BELLE AND SEBASTIAN The Boy With The Arab Strap (Matador) lp 15.98
Hey all of you Belle And Sebastian luvvin' audiophiles, today's a hip-hip-hooray day!
Those Scottish darlings' first four albums have received the super duper vinyl reissue treatment. Yes, Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like A Peasant, The Boy With The Arab Strap, If You're Feeling Sinister, and Tigermilk have been repressed (or pressed for the first time in the U.S. in the case of the latter two) on 180 gram vinyl!
The Boy With The Arab Strap was B&S's third album and was first released back in 1998. A well-informed customer once explained to us that an arab strap is a sexual aid for horses that helps their penises to point in the correct direction. Oh my! The very same customer also told us that the particular B&S song with this title is making fun of (the band) Arab Strap's lead singer who is forever whining about his failed relationships. And the lyric does in fact read, "the boy WITH the arab strap". Make of this what you will. Bestseller in the lispy twee soft folksy pop department. Be forewarned, this band's music might trigger an irresistible urge to snuggle in even the most cold-hearted of beings.
MPEG Stream: "It Could Have Been A Brilliant Career"
MPEG Stream: "Sleep The Clock Around"

BELLE AND SEBASTIAN The Life Pursuit (Matador) cd 14.98
Nothing we're going to say here is really gonna sway any of you diehard Belle And Sebastian fans now will it? Alright-y then! With the exception of our two Belle & Sebastian cheerleaders, we here at AQ have admittedly never really been big fans of this Scottish band's brand of pop. While we appreciate their wry braininess, their tweeness was always just too... uhh, twee. That all changed with their last album 2003's wonderful Dear Catastrophe Waitress. That album sure changed our tune, and endeared itself to even Andee! Oddly it seems two rival camps have formed -- one filled with folks who loved everything up to D.C.W. and one with folks who disliked everything up to D.C.W. So needless to say there's been more than a little anxious anticipation for their follow-up. Well, we are saddened to report that upon hearing The Life Pursuit, we (including one of our B&S supporters even!) have collectively shuddered a profound "uh oh". Unlike the effortless, carefree pop jubilance of Dear Catastophe Waitress, each of the baker's dozen songs gave us the impression that the band was in turn feeling tired, bored and forced -- from the flat female vocals of the opening track "Act Of The Apostle" to the usually bulletproof, but here very lackluster vocals of frontman Stuart Murdoch. Now, you could on the other hand interpret this different tone more complimentarily as "subdued" or "restrained", but the band also takes strange excursions into what resembles '70s funk, fusion and blues rock and a watered-down version of the New Pornographers (their labelmates with whom they will be touring shortly). At best, there's a couple of songs here that are a small step down from D.C.W., at worst there's stuff on here that sounds like music for those '70s fountain 'dancing waters' shows. Yikes. Yes, very harsh words, but expectations and standards were high, and ours is some pretty harsh disappointment. Unfortunately instead of converts, we're reverts... and this time not just for their tweeness but for other reasons. Which will you be? If you need us we'll be over here listening to our D.C.W. and/or Tigermilk albums.
MPEG Stream: "Act Of The Apostle"
MPEG Stream: "Another Sunny Day"

BELLE AND SEBASTIAN The Life Pursuit (Matador) 2lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Nothing we're going to say here is really gonna sway any of you diehard Belle And Sebastian fans now will it? Alright-y then! With the exception of our two Belle & Sebastian cheerleaders, we here at AQ have admittedly never really been big fans of this Scottish band's brand of pop. While we appreciate their wry braininess, their tweeness was always just too... uhh, twee. That all changed with their last album 2003's wonderful Dear Catastrophe Waitress. That album sure changed our tune, and endeared itself to even Andee! Oddly it seems two rival camps have formed -- one filled with folks who loved everything up to D.C.W. and one with folks who disliked everything up to D.C.W. So needless to say there's been more than a little anxious anticipation for their follow-up. Well, we are saddened to report that upon hearing The Life Pursuit, we (including one of our B&S supporters even!) have collectively shuddered a profound "uh oh". Unlike the effortless, carefree pop jubilance of Dear Catastophe Waitress, each of the baker's dozen songs gave us the impression that the band was in turn feeling tired, bored and forced -- from the flat female vocals of the opening track "Act Of The Apostle" to the usually bulletproof, but here very lackluster vocals of frontman Stuart Murdoch. Now, you could on the other hand interpret this different tone more complimentarily as "subdued" or "restrained", but the band also takes strange excursions into what resembles '70s funk, fusion and blues rock and a watered-down version of the New Pornographers (their labelmates with whom they will be touring shortly). At best, there's a couple of songs here that are a small step down from D.C.W., at worst there's stuff on here that sounds like music for those '70s fountain 'dancing waters' shows. Yikes. Yes, very harsh words, but expectations and standards were high, and ours is some pretty harsh disappointment. Unfortunately instead of converts, we're reverts... and this time not just for their tweeness but for other reasons. Which will you be? If you need us we'll be over here listening to our D.C.W. and/or Tigermilk albums.
MPEG Stream: "Act Of The Apostle"
MPEG Stream: "Another Sunny Day"

BELLE AND SEBASTIAN The Life Pursuit (Deluxe) (Matador) ltd. ed. cd + dvd 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
WARNING!!! WE ONLY HAVE 12 COPIES OF THE DELUXE VERSION IN STOCK AND IT IS ALREADY OUT OF PRINT. IF YOU ORDER THIS DELUXE VERSION AND WE HAVE ALREADY RUN OUT, YOU WILL BE SENT THE STANDARD VERSION!!!
Nothing we're going to say here is really gonna sway any of you diehard Belle And Sebastian fans now will it? Alright-y then! With the exception of our two Belle & Sebastian cheerleaders, we here at AQ have admittedly never really been big fans of this Scottish band's brand of pop. While we appreciate their wry braininess, their tweeness was always just too... uhh, twee. That all changed with their last album 2003's wonderful Dear Catastrophe Waitress. That album sure changed our tune, and endeared itself to even Andee! Oddly it seems two rival camps have formed -- one filled with folks who loved everything up to D.C.W. and one with folks who disliked everything up to D.C.W. So needless to say there's been more than a little anxious anticipation for their follow-up. Well, we are saddened to report that upon hearing The Life Pursuit, we (including one of our B&S supporters even!) have collectively shuddered a profound "uh oh". Unlike the effortless, carefree pop jubilance of Dear Catastophe Waitress, each of the baker's dozen songs gave us the impression that the band was in turn feeling tired, bored and forced -- from the flat female vocals of the opening track "Act Of The Apostle" to the usually bulletproof, but here very lackluster vocals of frontman Stuart Murdoch. Now, you could on the other hand interpret this different tone more complimentarily as "subdued" or "restrained", but the band also takes strange excursions into what resembles '70s funk, fusion and blues rock and a watered-down version of the New Pornographers (their labelmates with whom they will be touring shortly). At best, there's a couple of songs here that are a small step down from D.C.W., at worst there's stuff on here that sounds like music for those '70s fountain 'dancing waters' shows. Yikes. Yes, very harsh words, but expectations and standards were high, and ours is some pretty harsh disappointment. Unfortunately instead of converts, we're reverts... and this time not just for their tweeness but for other reasons. Which will you be? If you need us we'll be over here listening to our D.C.W. and/or Tigermilk albums.
MPEG Stream: "Act Of The Apostle"
MPEG Stream: "Another Sunny Day"

BELLE AND SEBASTIAN This Is Just A Modern Rock Song (Jeepster) cd 8.98
Whether or not we here at the store 'get it', many many folks have been digging the lispy vocals and sweet pop stylings of this Scottish group. Here they sound remarkably like Chelsea Girl-era Nico.

