandoned, lonely, possessed, EVIL even. Those drawings are presented beautifully here, included on smallish inserts, held in place by a Japanese style obi, all housed in one of the most gorgeous and confounding packages ever. All white, sealed with wax, each page embossed or debossed with all sorts of calligraphic filigree, old text, strange sigils, incredible for sure, but then comes the real question, where the heck is the cd? Hidden in the packaging, like some sort of Raiders Of The Lost Ark / National Treasure artifact, that's where, INSIDE the thick text adorned back panel, a panel that seemingly must be destroyed to retrieve the cd, in keeping with the theme of destruction so prevalent in McCoy's artwork and music. We're told there is a way to get the disc out if you're careful, but we've been afraid to try. As an object though, it's breathtaking, and if you are brave enough to retrieve the hidden compact disc, you won't be sorry, the cd contains a series of songs, of soundtracks, each to accompany one of McCoy's pieces, it's up to the listener to determine which song accompanies which drawing. But it hardly matters, on their own, the images are breathtaking, and the music, even minus the art, is some seriously blackened and caustic metalnoize crush.
The first half of the disc plays out like an Ancestors records, a bunch of short sharp tracks, furious frenetic post hardcore black metal buzz and pound and blast, super harsh, hellish, hateful, awesomely buzzy riffs, wildly blasting beats, walls of feedback wrapped around lurching anti-grooves, the songs stuttering and lumbering and exploding into jagged freakouts before locking back into some churning rhythm or white hot blast. But soon, the sound shifts and transforms, sonically similar to what came before in some ways, but a whole different beast in others, a noisy depressive dirge, epic and spacious, definitely doomy, the guitars heavily distorted and processed, effects all over the place, the vocals insane and harsh and noisy draped over the sheets of buzz and blur and the spaced out plod below, before the sound grows ever more blown out, the guitars blindingly effulgent, all of the sounds on the verge of total collapse, but at the same time strangely melodic and epic.
Elsewhere, Hallow unfurl thick corrosive noisescapes equal parts Wolf Eyes and Blue Sabbath Black Cheer, caustic and abject, tangled strands of feedback wound around thick heaving slabs of distorted low end, all melted down into something thick and black and viscous, gradually splintering into something super abstract, all high end, chittering, chirping, stuttering, squeaking shards of upper register squelch and glitch, Morse code beeps, chirping crickets, wheezing creaks, a hauntingly melodic field of fragmented skree, chaotic and abrasive, but also textural and abstract and actually sort of beautiful.
LIMITED TO 220 COPIES!!!
MPEG Stream: "II"
MPEG Stream: "III"
MPEG Stream: "VII"
MPEG Stream: ""

