SHIT AND SHINE Cunts With Roses (Noisestar Music) lp 28.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
"Cunts With Roses" doesn't really seem like such a surprising name for a Shit And Shine record when you cast you mind back a few months to their equally problematically titled "Toilet Door Tits" lp on Conspiracy. But then why should a band with such a brilliantly problematic sound, not follow suit with their song titles, album titles and artwork? (Oh, did we mention the cover of "Cunts With Roses" features a close up of a booty being extricated from a thong, with the band name printed in fancy metallic gold leaf? Yep.)
So here we have a crushing archival recording from these UK noisemakers, captured live in a rehearsal studio, preparing for a show opening for the mighty Laibach. Supposedly this is the first recording EVER of the live Shit And Shine experience, and it's a bloody earful for sure. TWO SIDES, ONE RIFF. That's right, just one. But one's really all you need, any more than that and you're basically a prog band, right? A relentless pounding pulverizing repetitive crush, a looped tribal brick to the forehead, churning over and over and over and over and over, it would be quite lulling and soothing if it weren't so fucking skull crushing.
The sound is almost industrial and machinelike, an army of zombie drummers pounding away amidst roiling coils of vacuum cleaner ambience, shouted vocals are sucked under, the bass is slung waaaaay loooow, not so much rocking as churning and throbbing, everything wrapped in a thick crumbling coat of crusty sonic filth. Think Aufgehoben, Swans, Butthole Surfers -- maybe if you took all three, lobotomized them, locked them in a dank cellar with nothing but drums and amps and a tape recorder, and dosed them with PCP, until the whole lot of them went completely berserk, a moldy basement full of convulsing noise rockers pounding and howling and droning as they slowly rot and fall to pieces and lose their minds completely. In other words, WAY recommended.
Ultra limited of course, and a bit pricey cuz of the crap exchange rate and the weight of vinyl shipped overseas. But well worth it for those of you who need a good sonic bashing, which we'd guess is most of you.

SHIT AND SHINE Jealous Of Shit And Shine (Riot Season) 2cd 17.98
Return of the mighty Shit And Shine, a massive sprawling noise rock collective from the UK. Multiple drummers, LOTS of guitars, even some lawnmowers and other noisemakers. This new disc takes their caustic freaked out psych-noise in a whole new direction, channeling their energy into blissed out sort-of krautrocky grooves, albeit still drenched in thick grinding crumbling grit with the needle ALL the way in the red. In fact -most- of the tracks here are some sort of hypnotic stripped down rhythm, just completely damaged and dinged up and pelted with thick slabs of hissy fuzz. Vocals struggly desperately to be heard, even the drums keep getting sucked under the massive swells of acidic sound, swirls of buzzing glitch and super blown out melodies are all draped over the endlessly propulsive rhythms, as they struggle to keep moving forward with layer after layer after layer of dense prickly buzz and drone piled atop them. A gloriously cacophonous caterwaul of rhythmic chaos.
Imagine the Psychic Paramount filtered through a Merzbow production and mastered by Masonna, pressed onto a lathe cut, then played a thousand times until the grooves all began to run together, then play it on a turntable made from an old microwave using a rusty nail as a stylus, and broadcast it through the blown out speakers in that junked car that's been sitting in your neighbor's yard for the last ten years. The record THAT sound, and broadcast it through a HUGE tuba shaped loud speaker with your head stuck all the way into the horn. Kinda like that. Imagine some Aufgehoben No Process, some Laddio Bolocko, some Wolf Eyes, some Butthole Surfers, even some Whitehouse and eighties no wave, but mix in a serious dose of Can and Faust and then douse it in thick swaths of noise, freeze it and shatter it into a million pieces. It all comes together on the album's 30 minute centerpiece "Practicing To Be A Doctor", a simple rock and roll drum beat, a million pounds of grinding low end, some grungy sludgy garage rock riffing, some buried mumbled vocals, and set the whole thing to just sort of lazily unfurl over the course of a lurching, druggy, damaged half hour. Suddenly we're also hearing some Brainbombs, some Terminal Cheesecake, even a bit of the Melvins, all wrapped up into endlessly motorik spaced out tribal sludge rock nirvana.