BELLE AND SEBASTIAN This Is Just A Modern Rock Song (Jeepster) 12" 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Whether or not we here at the store 'get it', many many folks have been digging the lispy vocals and sweet pop stylings of this Scottish group. Here they sound remarkably like Chelsea Girl-era Nico.

BELLE AND SEBASTIAN Tigermilk (Matador) cd 14.98
We figured that since all the B&S records were getting the deluxe vinyl reissue treatment, we might as well re-list the cds as well as they have long been big sellers around these parts...
Oooooh yessss, Tigermilk is where the grand Belle And Sebastian adventure began. It was originally released back in 1996 by the band themselves on their label Electric Honey. What? You never saw / heard it back then? Well, it's no wonder 'cause only 1000 of 'em were ever pressed! It wasn't until its cd reissue in 1999 on Matador Records that B&S fans far and wide were able to gorge themselves on the deliciousness of Tigermilk. Extremely toothsome pop songs - almost too sweet for some folks - full of hooks and melodies and murmur-lisped vocals. This is it, the beginning of their delicate brand of folk-pop. Sigh, swoon and get all misty-eyed. What a treat!
MPEG Stream: "The State I Am In"
MPEG Stream: "You're Just A Baby"

BELLE AND SEBASTIAN Tigermilk (Matador) lp 14.98
Hey all of you Belle And Sebastian luvvin' audiophiles, please note that your Scottish darlings' first four albums have received the super duper vinyl reissue treatment. Yes, Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like A Peasant, The Boy With The Arab Strap, If You're Feeling Sinister, and Tigermilk have been repressed (or pressed for the first time in the U.S. in the case of the latter two) on 180 gram vinyl! We listed 'em all except for Tigermilk the other week, and now it's in stock as well too...
Oooooh yessss, Tigermilk is where the grand Belle And Sebastian adventure began. It was originally released back in 1996 by the band themselves on their label Electric Honey. What? You never saw / heard it back then? Well, it's no wonder 'cause only 1000 of 'em were ever pressed! It wasn't until its cd reissue in 1999 on Matador Records that B&S fans far and wide were able to gorge themselves on the deliciousness of Tigermilk. Extremely toothsome pop songs - almost too sweet for some folks - full of hooks and melodies and murmur-lisped vocals. This is it, the beginning of their delicate brand of folk-pop. Sigh, swoon and get all misty-eyed. What a treat!
MPEG Stream: "The State I Am In"
MPEG Stream: "You're Just A Baby"

BELLE AND SEBASTIAN Write About Love (Matador) cd 13.98
For some of us, Belle And Sebastian are one of the only bands that have been a constant in our lives for the last fifteen years. So listening to them always takes on extra weight as we immediately are flooded with so many memories when we hear their delicate and exquisitely constructed bittersweet pop songs. Seeing them live just a couple weeks ago we were reminded just how many life defining and moment-capturing songs they've created over the years with an ease and breeze that so many have tried to emulate but always seem to come up short. During that live set we got to hear several of the songs that are on Write About Love for the first time and it made us very excited for the album.
Like all Belle And Sebastian albums, it's hard to write about this new one without spending tons of time with it as they really are a band who make records for the long haul. As all their records have left a mark on us even if at first we didn't think we were as in love with it as the one before.
Write About Love is a nice mixture of the slower side of the band as well as a few totally sugary and catchy songs that we have been humming non stop since we got this in. The record does make us miss Isobel Campbell, as a couple of the female led tracks just aren't as special as when they were being sung by her. But we know that so many of these songs will become totally ingrained in helping cue so many future memories of romance, friendships, lazy rainy days, and sun soaked adventures. (FYI, vinyl being repressed, probably back in stock next week.)
MPEG Stream: "I Want The World To Stop"
MPEG Stream: "I Didn't See It Coming"
MPEG Stream: "I'm Not Living In The Real World"
MPEG Stream: "Write About Love"

BELLE AND SEBASTIAN Write About Love (Matador) lp 14.98
Now, after a quick repress, in stock on vinyl! For some of us, Belle And Sebastian are one of the only bands that have been a constant in our lives for the last fifteen years. So listening to them always takes on extra weight as we immediately are flooded with so many memories when we hear their delicate and exquisitely constructed bittersweet pop songs. Seeing them live just a couple weeks ago we were reminded just how many life defining and moment-capturing songs they've created over the years with an ease and breeze that so many have tried to emulate but always seem to come up short. During that live set we got to hear several of the songs that are on Write About Love for the first time and it made us very excited for the album.
Like all Belle And Sebastian albums its hard to write about this new one without spending tons of time with it as they really are a band who make records for the long haul. As all their records have left a mark on us even if at first we didn't think we were as in love with it as the one before.
Write About Love is a nice mixture of the slower side of the band as well as a few totally sugary and catchy songs that we have been humming non stop since we got this in. The record does make us miss Isobel Campbell, as a couple of the female led tracks just aren't as special as when they were being sung by her. But we know that so many of these songs will become totally ingrained in helping cue so many future memories of romance, friendships, lazy rainy days, and sun soaked adventures.
MPEG Stream: "I Want The World To Stop"
MPEG Stream: "I Didn't See It Coming"
MPEG Stream: "I'm Not Living In The Real World"
MPEG Stream: "Write About Love"

BELLINI Snowing Sun (Monitor) cd 14.98
Bellini is a math-y post rock quartet featuring the insanely complex kickass drumming of the fearsome Damon Che (Don Caballero, Thee Speaking Canaries), shredding guitarist Ago from the Albini-favored Italian group Uzeda, throaty vocalist Giovanna also from Uzeda, plus a bass player not from a "name" band. Crisply recorded by Steve Albini, this super group's sound is all furious angsty aggression. The guitars and drums work together exactly the way you'd think they would given the personalities involved here -- it's Shellacky, Caballero-y, Uzeda-y angular epic stuff. Overlaying the whole thing (and I mean the whole thing) is Giovanna's impassioned narrative -- half sung half spoken, sorta Kim Gordon-style -- which sounds okay, I mean it gets in the way of what could otherwise be a nice instrumental record, but then lots of folks are gonna like her vocals. I'm not sayin' it's *bad.* Maybe just un-necessary.
RealAudio clip: "Rut Row"
RealAudio clip: "A Short Tale"