HALLOW Soundtrack (Youth Attack) 2lp 35.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Hallow is a group of blackened noisemakers loosely related to blacknoise merchants Ancestors (whose new ep is reviewed elsewhere on this list) and their debut double lp is in fact the soundtrack to an art show by Hallow mainman (only man?) Mark McCoy, who is also the mainman of Ancestors, which means the two are probably more than loosely related. Fuck. Who are we kidding, Hallow sound like a meaner, less black metal, more fucked up hardcore Ancestors, and anyone, and we mean ANYone who loves those Ancestors records, absolutely needs this too.
In addition to fronting these to monstrous metallic behemoths, McCoy also creates some super intense artwork, strange assemblages of ruined buildings, of crumbling riggings, collapsing structures suspended in space, intricate to the point of being the work of a madman, these drawings are captivating, incredible, precise and ultra detailed, and in their own way, they are imbued with some sort of fucked up energy, they seem, sad, they seem violent, abandoned, lonely, possessed, EVIL even. And thus, McCoy created Hallow, who recorded a series of songs, of soundtracks, each to accompany one of his pieces. Included is a booklet, oversized, featuring the various drawings, it's up to the listener to determine which song, accompanies which drawing. But again, it hardly matters, on their own, the images are breathtaking, and the music, even minus the art, Hallow create a serious racket.
The A side plays out like an Ancestors records, a bunch of short sharp tracks, furious frenetic post hardcore black metal buzz and pound and blast, super harsh, hellish, hateful, awesomely buzzy riffs, wildly blasting beats, walls of feedback wrapped around lurching anti-grooves, the songs stuttering and lumbering and exploding into jagged freakouts before locking back into some churning rhythm or white hot blast.
The B side is split into two longer tracks, sonically similar to the A side in some ways, but a whole different beast in others, the first a noisy depressive dirge, epic and spacious, definitely doomy, the guitars heavily distorted and processed, effects all over the place, the vocals insane and harsh and noisy draped over the sheets of buzz and blur and the spaced out plod below. While the second track is similarly plodding and depressive, the sound is even more blown out, the guitars blindingly effulgent, all of the sounds on the verge of total collapse, but at the same time strangely melodic and epic.
The second record is split into two sidelong tracks, and for some reason we can only think they accompany the images on the front and back cover. The first is a thick corrosive noisescape equal parts Wolf Eyes and Blue Sabbath Black Cheer, caustic and abject, tangled strands of feedback wound around thick heaving slabs of distorted low end, all melted down into something thick and black and viscous. The flipside is super abstract, all high end, chittering, chirping, stuttering, squeaking shards of upper register squelch and glitch, Morse code beeps, chirping crickets, wheezing creaks, a hauntingly melodic field of fragmented skree, chaotic and abrasive, but also textural and abstract and actually sort of beautiful.
LIMITED TO 300 COPIES!! Gorgeous packaging, striking McCoy drawings on the front and back, pressed on thick vinyl, inside a thick oversized booklet featuring all of McCoy's drawings and some practically unreadable liner notes.

HALO BENDERS Don't Tell Me Now (k) cd 13.98
Calvin of Beat Happening and Doug Martsch of Built to Spill. "Turn Me Up" sez Calvin, repeatedly, in complete deadpan monotone.

HALO BENDERS Don't Tell Me Now (k) lp 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Calvin of Beat Happening and Doug Martsch of Built to Spill. "Turn Me Up" sez Calvin, repeatedly, in complete deadpan monotone.

HALOU Wholeness & Separation (Dynamophone) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Situated at the crossroads of downtempo and dream pop you'll find Halou. This veteran SF band's latest release, their first in six years, is alternately velvety plush, crystalline and ethereal. Washes of processed strings and stuttery rhythms form the dominant backdrop to Rebecca Coseboom's vocals. Very reminiscent of Portishead, but Coseboom's vocal delivery is higher and more cooingly girlish than that of Beth Gibbons. It keeps Wholeness & Separation's overall mood in lighter, more vaporous territory. That said, at the sixth track ("Stonefruit") they unexpectedly flex their modern rock muscles. It's to good effect, and very much along the lines of Elastica, Lush, Metric, Garbage. Then the trio gets back to their more familiar elegance.
Psst, this is another of the uncommonly sumptuous array of releases from the young music label Dynamophone. As we mentioned earlier in the review of labelmates Balustrade Ensemble, they've only been around since mid-2006, but already have a bountiful catalog with many more on the way. Particularly if you've been recently enjoying the aquatic drone releases on the Mystery Sea label, you might wish to check out the seemingly likeminded, but more melodically inclined Dynamophone artists. An absolute treasure trove of shimmering and dewy listening delights. Delve in immediately (also see: Balustrade Ensemble, Disinterested, Po, Pornopop, A Lily, Curium, and R/R Coseboom)!
MPEG Stream: "Tubefed"
MPEG Stream: "Stonefruit"

HALSTEAD, NEIL Sleeping On Roads (4AD) cd 14.98
Neil Halstead, perhaps best known as the singer/songwriter for Mojave 3 and Slowdive, has crafted a solo album of warm, fragile, wispy folk-pop that completely and totally resembles Nick Drake and Belle & Sebastian. So of course it's plenty pretty and pleasing. Sunny trumpet and guitar counter the melacholic words, and delicate piano, strings and chimes. Very nice.
RealAudio clip: "See You On Rooftops"