BELLMER DOLLS The Big Cats Will Throw Themselves Over (Hungry Eye) cd 10.98
With a band name that tips a referential (and we assume reverential) hat toward surrealist artist Hans Bellmer, an artist renowned for his haunting disembodied doll-centric creations of distorted body image perceptions, The Bellmer Dolls bring their own brand of musical dismembered remembrances or remembered dismemberments. Their turbulent songs contort and unravel with true late '70s /early '80s post-punk angst and aggression, but styled with a '00s blase couture flair. While their unhinged male vocals unquestionably echo those of early Nick Cave and Screamin' Jay Hawkins, overall the Bellmer Dolls follow most closely in the tumultuous path of more recent bands such as Pleasure Forever. The closest kinship perhaps is with that sadly now defunct SF band's criminally unsung guitarist Josh Hughes whose highly textured effected guitar atmospherics were capable of brewing up a blinding maelstrom all on their own. So needless to say, we think that's a good thing, but Bellmer Dolls aren't just sound-alikes. They cut their own shadowy, slightly sullied yet well-angled silhouettes. Very cool.
MPEG Stream: "The Diva"
MPEG Stream: "Every Angel Is A Terror"

BELLOWS Outside (Bellow Music) cd 12.98
Warm, loping pop filled with strummed and swirling guitars and gentle male vocals. Shades of late '80s / early '90s UK pop influence (a la The Smiths, Aztec Camera, Prefab Sprout, The La's). The emotively lilting vocals are particularly Morrissey-esque on songs like "The Only Way I Know" and "How Am I To Love You". Intelligent, bittersweet and very pretty.

BELLOWS s/t (self-released) cd-r 8.98
They had us at DOOM BAND, NO STRINGS. Just drums, sax, and TUBA. That's IT. FUCKING tuba and sax, seriously, no guitar, no bass, just two horns and a drum kit, and these guys kick up a sound that dwarfs plenty of bands with axes to spare. Bellows is the perfect name for these guys, cuz the lungs on these guys must be like bellows, the horns moan and howl, the sax especially, the lead instrument, is wrapped in effects, and essential lays down some wailing, FX drenched, leads, that squeal and howl, the bands lock into killer lurching groove, the tuba, letting loose with an elephant roar low end, the sax just as often laying down a weird sheet of hiss or washed out drone, sometimes so effected it sounds like some fucked up synthesizer. And the drums, heavy and chaotic and mathy, the band locked into lurching lumbering dirges, post rocky workouts, and full on noise rock freakouts. It's a little like a marching band gone over to the darkside, some sinister assembly held in the deepest recesses of hell. The vocals are also bellowed, distorted and growled, venomous and malevolent, giving the sound a distinctly nineties East Coast noise rock Cop Shoot Cop sort of vibe. There's always a groove, but it's typically a woozy doomic one, the drums driving the sound big time, but those horns are just insane, some of the sounds they get out of 'em, on "Haunts" it's all drums and tuba, while the sax unfurls a creepy minor key melody, over and over, so hypnotic, before the track breaks down, and the low end is transformed into what sounds like a choir of throat singers, while the sax bleats and trills, and the drums just bludgeon.
There are moments, where the sound borders on jazzy, it's sort of unavoidable, but we're talking face melting Brotzmann style jazz, and that jazziness is inevitably all filtered through some crusty, creepy, blown out super distorted space doom filter, that makes these guys sound absolutely like no one else, and just as often as it gets jazzy, it gets something else, "Story Of A Giant" is all spaced out and almost waltzy, and there's no way you could tell the instrumentation, the sax unfurling shimmery psychedelic clouds of tangled melody, the tuba a thick bass throb, all wrapped in a druggy haze, and on the record closer, "Half-Life", the sax is super processed and becomes some fractured angular noisemaking machine, leading the group into an extended drone-out, all long tones, chanted vocals, swirling effects, total psych drone trip out, before finally slipping into a woozy jazzy outro, and finally a crushing chugging closing burst of ultra distorted crunch.
Fuck yeah. Came close to making this a fourth Record Of The Week!
MPEG Stream: "Haunt"
MPEG Stream: "Scratching The Wrong Itch"
MPEG Stream: "Story Of A Giant"

BELLOWS Way Down (Bellow Music) cd ep 7.98

BELLY BUTTON/RUINS/MOLECULES/ALBOTH/MUG (Pandemonium) 7" 3.99
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
R: Hyper kinetic bass/drums prog.
M: Bay Area jazz prog.
A: Swiss Young Gods style arty bombast.
BB: Noisey post rock.
M: Jazzy art brut funk rock.

BELONG Colorloss Record (St. Ives) lp 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Belong are just one of many new bands exploring the sound of decay. The sound of music within murk, the sound of pop, melted down and smeared into shapeless forms. For a while there it seemed like every band was lacing their delicate pop with bits of glitch and electronic shimmer. To the point where ANY band, no matter what they sounded like originally, were suddenly 'experimental' with nothing but a bit of crackle and bleep added to the mix. A similar thing has happened lately, another movement has taken hold, of bands burying their sounds under distorted drones, blistering feedback, bleary eyed shimmer, oceans of crackle, sounds pulled apart and layered into strange organic ambient blurs. We're not complaining though, we've long been proponents of distressed sound. The more distressed and heavy and fucked up and crackly and distorted the better. The problem lies in the fact that a movement usually entails everyone and their brother suddenly wanting to sound like whatever band or sound is 'happening' at the moment. SUNNO))) spawned a legion off doomdrone combos, and these movements are not all that different.
A band, be they pop or metal or whatever, can wrap everything in buzz and distortion and suddenly whatever genre they were can get hyphenated with the suffix GAZE, or alternately, a band can blur everything, slow it down, make it muddier and murkier and dronier, and voila, become a doomdronewhatever outfit.
But with all these things, it's not as easy as the truly amazing artists make it sound. And this becomes evident on almost first listen. Anyone can plug their guitar into a laptop, but no one can create gauzy gristly soundscapes like Fennesz. Anyone can tune way down and let their guitars ring out, let riffs crumble to pieces, but it takes more than that to make something a compelling listen.
From the very first listen to Belong's last full length, October Language, we knew these guys were special. They were one of those bands who had the sound down, but were using the sound to create glorious sonic worlds of their own invention. Not aping anyone else's sounds, merely absorbing elements, and transforming them into something new, and distinctly Belong. And the other thing about Belong, was they weren't just making beautiful noise, they were writing songs, that were infused with beautiful noises, sometimes obfuscated by them, but there was always a song, a melody, never just sound for sound's sake.
This new four song ep takes things even further, by being about someone else's songs. Reinventing, reimagining, reinterpreting the sounds of four different artists, and making them all sound like they could have come from nowhere else than this mysterious entity known as Belong.
The first might be the best of the bunch, and it's no coincidence that it's the most song-y. A Syd Barrett cover, via the somewhat more obscure Cleaners From Venus, "Late Night" in the hands of Belong becomes an epic sweeping cinematic warped record spinning underwater, on the surface of some alien moon, beneath the warm glow of twin suns. Soaring vocals, gorgeous melodies, all beneath a thick churning lush wall of crumbling, shimmering sound. Woozy and seasick, dizzying, dense and warm and absolutely gorgeous, it's almost like a more blurred and buzzed version of Oval, digital skipping replaced by indistinct slow motion riffage, everything gauzy and washed out. The other three tracks, covers of '60s psych pop songs by Tintern Abbey, Billy Nicholls and July, are even more ethereal, almost choral sounding, voices and streaks of sound drifting in a softly churning sea of hum and whir, and breathy blur. The final track a thick, viscous outro, the July original barely audible beneath a blown out swirl of creeping low end and free floating metallic flutter, somehow sounding heavy and intense, but laid back and soporific at the same time, eventually fading to a whispery hum. So good. Definitely one of our favorite groups exploring the world of distressed / decayed / deconstructed / dreamy / dronelike sound.
SUPER LIMITED! ONLY 300 COPIES!! Each one hand made by the group using recycled sleeves.
MPEG Stream: "Late Night"
MPEG Stream: "My Clown"