HALVORSON, MARY & WEASEL WALTER Opulence (ugEXPLODE) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

HAMBLIN, MASON The Ballroom Is For Dances (Out Of Round) cd 11.98
The local label Out of Round has been laboring quietly in the background, not calling a lot of attention to itself yet turning out record after record that are consistently of similar mood -- due to the fact that they all play on each others recordings. The homegrown label's "sound", then, is one of a grimy circus atmosphere, like Fellini's La Strada if it was set in some dusty corner of an urban American metropolis. There are lots of slowed down polkas and depressed waltz time-signatures, dour vocals, sad accoridans, and dolefully plucked guitars. Great mood music for the Tom Waits fan in all of us who feels like Waits is just too hip for his own good these days.
Check out www.outofroundrecords.com -- we carry all of their releases. For a limited time only, get an out of Round Records label sampler free with purchase of this disc.

HAMBURGER, NEIL & MARGARET CHO I Drink (Million Dollar Performances) 7" 6.50

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE 17th Street (Metal Blade) cd 14.98
Ripping heavy metal infused with ornate Queen-like pop smarts, in support of lyrical concerns that 99 percenters could rally around? Hmm, that could only be the new album from San Francisco's Hammers Of Misfortune! It's interesting to think, that 17th Street might be the very first record by these guys (and gals) that lots of people will be exposed to, on account of 'em now being on a "big" label, the venerable Metal Blade, who besides putting out this new record, also reissued Hammers entire back catalog last year. What will those newbies make of it, a bold, brash, bombastic, very very "musical", progged-out opus that's part power metal, part pop, part political commentary??
However, most folks reading this are probably already familiar with Hammers, perhaps possessors of the preceding four entries in their discography (or 5 or maybe even 6, actually, depending on how you count 2008's double album Fields/Church Of Broken Glass, as well as the archival release of their early material recorded under the name Unholy Cadaver). So this review is mostly directed those Hammers fans, AQ customers who have been following 'em over the years like we have, and are aware of all the various the lineup changes, and stylistic shifts (raspy black metal influences out, '70s Hammond organ driven prog in) that have become part of the Hammers saga. (If you are a newbie, we suggest you get The Bastard first, then check out their others.)
But, while 2001's The Bastard remains our favorite HoM release (heck, Andee here originally put it out on his label tUMULt, right?), we are definitely finding a lot to like about what Hammers have turned into ten years on. They remain a brilliant band, if an indulgent one - but then that's one of the perks of prog, isn't it?
As Hammers fans have come to expect, this is chock full of intricate, incredible guitarwork. Lots of vintage sounding Hammond organ in there as well, those ivories tinkled by a classically trained pianist, juxtaposed with technical thrash velocities. And soaring, quasi-operatic vocals of course, too... speaking of which, that's one of the most significant aspects to mention about this new album, that among the lineup changes since the last one, they have a new male vocalist who might finally fill the void left by the departure of Slough Feg's Mike Scalzi after 2006's The Locust Years. New frontman Joe Hutton is a more than capable singer, in fact he's quite good, and while he doesn't sound exactly like Scalzi, there's a quality to his voice that old fans who miss Scalzi in the band will appreciate.