BELONG October Language (Carpark) cd 16.98
Belong, belong (couldn't resist) in a world of washed out sound, faded memories and blistering layers of sound. Imagine the warm crackles of Endless Summer era Fennesz, a touch of Godspeed You Black Emperor aimed at monumental peaks and valleys, a Flying Saucer Attack eyes half closed eyes half open delivery with a My Bloody Valentine shimmering layer of sound thrown in for good measure. A duo from New Orleans, Belong do a really nice job of taking from their influences but also having their own unique take on the whole gauzy smeary ambient free noise sound. Their take being a thick heady blast of sound that doesn't at all lose any of its gauzy dreaminess. October Language is that great kind of record that can take on different lives when played soft vs. loud. It allows you to enjoy it quiet, as a textural layer that you can dream beneath or drift away on top of. Or you can blast Belong and they'll take you out of your dreams, and your head and into another state completely. So nice!
MPEG Stream: "I Never Lose. Never Really."
MPEG Stream: "October Language"

BELONG October Language (Geographic North) lp 14.98
Finally this blissed out dreamy drone-y aQ favorite is available on vinyl!!
Belong, belong (couldn't resist) in a world of washed out sound, faded memories and blistering layers of sound. Imagine the warm crackles of Endless Summer era Fennesz, a touch of Godspeed You Black Emperor aimed at monumental peaks and valleys, a Flying Saucer Attack eyes half closed eyes half open delivery with a My Bloody Valentine shimmering layer of sound thrown in for good measure. A duo from New Orleans, Belong do a really nice job of taking from their influences but also having their own unique take on the whole gauzy smeary ambient free noise sound. Their take being a thick heady blast of sound that doesn't at all lose any of its gauzy dreaminess. October Language is that great kind of record that can take on different lives when played soft vs. loud. It allows you to enjoy it quiet, as a textural layer that you can dream beneath or drift away on top of. Or you can blast Belong and they'll take you out of your dreams, and your head and into another state completely. So nice!
MPEG Stream: "I Never Lose. Never Really."
MPEG Stream: "October Language"

BELONG Same Places (Slow Version) (Table Of The Elements) 12" 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
There have been a whole bunch of killer installments in Table Of The Elements' recent guitar based series of one sided 12"s: Oren Ambarchi, Lee Ranaldo, Jon Mueller, but this is the one everyone seems to have been waiting for.
Especially considering what went on with the last belong 12". We sold out in a flash, got more and then sold out again, we couldn't keep that in stock. Well, we're happy to report that this latest is just as good if not better. Whereas the other 12" was all covers, the single looooong track here is an original and it's a doozy. A warm, washed out, dreamy, delicate, gauzy blurred woozy drift of pixilated sound. Jeck, Tim Hecker, Fennesz, all those guys have nothing on Belong. If anything, Belong take those sorts of sound and transform them into something more organic, more amorphous. "Same Places" sounds almost like actual people playing actual guitars, instead of something assembled on a computer. Layered and dense, the melodies obscured by thick swells of fuzzy whir, the fact that this is the "slow version" does explain how gorgeously glacial it sounds, and how many of the tones do sound like someone with their finger on the vinyl slowing the record player down to a crawl, but all that does is let the lowend sprawl, the melodies become even more abstract, pulled apart, and slowed down to the point where their constituent parts almost separate and drift away, almost. Instead, it's an underwater whirl, everything shimmery and indistinct, the sound as you sink deeper and deeper into the abyss, but instead of getting darker, the sounds begin to glow from within, bathing you in their unearthly light. So totally gorgeous.
Pressed on thick clear vinyl. One sided, the other side with a super bad ass etching by Savage Pencil, housed in a thick vinyl sleeve, and of course, as always LIMITED!

BELOW THE SEA The Loss Of Our Winter (Where Are My...) cd 14.98
From the land of Godspeed You Black Emperor (Quebec, Canada), and creating a very similar sonic landscape, are Below The Sea. Slow steps of sparse guitar twangs. Lonely long washes of strings. Dialogue drifting in and out. Solemn and ethereal.

BEN, JORGE Forca Bruta (4 Men with Beards) lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Now on Vinyl!!!
One of the more understated figures in Tropicalia gets one of his best but equally understated albums reissued. Forca Bruta, from 1970, didn't yield any of the hits he was known for such as "Chove Chuva", "Mas Que Nada" or "Umbabarauma", but it's still one of his best collections of songs. Backed by Trio Mocoto, who accompanied Ben through many of his biggest hits, Forca Bruta is a more mellow groover of samba soul that despite its simpler acoustic arrangements packs a powerful punch with some seriously amazing musicianship. Ben wasn't as radical a political figure as his compatriots Gilberto Gil or Caetano Veloso, but was instrumental in importing West African rhythm influences into his music which was influential in both Veloso's and Gil's musical development. Awesome reissue, highly recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Oba, La Vem Ela"
MPEG Stream: "Aparece Aparecida"
MPEG Stream: "O Telefone Tocou Novamente"

BEN-ISRAEL, DANNY The Kathmandu Sessions (Locust) cd 14.98

BENEATH THE LAKE Inside Passage (Glass Throat) cd 10.98
Beneath The Lake is the new ambient drone project of Nicolas Lampert, who was one third of AQ faves Noisegate, a bay area crusty, death-drone-ambient project with two records out on Andee's tUMULt label. Beneath The Lake finds Nicolas and new partner Dave Canterbury exploring similar sonic space as Noisegate did on their last full length 'Suspended Animation', but with more emphasis on the nature of sound and a much more dense and heavily layered approach. Utilising cello, guitar, pedals, processors and environmental recordings of sea lions, water, whales, wasps, wolves, owls and wind, Beneath The Lake manage to create rumbling pulsing drones that feel somehow alive, with organic thrum and cavernous shimmers, sounds slipping in and out of the sonic landscape, sparse and desolate one moment, lush and overpowering the next. Haunting and chillingly beautiful. One of our new favorite drone records.
RealAudio clip: "Water"
RealAudio clip: "Inside Passage"

BENEATH THE MASSACRE Mechanics Of Dysfunction (Prosthetic) cd 14.98

MPEG Stream: "The Surface"
MPEG Stream: "Society's Disposable Son"
MPEG Stream: "The System's Failure"

BENNI HEMM HEMM Kajak (Morr Music) cd 17.98
German label Morr Music tosses us a curve ball with this latest addition to their roster. Benni Hemm Hemm does not make frothy dream-tronica, but something just as easy on the ears. Armed with freshly scrubbed rosy cheeks, Benni Hemm Hemm are a group of gentle indie pop folk from Iceland whose line-up expands and contracts between eleven and seventeen members. This is their second full length and it begins with what we imagined to be a highschool marching band going through their bright-eyed, glockenspiel'd paces out in a greener than green meadow. In the spring morn sunlight, their well polished horns and uplifting perky melodies simply sparkle.
MPEG Stream: "Skvavars"
MPEG Stream: "Snjor Ljos Snjor"

BENNI HEMM HEMM Kajak (Morr Music) lp 17.98
German label Morr Music tosses us a curve ball with this latest addition to their roster. Benni Hemm Hemm does not make frothy dream-tronica, but something just as easy on the ears. Armed with freshly scrubbed rosy cheeks, Benni Hemm Hemm are a group of gentle indie pop folk from Iceland whose line-up expands and contracts between eleven and seventeen members. This is their second full length and it begins with what we imagined to be a highschool marching band going through their bright-eyed, glockenspiel'd paces out in a greener than green meadow. In the spring morn sunlight, their well polished horns and uplifting perky melodies simply sparkle.
MPEG Stream: "Skvavars"
MPEG Stream: "Snjor Ljos Snjor"

BENSON, BRENDAN Lapalco (Startime International) cd 15.98
Very Apples In Stereo / Silver Sun / Sloan jubilant pop with jangly guitar melodies, and perky vocal harmonies. Benson possesses a boyish voice with a lilt that reminded me a lot of Rufus Wainwright or Jason Faulkner. Nice.
RealAudio clip: "What "
RealAudio clip: "Tiny Spark"

BENSON, BRENDAN My Old, Familiar Friend (Echo) cd 13.98

MPEG Stream: "A Whole Lot Better"
MPEG Stream: "Poised And Ready"
MPEG Stream: "Don't Wanna Talk"

BENUMB / PREMONITIONS OF WAR split (Thorp) cd 10.98

BERBERIAN, JOHN Expressions East (Mainstream) lp 16.98
We're lucky to get in this week not one but two mid-sixties LPs showcasing the amazing virtuosity and global grooves of master oud player John Berberian. These are beautiful 180 gram reissues on colored vinyl from Mainstream records who have been reissuing a lot of their amazing back catalog as of late. When you see the covers of Expressions East and its follow up, Oud Artistry, you can't help but think of the late fifties / early sixties "Exotica" craze with paintings of belly dancers in a modernist style and use of oriental-looking fonts. Of course this is not going to be a Hamza El Din record, but the American-born Armenian Berberian is no Martin Denny either. On these records, Berberian beguiles us with his frenetically intense jazz-like compositions occasionally featuring the haunting vocals of Bob Tashjian. Featuring an amazing band playing traditional instruments (canun, bongos, dudoog, dumbeg, def, guitar, clarinet and finger cymbals along with an array of other exotic percussion) performing mesmerizingly rhythmic tracks of Turkish, Armenian and Arabic origins. Berberian became better known for more rockish Middle Eastern projects later on in his career, but it's these early records that really showcase his masterful skills as an instrumentalist and performer. Both records are well-recommended!

BERBERIAN, JOHN Middle Eastern Rock (Acid Symposium) cd 17.98
Hey, all of you who've been digging the Middle Eastern '60s garage psych rock n' roll sounds of the "Hava Narghile" and "Turkish Delight" compilations, or that Devil's Anvil disc! We've come across another east-meets-west gem for your collection, the newly reissued "Middle Eastern Rock" from John Berberian & the Rock East Ensemble, a NYC-based outfit from the sixties that was quite a bit like fellow New Yorkers the Devil's Anvil group. Here's a quote from the original liner notes to the 1969 LP release: "Middle Eastern music and rock...two of a kind. The music of Armenia, Turkey, the Arab nations and Greece is about as nakedly emotional as you can get. The authentic music of the Middle East is the result of generations of hunger, persecution, frustration and suffering. It is explosively melodic...and incoherently mad with joy. It is filled with the heavy odor of animal magnetism. The motivations behind this music are all too familiar. They are the same very often repeated words and phrases that are used to describe the origins of the blues, of jazz and of soul. And all these kinds of closely related styles of music are the prime progenitors of the rock that we hear today." Out to prove these words true, Armenian-American band leader John Berberian's oud meets up with the acid rock guitar of Joe Beck right on the opening cut, the aptly titled "The Oud & The Fuzz". The Oud & The Fuzz!! What more do you need to hear? Well, they don't top that cut, but we do like the whole album. Berberian's band veers into jazzier territory on much of this disc, which is pretty great too. Taking a bunch of traditional Middle Eastern tunes and adapting 'em for the hip swinging young sixties crowd, these cats make some super-cool Middle Eastern jazz-flavored lounge music. This is certainly groovy belly dancing music, if not totally exotic garage psych rock n' roll like "The Oud & The Fuzz" promises. And, they do a track called "Iron Maiden"!
RealAudio clip: "The Oud & The Fuzz"
RealAudio clip: "Flying Hye"