He's not their new 2nd guitar player though, that'd be Leila Abdul-Rauf, formerly of blackened death metallers Saros, also of Vastum - who in addition to being a shredder who can hold her own playing those harmonies with Hammers founder John Cobbett, turns out to have a nice "clean" singing voice (she did the cookie monster thing in Saros!), filling the female 'diva' role now in Hammers - though these new songs, with Hutton up front, definitely place more emphasis on the male vocal part, a good thing we think. And he's certainly given some infectiously melodic material to wrap his pipes around, as it were.
We're probably notorious for finding buried 'poppiness' in all sorts of not very overtly poppy music, but don't think we'll get much argument here when we say that while Hammers have always been melodic, this is definitely their poppiest outing yet. To the point that we can almost imagine 'em being played on the radio, and could even kinda compare some of this to the likes of, uh, Journey, at times. Ferinstance, "The Grain", the album's first "single" (or at least, leaked YouTube track), is something that WILL definitely get stuck in your head, the chorus catchier than a really catchy thing, though it's over 7 minutes long, so forget the radio idea... Elsewhere on this album, Queen (and the many-layered guitars of Brian May) are a good comparison. You'll hear that on the heartwrenching piano ballad "Summer Tears", a moody one... Going beyond Queen, the sprightly likes of "The Day The City Died" gets almost into Sparks territory, even! Lest that not sound very "metal", don't worry, the frantic charge of "Romance Valley" amongst other stormers here should be enough to demonstrate that 17th Street is totally deserving of having the old school bloody axe Metal Blade logo emblazoned on its sleeve.
Conceptually (and being Hammers, you know there's concepts!), well, all their other albums came out during the heinous reign of George W. Bush. Now the class warfare is more the focus than the so-called War On Terror. And guess what? This is thus the first, and doubtless only, protest prog-metal album aligned with the Occupy Wall Street movement (Occupy 17th Street!?). One of the songs, "Staring (The 31st Floor)", is about the collapse of Lehman Brothers, for gosh sake.
With the demise of Ludicra, Hammers are now lead guitarist and main songwriter John Cobbett's only going concern. And there was a lot of pressure on, but we think Cobbett & Co. rose to the occasion. Though it's hard to gauge what other folks will think of this, as no other bands really sound anything like Hammers do these days.
Available on both cd (digipack) or deluxe double gatefold vinyl, 180 gram, 45rpm for maximum fidelity!! The vinyl version features an extra 7 minute track, "Salt", right in the middle of the first side. And furthermore, the mastering job on the vinyl is said (by the band) to sound better, though we haven't yet made that determination ourselves.
MPEG Stream: "17th Street"
MPEG Stream: "The Grain"
MPEG Stream: "The Day The City Died"