BERBERIAN, JOHN Middle Eastern Rock (Cherry Red) cd 17.98
Now reissued again, via Cherry Red... Hey, all of you who've been digging the Middle Eastern '60s garage psych rock n' roll sounds of the "Hava Narghile" and "Turkish Delight" compilations, or that Devil's Anvil disc! We've come across another east-meets-west gem for your collection, the newly reissued "Middle Eastern Rock" from John Berberian & the Rock East Ensemble, a NYC-based outfit from the sixties that was quite a bit like fellow New Yorkers the Devil's Anvil group. Here's a quote from the original liner notes to the 1969 LP release: "Middle Eastern music and rock...two of a kind. The music of Armenia, Turkey, the Arab nations and Greece is about as nakedly emotional as you can get. The authentic music of the Middle East is the result of generations of hunger, persecution, frustration and suffering. It is explosively melodic...and incoherently mad with joy. It is filled with the heavy odor of animal magnetism. The motivations behind this music are all too familiar. They are the same very often repeated words and phrases that are used to describe the origins of the blues, of jazz and of soul. And all these kinds of closely related styles of music are the prime progenitors of the rock that we hear today." Out to prove these words true, Armenian-American band leader John Berberian's oud meets up with the acid rock guitar of Joe Beck right on the opening cut, the aptly titled "The Oud & The Fuzz". The Oud & The Fuzz!! What more do you need to hear? Well, they don't top that cut, but we do like the whole album. Berberian's band veers into jazzier territory on much of this disc, which is pretty great too. Taking a bunch of traditional Middle Eastern tunes and adapting 'em for the hip swinging young sixties crowd, these cats make some super-cool Middle Eastern jazz-flavored lounge music. This is certainly groovy belly dancing music, if not totally exotic garage psych rock n' roll like "The Oud & The Fuzz" promises. And, they do a track called "Iron Maiden"!
RealAudio clip: "The Oud & The Fuzz"
RealAudio clip: "Flying Hye"

BERBERIAN, JOHN Oud Artistry (Mainstream) lp 16.98
We're lucky to get in this week not one but two mid-sixties LPs showcasing the amazing virtuosity and global grooves of master oud player John Berberian. These are beautiful 180 gram reissues on colored vinyl from Mainstream records who have been reissuing a lot of their amazing back catalog as of late. When you see the covers of Expressions East and its follow up, Oud Artistry, you can't help but think of the late fifties / early sixties "Exotica" craze with paintings of belly dancers in a modernist style and use of oriental-looking fonts. Of course this is not going to be a Hamza El Din record, but the American-born Armenian Berberian is no Martin Denny either. On these records, Berberian beguiles us with his frenetically intense jazz-like compositions occasionally featuring the haunting vocals of Bob Tashjian. Featuring an amazing band playing traditional instruments (canun, bongos, dudoog, dumbeg, def, guitar, clarinet and finger cymbals along with an array of other exotic percussion) performing mesmerizingly rhythmic tracks of Turkish, Armenian and Arabic origins. Berberian became better known for more rockish Middle Eastern projects later on in his career, but it's these early records that really showcase his masterful skills as an instrumentalist and performer. Both records are well-recommended!

BERMUDA TRIANGLE SERVICE High Swan Dive (self-released) cd 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
At times Bermuda Triangle Service's vocalist Cynthia Wigginton sounds a lot like Carolyn Mark, Kelly Hogan, Virginia Dare and Paula Frazer. Fans of those lovely ladies just might take a shine to this new combo. They make slow candlelit country with lots of graceful fiddle playin'. Very pretty. For their debut, they've enlisted the kind assistance of Josh Housh (Catalpa Boys and Our Lady Of The Highway). An engaging debut!
MPEG Stream: "Kukui Lei"
MPEG Stream: "Pokerhuntus Was Her Name"

BEST COAST Crazy For You (Mexican Summer) cd 13.98
It's finally here, the debut from Cali sunshine retro poppers Best Coast, and as much as all the internet hype might make you want to think otherwise, it's just as good as they all say. The seven inches we've heard definitely already had us hankering for a full length, and as much as we dug those singles, the band has benefited big time from some serious production upgrade, the sound on Crazy For you finally realizes their potential. All the comparisons to Spector's wall of sound and sixties girl groups, now totally make even more sense, the sound here is totally timeless, fuzzy and reverby, like a treasure trove of rare sixties 7"s, but at the same time lush and lustrous and subtly modern, the guitars warm and liquid, and the vocals, wow, Bethany Cosentino manages to channel every torch singer and chanteuse that she was ever inspired by, her voice rich and smokey and passionate, every line sung with such conviction, the songs melancholic and wistful, a heartbroken longing infusing the sad songs, a pure unfettered joy, and enthusiasm for all the little things, sunshine, love, friendship, oozing from the happy ones, the drums simple and propulsive, the background vocals soft focus clouds of oooohs and aaaahs, Bobb Bruno's understated guitar parts sealing the deal, mirroring the vocal melodies but occasionally spiralling off into soft psychedelic swirls, and the songs, the songs are so good, catchy and fun, and dreamy and heartfelt, and like the sound, totally timeless, opener "Boyfriend" is an instant classic, the melody utterly beguiling, the perfect encapsulation of what Best Coast do so well, right down to Bruno's minimal leads, which perfectly compliment Cosentino's harmonies, the soaring chorus, and the simple propulsive rhythm that drives the song. "The title track is another practically perfect summer pop gem, more jangly and driving, like a sixties girl group jam as interpreted by vintage Unrest, more oooh and ahhhs, and plenty more hooks. The whole record is overflowing with perfect pop, with summery vibes, everything you could possibly want from a feel good pop record. And while they last, we have the version that tacks on the bonus track "When I'm With You", the closest thing the band has to a 'hit', a woozy, soporific intro, quickly exploding into a gloriously infectious pound, the main melody so awesome, and the chorus, a stone cold killer, the harmonies, the arrangement, the fuzzy guitars, the drums, everything. Perfect. Yeah okay, we totally love this record. Like crazy, and we're pretty sure you will too.
MPEG Stream: "Boyfriend"
MPEG Stream: "Crazy For You"
MPEG Stream: "The End"
MPEG Stream: "When I'm With You"

BEST COAST Crazy For You (Mexican Summer) lp 15.98
Took a while, but at long last we got vinyl of this, yay! Here's what we said about the cd:
It's finally here, the debut from Cali sunshine retro poppers Best Coast, and as much as all the internet hype might make you want to think otherwise, it's just as good as they all say. The seven inches we've heard definitely already had us hankering for a full length, and as much as we dug those singles, the band has benefited big time from some serious production upgrade, the sound on Crazy For you finally realizes their potential. All the comparisons to Spector's wall of sound and sixties girl groups, now totally make even more sense, the sound here is totally timeless, fuzzy and reverby, like a treasure trove of rare sixties 7"s, but at the same time lush and lustrous and subtly modern, the guitars warm and liquid, and the vocals, wow, Bethany Cosentino manages to channel every torch singer and chanteuse that she was ever inspired by, her voice rich and smokey and passionate, every line sung with such conviction, the songs melancholic and wistful, a heartbroken longing infusing the sad songs, a pure unfettered joy, and enthusiasm for all the little things, sunshine, love, friendship, oozing from the happy ones, the drums simple and propulsive, the background vocals soft focus clouds of oooohs and aaaahs, Bobb Bruno's understated guitar parts sealing the deal, mirroring the vocal melodies but occasionally spiralling off into soft psychedelic swirls, and the songs, the songs are so good, catchy and fun, and dreamy and heartfelt, and like the sound, totally timeless, opener "Boyfriend" is an instant classic, the melody utterly beguiling, the perfect encapsulation of what Best Coast do so well, right down to Bruno's minimal leads, which perfectly compliment Cosentino's harmonies, the soaring chorus, and the simple propulsive rhythm that drives the song. "The title track is another practically perfect summer pop gem, more jangly and driving, like a sixties girl group jam as interpreted by vintage Unrest, more oooh and ahhhs, and plenty more hooks. The whole record is overflowing with perfect pop, with summery vibes, everything you could possibly want from a feel good pop record. And while they last, we have the version that tacks on the bonus track "When I'm With You", the closest thing the band has to a 'hit', a woozy, soporific intro, quickly exploding into a gloriously infectious pound, the main melody so awesome, and the chorus, a stone cold killer, the harmonies, the arrangement, the fuzzy guitars, the drums, everything. Perfect. Yeah okay, we totally love this record. Like crazy, and we're pretty sure you will too.
MPEG Stream: "Boyfriend"
MPEG Stream: "Crazy For You"
MPEG Stream: "The End"
MPEG Stream: "When I'm With You"