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE 17th Street (Metal Blade) 2lp 24.00
Ripping heavy metal infused with ornate Queen-like pop smarts, in support of lyrical concerns that 99 percenters could rally around? Hmm, that could only be the new album from San Francisco's Hammers Of Misfortune! It's interesting to think, that 17th Street might be the very first record by these guys (and gals) that lots of people will be exposed to, on account of 'em now being on a "big" label, the venerable Metal Blade, who besides putting out this new record, also reissued Hammers entire back catalog last year. What will those newbies make of it, a bold, brash, bombastic, very very "musical", progged-out opus that's part power metal, part pop, part political commentary??
However, most folks reading this are probably already familiar with Hammers, perhaps possessors of the preceding four entries in their discography (or 5 or maybe even 6, actually, depending on how you count 2008's double album Fields/Church Of Broken Glass, as well as the archival release of their early material recorded under the name Unholy Cadaver). So this review is mostly directed those Hammers fans, AQ customers who have been following 'em over the years like we have, and are aware of all the various the lineup changes, and stylistic shifts (raspy black metal influences out, '70s Hammond organ driven prog in) that have become part of the Hammers saga. (If you are a newbie, we suggest you get The Bastard first, then check out their others.)
But, while 2001's The Bastard remains our favorite HoM release (heck, Andee here originally put it out on his label tUMULt, right?), we are definitely finding a lot to like about what Hammers have turned into ten years on. They remain a brilliant band, if an indulgent one - but then that's one of the perks of prog, isn't it?
As Hammers fans have come to expect, this is chock full of intricate, incredible guitarwork. Lots of vintage sounding Hammond organ in there as well, those ivories tinkled by a classically trained pianist, juxtaposed with technical thrash velocities. And soaring, quasi-operatic vocals of course, too... speaking of which, that's one of the most significant aspects to mention about this new album, that among the lineup changes since the last one, they have a new male vocalist who might finally fill the void left by the departure of Slough Feg's Mike Scalzi after 2006's The Locust Years. New frontman Joe Hutton is a more than capable singer, in fact he's quite good, and while he doesn't sound exactly like Scalzi, there's a quality to his voice that old fans who miss Scalzi in the band will appreciate.
He's not their new 2nd guitar player though, that'd be Leila Abdul-Rauf, formerly of blackened death metallers Saros, also of Vastum - who in addition to being a shredder who can hold her own playing those harmonies with Hammers founder John Cobbett, turns out to have a nice "clean" singing voice (she did the cookie monster thing in Saros!), filling the female 'diva' role now in Hammers - though these new songs, with Hutton up front, definitely place more emphasis on the male vocal part, a good thing we think. And he's certainly given some infectiously melodic material to wrap his pipes around, as it were.
We're probably notorious for finding buried 'poppiness' in all sorts of not very overtly poppy music, but don't think we'll get much argument here when we say that while Hammers have always been melodic, this is definitely their poppiest outing yet. To the point that we can almost imagine 'em being played on the radio, and could even kinda compare some of this to the likes of, uh, Journey, at times. Ferinstance, "The Grain", the album's first "single" (or at least, leaked YouTube track), is something that WILL definitely get stuck in your head, the chorus catchier than a really catchy thing, though it's over 7 minutes long, so forget the radio idea... Elsewhere on this album, Queen (and the many-layered guitars of Brian May) are a good comparison. You'll hear that on the heartwrenching piano ballad "Summer Tears", a moody one... Going beyond Queen, the sprightly likes of "The Day The City Died" gets almost into Sparks territory, even! Lest that not sound very "metal", don't worry, the frantic charge of "Romance Valley" amongst other stormers here should be enough to demonstrate that 17th Street is totally deserving of having the old school bloody axe Metal Blade logo emblazoned on its sleeve.
Conceptually (and being Hammers, you know there's concepts!), well, all their other albums came out during the heinous reign of George W. Bush. Now the class warfare is more the focus than the so-called War On Terror. And guess what? This is thus the first, and doubtless only, protest prog-metal album aligned with the Occupy Wall Street movement (Occupy 17th Street!?). One of the songs, "Staring (The 31st Floor)", is about the collapse of Lehman Brothers, for gosh sake.
With the demise of Ludicra, Hammers are now lead guitarist and main songwriter John Cobbett's only going concern. And there was a lot of pressure on, but we think Cobbett & Co. rose to the occasion. Though it's hard to gauge what other folks will think of this, as no other bands really sound anything like Hammers do these days.
Available on both cd (digipack) or deluxe double gatefold vinyl, 180 gram, 45rpm for maximum fidelity!! The vinyl version features an extra 7 minute track, "Salt", right in the middle of the first side. And furthermore, the mastering job on the vinyl is said (by the band) to sound better, though we haven't yet made that determination ourselves.
MPEG Stream: "17th Street"
MPEG Stream: "The Grain"
MPEG Stream: "The Day The City Died"