BEST COAST Make You Mine (Group Tightener) 2x7" 12.98
By now Best Coast are practically a household name, at least around our households, as they've proven to be one of the most irresistible pop bands to emerge from the lo-fi garage pop scene over the last several years. Make You Mine was a really early 7" and has been out of print for ages. It's finally been repressed repressed, as a limited edition double 7" pressed on clear vinyl.
The songs here are Best Coast at their most raw and fuzzy, for sure. Melding their love of girl group glory and Beach Boys west coast pop at its most stoned and hazy. In fact it opens up with a cover of the Beach Boys' classic "In My Room." The three other songs kill as well, reminding us just how fuzzy and reverby and gloriously druggy and dreamy BC were just a couple years ago. Got a feeling these aren't going to stay in print too long, so best to act fast on this one.
MPEG Stream: "In My Room"
MPEG Stream: "Feeling Of Love"

BEST COAST Sun Was High (So Was I) (Art Fag) 7" 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We've been trying to get a hold of any Best Coast records, but damn has it been near impossible. With a handful of very limited 7"s under their belts the excitement and deserved buzz about this West coast duo featuring Bethany Cosentino (Pocahaunted) and Bobb Bruno (The For Carnation, Polar Goldie Cats, Goliath Bird Eater) seems based entirely around the fact that these noiseniks make completely infectious pop music that is unlike any of their past bands. But rightfully so, cuz this stuff is fantastic!
Luckily a small number of this great 7" has finally been repressed so we can finally review it and gush about what perfect sun soaked breezy and infectious girl group inspired garage pop this duo whip up (and be sure to check out the new cd ep elsewhere on this week's list!). "Sun Was High (So Was I)" is one of those totally made for 7" songs as you can't help but want to play that side over and over. A laid back washed out anthem, like a DIY stripped down Go-Go's. The B-side features "So Gone" which has an awesome dreamy and fuzzy vibe reminiscent of The Breeders, and the record is rounded out with an awesome cover of Lesley Gore's "That's The Way Boys Are" which is bubble gum girl group perfection filtered through a golden Southern California haze. So good! Grab it while we've still got 'em!

BEST COAST Where The Boys Are (Blackest Rainbow) cd ep 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
It's been nearly impossible to get our hands on any Best Coast records, they all seemed to go out of print in the blink of an eye. Those of us lucky enough to snag one or catch them live totally understand why everyone is freaking out about them, because we are too! Bethany Cosentino of Pocahaunted fame let go of her more abstract musical roots to create pretty and primitive, lo-fi, reverb soaked bedroom garage pop that is as raw as it is infectious. Now you finally have a chance to snag a Best Coast release as Blackest Rainbow has released this cd ep of songs that Bethany recorded in her bedroom last summer (we also got some copies of the most recent, repressed 7", might as well grab one of those too before they disappear again!). It's a lot more raw and blasted out than some of their newer, way more poppy and lo-fi Go-Go's like material that we've heard recently, which could be due to the fact that the current incarnation of Best Coast finds her joined by Bobb Bruno (The For Carnation, Goliath Bird Eater, etc.).
These 5 songs represent the birth of Best Coast and what an awesome incarnation it was. Like a way more bleached out and fucked up Breeders, these are songs that embrace the sun and California in all its faded and washed out glory. Sort of like a female counterpart to the awesome Wavves records, as they both are so much about creating the perfect drugged out soundtrack to a beach party in a dusty basement. So fucking good! Not sure how many of these were pressed but it's already out of print, so make sure to act fast on this one.
MPEG Stream: "Moody"
MPEG Stream: "Boy"
MPEG Stream: "Gloomy"

BEST COAST / JEFF THE BROTHERHOOD Sunny Adventure / Bummer (Volcom) 7" 6.50
Another in Volcom's subscriber's singles club, this one a split (like the Flood / Wildildlife, which we still have a final few copies of) featuring big time aQ faves, sunshiney beach poppers Best Coast, who offer up another blast of hazy, girl group, fuzz pop bliss... rocking and rollicking, windows down, breeze blowing, ice cream melting, the usual boatload of reverb and warm summery harmonies, and of course hooks galore, Bethany's voice in fine form, and the band kicking up a fun fuzzed out dream pop underneath, another practically perfect chunk of washed out dreamy sunshine pop that sounds like it could have been plucked right off their full length.
The big surprise here is Jeff The Brotherhood, who we sort of expected to suck, based on the goofy name, but wow were we wrong, reminding us a lot of classic Weezer or old school noise poppers Further, also SF pop geniuses Ovens, super distorted guitars, weary stoned boy vocals, sweet harmonies, killer hooks, crazy catchy, with some tripped out spacey squiggly FX, pop fanatics will be in heaven, and like us, will probably be scrambling for more from these guys.
LIMITED TO 1000 COPIES. Each one hand numbered. Pressed on swirly clear pink vinyl. Comes with a download code for JUST the JTB track...
MPEG Stream: JEFF THE BROTHERHOOD "Bummer"

BESTIAL MOUTHS Hissing Veil (Dais) lp 21.00
The bloodletting goth-punk of LA's Bestial Mouths is likely to find black-clad company with contemporaries like Zola Jesus and Chelsea Wolfe, but this outfit harnesses a creative dualism between voice and drums that's a unique take on what Siouxsie and Budgie had done so brilliantly for so many years in the Banshees and Creatures. Vocalist Lynette Cerezo shrieks, barks, and howls between the operatic vibrato that reaches for the atavistic bellowing that's something of a cross between Diamanda Galas and Rozz Williams of Christian Death. Ebrahim Saleh's percussion is hardly the death-disco that's so often heard from goth drummers, but more of a splattercore punk likened to a No Wave version of Crass regressing at times to caveman pummelling. Christopher Myrick's synths fill in the blanks, and often do get upstaged by the spiralling dynamism between Cerezo and Saleh with all of their car-crash stops and thunderous stomps. Where many of the songs on Hissing Veil are short sharp blasts of feral energy, Bestial Mouths settles into an effectively infernal dirge that's equivalent to Lydia Lunch ripping apart The Cure's Pornography and leaving the parts ugly and abused in some forgotten alleyway. A great addition to the Dais catalogue of recordings!