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE Fields / Church Of Broken Glass (Profound Lore) 2cd 14.98
With their move to big time mega metal label Metal Blade, local long running epic blackened progressive true metal outfit Hammers of Misfortune finally see their back catalog reissued via their new label, which in the case of Fields / Church Of Broken Glass is a bit odd, considering that the original is still available from the label that released it in the first place, Profound Lore, so like all the other Hammers reissues, this one is definitely worth revisiting, and buying if you missed out on it the first time around, but we figured it made more sense to re-list the Profound Lore version... so here's our review of Fields / Church Of Broken Glass from when we first listed it not that long ago...
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, we think. 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.
MPEG Stream: "Agriculture"
MPEG Stream: "Rats Assembly"
MPEG Stream: "Butchertown"
MPEG Stream: "Train"

HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE The August Engine (Metal Blade) cd 14.98
With their move to big time mega metal label Metal Blade, local long running epic blackened progressive true metal outfit Hammers of Misfortune finally see their back catalog reissued via their new label, including of course, their second album, The August Engine, originally released on Italian label Cruz Del Sur. Here's what we had to say about the August Engine when we first reviewed it...
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 jacket sports cool Voivod-ish line 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 (Metal Blade) cd 14.98
With their move to big time mega metal label Metal Blade, local long running epic blackened progressive true metal outfit Hammers of Misfortune finally see their back catalog reissued via their new label, and of all the reissues, none was more anticipated than this, their amazing debut, The Bastard, originally released on our very own Andee's tUMULt label, but out of print for the last few years, The Bastard is easily one of the most original and totally genius metal records of the last decade (Terrorizer magazine even voted it one of the best 40 metal records of 2001!), here's our review of The Bastard when the tUMULt version was first released...
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 played guitar in the cult SF "Celtic epic metal" outfit The Lord Weird Slough Feg. Mike from Slough Feg also sings on The Bastard, playing guitar and providing the "clean" male vox. And we must mention the contribution of Janis Tanaka (ex-Stone Fox) on bass and the excellent 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 (Metal Blade) cd 14.98
With their move to big time mega metal label Metal Blade, local long running epic blackened progressive true metal outfit Hammers of Misfortune finally see their back catalog reissued via their new label, including of course, their third record, The Locust Years, which like The August Engine before it, was originally released on Italian label Cruz Del Sur. Here's our review from when we first got The Locust Years, a while back...
We've 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 2001 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 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"

HAMMILL, PETER Consequences (Fie!) cd 18.98
Van Der Graaf Generator, if you've been paying attention, are one of our very favorite '70s progressive rock bands. Forget '70s, they're STILL good, when they get together, as they do now and then. And their talented frontman, he of bombastic voice indeed, Peter Hammill, has kept up an equally impressive solo career over the years - this latest is, like, his forty-somethingth solo album (!!!). No, we haven't heard all or even most of the others, but are happy to have become acquainted with Consequences.
He's propelled his lean and lanky self into the 21st century, more distinguished (with white hair) but in no way diminished, still wrestling poetically (and proggily) with the big everyday/everybody issues: relationships, identity, miscommunication, self-consciousness, doubt, fear...
It's moving, dark stuff, this intimate internal cabaret of Hammill's. 'Tis definitely about the lyrics, and the delivery... but also the suitably uneasy music, sparse and moody, with angular hooks and hushed textures. There's plenty of pensive piano, some rattling tambourine, a ticktocking drum machine on "New Pen-pal", and dissonant distorted guitar adding danger to the climax of "Scissors". Hammill's vocals carry the day, though, of course quite dramatic and dynamic, ofttimes overdubbed with himself for a backing chorus effect, that can be haunting, or powerful.
Ok, if you've never heard Hammill or Van Der Graaf before, this might seem pretty odd at first, but we'd recommend it to anyone who wants to check out some intelligent & compelling not-so-pop music from a one of a kind singer-songwriter.
MPEG Stream: "That Wasn't What I Said"
MPEG Stream: "New Pen-pal"
MPEG Stream: "Scissors"

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"

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"

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"

HANDGJORT s/t (Silence) cd 34.00
Wow, this lost Swedish eastern-tinged psych-folk gem from 1970 gets a deluxe reissue. Handgjort means "handmade" and all of the original copies of the record were individually made by the band members. The reissue is on the expensive side, even for the Silence label, but that's because the label worked with the band members to make an exclusive replica of the original record with, again, unique individually handpainted covers! It also features a 32 page book about the band complete with all the reproductions of the original covers and other interesting photos of the band, as well as bonus tracks from live performances from the festival at Gardet in 1970 and 1971. Imagine a more moody Incredible String Band with less singing and more sitars and tablas!
This cd is limited to 600 copies. Also, there is an exclusive double lp version on Psykofon that is even more expensive (in the $70 range) that features 25 minutes of live material not on the cd. We probably won't get those for the store, but if anyone is interested, we can special order it for you.
MPEG Stream: "Kerola"
MPEG Stream: "Scotland The Brave"
MPEG Stream: "Columbo"
MPEG Stream: "Greg's Recitation"

HANDSOME FAMILY Singing Bones (Carrot Top) cd 14.98

HANDSOME FURS Face Control (Sub Pop) cd 14.98

HANDSOME FURS Face Control (Sub Pop) lp 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"

HANDSOME FURS Sound Kapital (Sub Pop) cd 14.98
We never really got that into Handsome Furs before, a husband and wife duo, who are now on record number three, we did review a record of theirs WAY back, and described them as sounding like Bright Eyes meets U2, which is definitely difficult to understand in the light of this new one. We almost didn't even give it a chance, considering our disinterest in past HF outings, but holy shit are we glad we did. This new one is all dark and electronic and gloomy, a sort of gothic synth wave or something, just check out "Damage", the perfect mix of retro eighties synth sounds, and new sort of post punk gloom, swaggery and low slung, tense and dramatic and minor key, the sort of thing that a band like Interpol would kill for, although here it sounds like Interpol crossed with some lost eighties VHS soundtrack.
And while that's THEE jam here, and well worth the price of admission on its own, there's plenty to love here, the loping new wave swagger of "Memories Of The Future", with it's pulsing synths and Depeche Mode like melodies, "Bury Me Standing" is a total eighties throwback, classic MTV style electro synth pop, but the vocals, a dead ringer for Woven Hand's David Eugene Edwards, gives the song (and all the songs here) an extra gravitas that most synth pop is missing. "Cheap Music" is the punkest of the bunch, with it's buzzing guitar, and propulsive big beat, and the record closes with the 7 minute "No Feelings" which is the perfect hybrid of eighties synth pop, and noisy post punk gloom, thick squalls of corrosive guitars dotting an otherwise new wavey groove. We'd dig even deeper, but we just can't seem to stop listening to "Damage"...
Some of the coolest packaging we've seen in a while, a full color gatefold digipak, with naked lady posing beneath an overpass on the front, while inside, lots of pix of young Asian men at some sort of water park, the booklet wrapped in see through printed front and back covers, so the artwork is superimposed over the images underneath, and the actual cd sleeve too, made from printed color plastic. Nice.
MPEG Stream: "Damage"
MPEG Stream: "Bury Me Standing"
MPEG Stream: "Memories Of The Future"

HANDSOME FURS Sound Kapital (Sub Pop) lp 16.98
We never really got that into Handsome Furs before, a husband and wife duo, who are now on record number three, we did review a record of theirs WAY back, and described them as sounding like Bright Eyes meets U2, which is definitely difficult to understand in the light of this new one. We almost didn't even give it a chance, considering our disinterest in past HF outings, but holy shit are we glad we did. This new one is all dark and electronic and gloomy, a sort of gothic synth wave or something, just check out "Damage", the perfect mix of retro eighties synth sounds, and new sort of post punk gloom, swaggery and low slung, tense and dramatic and minor key, the sort of thing that a band like Interpol would kill for, although here it sounds like Interpol crossed with some lost eighties VHS soundtrack.
And while that's THEE jam here, and well worth the price of admission on its own, there's plenty to love here, the loping new wave swagger of "Memories Of The Future", with it's pulsing synths and Depeche Mode like melodies, "Bury Me Standing" is a total eighties throwback, classic MTV style electro synth pop, but the vocals, a dead ringer for Woven Hand's David Eugene Edwards, gives the song (and all the songs here) an extra gravitas that most synth pop is missing. "Cheap Music" is the punkest of the bunch, with it's buzzing guitar, and propulsive big beat, and the record closes with the 7 minute "No Feelings" which is the perfect hybrid of eighties synth pop, and noisy post punk gloom, thick squalls of corrosive guitars dotting an otherwise new wavey groove. We'd dig even deeper, but we just can't seem to stop listening to "Damage"...
Some of the coolest packaging we've seen in a while, a full color gatefold digipak, with naked lady posing beneath an overpass on the front, while inside, lots of pix of young Asian men at some sort of water park, the booklet wrapped in see through printed front and back covers, so the artwork is superimposed over the images underneath, and the actual cd sleeve too, made from printed color plastic. Nice.
MPEG Stream: "Damage"
MPEG Stream: "Bury Me Standing"
MPEG Stream: "Memories Of The Future"

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"

HANK IV III (Siltbreeze) lp 15.98

HANK IV III (Siltbreeze) lp 15.98

HANK IV Refuge In Genre (Siltbreeze) lp 14.98

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"