BETA BAND Heroes To Zeroes (Astralwerks) cd 16.98
Already flying out of AQ's racks, it's obvious this album needs no introduction, but in case you need one... (enormous trumpet fanfare!), TA DAH! The new Beta Band! As is often the case with highly anticipated albums, the lengthy hold-your-breath wait causes expectations and hopes to skyrocket, only to plummet with disappointment when the album fails to reach such lofty heights. From the rumble of eager enquiries from AQ customers for the last few weeks, it became clear that this might be a concern. Well, whether or not this proves to be your dilemma depends on whether Beta Band's choice of a different musical direction from past albums equals disappointment for you. So... what is this new direction? Their familiar very Pink Floyd-y grand superbong space-folk meets warm fuzzy shoegazer Brit rock a la Stone Roses. Shoegazin' is definitely back and on the rise. This album is definitely missing many of the shambolic personality traits of the Beta Band we know and love, and it definitely draws them closer to their trippy UK contemporaries such as Super Furry Animals or Spiritualized. Sound good to you?
MPEG Stream: "Assessment"
MPEG Stream: "Space"

BETA BAND Hot Shots II (Astralwerks) cd 16.98
The Beta Band are still really skilled at mixing together a total hodgepodge of sounds, from ethnic drumming to tinkling piano, dub, weird atmospherics, space age melodica, and shuffling breakbeat percussion. The Pink-Floyd-style hushed unison vocals have this epic chanting quality to them that's pretty addictive. It all adds up to somewhat original rock music for the twenty-first century, but I have to say this album isn't nearly as good as the 3 EP's release, cool Carole King and Nilsson samples notwithstanding (the Beta Band have good taste). In my opinion (presumably that's why you're reading this list, uh, right?) it unfortunately sounds a bit canned, tired and formulaic (and I'm a fan!). Or maybe it's just their "mellow" and "delicate" album.
RealAudio clip: "Won"
RealAudio clip: "Life"

BETA BAND s/t (Astralwerks) cd 15.98
This excellent Scottish (and somewhat Beck-ish) pop band return with their first full-length album, the follow-up to their unanimously-an-AQ-fave ep collection The Three EPs...while this hasn't grown on us as much as that summertime-lovely disc did, several of us did recently witness them live, putting on a great show here in San Francisco, where the new songs came across quite well, so perhaps it will yet take hold. This new album is just a bit too gimmicky to be as good as their The Three EPs, as if they don't trust themselves to simply write good songs. Of course, the Beta Band themselves have been quoted in the NME as saying they hate this new album...I suppose it's quite cute to be that humble (and good publicity?) but don't let them discourage you, make up your own mind.

BETA BAND The Best Of The Beta Band Music (Astralwerks) 2cd 17.98
Ah, throughout Beta Band's short career we've gone through phases of such love (The Three EPs) and sorta hate (their last album Heroes To Zeroes), but all in all we do still have a soft spot for these Scots and were bummed to hear of their split. The first disc is the actual 'best of' while the second disc features a recording of one of the band's final shows at Shepherds Bush Empire last year. Of course fans will have their own ideas of what were the band's best songs, so let's not get into any quibbling here, okay? Where this compilation succeeds very succinctly is in showing the band's broad and deft spectrum of genre-hopping -- from their early Beck-ish patchworked shufflin' shambles ("Dry The Rain") to their Beatles-meets-Pink Floyd period (their great "It's Not Too Beautiful" which also kicks off the live disc) to their slightly ethno-accessoried and funkified leanings to their later, slicker psych-tinged pop/rock that aligned them more with bands such as Super Furry Animals. So if you're not familiar with the Beta Band this is a pretty good overview for you to decide which, if not all, of their many faces please your ears. Actually although when taken individually each of BB's albums seems to have a very different personality and sound from one another, these songs taken from each of their cds and presented in chronological order come across as surprisingly cohesive. The comp begins with four from the above mentioned AQ fave The Three EPs, followed by two from their puzzlingly self-scorned, self-titled sophomore album, next is "To You Alone" a song that was included on 2001's Rarewerks (Astralwerks seventh anniversary compilation), then four from Hot Shots II and a closing five from their last album Heroes To Zeroes. As for the second disc, the live recordings sound terrific -- capturing the energy rush from the band and their audience. The band was in fine form this eve. A suitably vibrant farewell.
MPEG Stream: "To You Alone"
MPEG Stream: "It's Not Too Beautiful (live)"

BETA BAND The Three E.P.'s (Regal/Astralwerks) cd 16.98
The Beta Band are a quartet featuring three Scots and one Brit. Using regular rock instrumentation supplemented by trumpet, piano, jew's harp, bird calls, judicious vinyl scratching, and a weird keyboard contraption that is blown into by means of a long flexible tube, the band comes up with a sound that's, well, like Pink Floyd mixed with Tall Dwarfs if they were really into Mo'Wax. Specifically, Beta Band mix echoey vocals a la The Dark Side of the Moon with loose, tinkly percussive elements and meaty, satisfying guitar strumming, then add a layer of bass groove that's reinforced by rhythmic vocal loops. It's a sound that is at once completely original and unabashedly experimental, yet familiar and immediately accessible.
While many of the reviews of The Beta Band have compared them favorably to Beck (shorthand for saying that they've got command of a wide range of influences that they recombine into their own sound), let's get specific. They are at home with honest-to-goodness psychedelia, synths, beatboxes, sampling, exotica... the list goes on. Combine this breadth and depth of musical chops with their exquisite sense of arrangement, and you begin to see the potential of this group.
--excerpted from Windy's Bay Guardian column.
MPEG Stream: "Dry The Rain"
MPEG Stream: "Inner Meet Me"

BETRAY THE SPECIES Sleepwalker (Can't Stop Eating) cd 11.98

BETSCH, BERTRAND BB Sides (Lithium) cd 14.98
While Bertrand Betsch's lovely previous album, La Soupe a la Grimace, was a sensitive singer songwriter affair, with heartbreakingly pretty hooks and whispered vocals, this record features the addition of 'beats' so it's a lot heavier and Bertrand rises to the occasion -- his voice is even more tortured, the guitar a bit more dissonant than before. Some of you will love the anguish, some will find his new direction distasteful, so listen to the soundclips and decide for yourself.
RealAudio clip: "La Folie des Hommes"
RealAudio clip: "J'entends plus la guitare"

BETSCH, BERTRAND La soupe a la grimace. (Lithium) cd 14.98
Wonderful! This French singer/songwriter's emotional, serious songs are delivered in a breathy, delicate manner that will DEFINITELY appeal to fans of Belle & Sebastian, although Bertrand's unique style isn't as sticky sweet. Highly recommended!