For a limited time, Jealous Of Shit And Shine also includes an extra cd, which contains their long out of print 12" "You're Lucky To Have Friends Like Us" on cd for the first (and last) time! Here's what we had to say about the 12" when we listed it way back in 2004:
You might want to keep an old rag next to your turntable for this one, to wipe the grit and grime and goo off your needle when you're done listening to this slab of sonic what-the-fuck. A confusional mix of buzzy, damaged psych rock spaceout, Buttholes style tribal weirdness, straight up icepick in the ear noise rock, speaker melting sludge and some very unlikely pop filigree. Instrumentation includes multiple drummers, multiple lawnmowers (?) and lots of guitar all melded into a pummelling wall of grindsludgepopnoisepsych.
MPEG Stream: "Here Come Vikings"
MPEG Stream: "When Extreme Dogs Go Wrong"
MPEG Stream: "Unchained Ladies Shopper"

SHIT AND SHINE Kuss Miche, Meine Liebe (Load) cd 15.98
Ahhh, Shit And Shine, even the name give us the warm fuzzies. That's because multiple drummer-ed lawn mower bass tribal drug jams often do. And no one does it better, or quite like the UK's Shit And Shine. With a constantly shifting lineup that often swells to double digits, including as many drummers as they can pack into a room. And a wall of amplifiers that makes SUNNO))) seem like they're playing through practice amps, several bass players, often just a phalanx of shitty Casio keyboards, howling vocals, all tangled up into a heaving mass of post-Butthole Surfers drug psych heaviness.
Much like the cd reissue of Cherry (last week's Record Of The Week), Kuss Mich, Meine Liebe is not entirely brand new, the two longest tracks we've had before on a super limited, crazy expensive lp, but here on cd for the very first time. Along with one other loooooooong jam, and a handful of shorter, but no less appealing chunks of what-the-fuck tribal psych-out heaviness.
Let's cover the tracks we've heard before. "Biggest Cock In Christendom" is an in-the-red tribal workout, like a more metallic and way more distorted and druggy No Neck Blues Band. Or a WAY heavier Chain Reaction disc. Thick pulses of low end drift beneath streaks of super distorted amp damage, all very krautrock sounding, but filtered through a bank of effects pedals, all broken or with dying batteries. Definitely blissed out and mesmerizing, but so ominous and creepy. This is the shit musical dreams are made of. 15 minutes of this stuff is not nearly enough. Set it to repeat, drink a bottle of Nyquil and let yourself get sucked under. The other track from the 12", "Toilet Door Tits", is an endless rhythmic jam, with ultra blown out drums, sounding a bit like some Butthole Surfers / Laddio Bolocko hybrid, albeit WAY more distorted and damaged. The sound is completely fried, the whole track sounding like it's crumbling through your speakers, strangled vocals drift amidst the tribal pummel, as do weird alien sounding squiggly leads that squirm and slither from speaker to speaker giving the whole track a super disorienting effect.
The other long track on Kuss Mich is the epic and drowsily sprawling "Preventions Arise", 10 minutes of muted almost industrial sounding rhythms, way more moody and washed out than the other tracks, an endless muddy murky rhythmic jam, pulsing and throbbing, a propulsive groove beneath a very noir spoken word. Strange but a good balance to the sheer brutality of the other tracks.
Scattered all around these three massive jams are jagged little chunks of shiny shit, blasts of noise and crunch and buzz and pound, from brief flurries of machine like grind, furious blast beats, and stuttering off kilter rhythms, to total Buttholes worship, pounding tribal rhythm, buzzing fuzz guitar, hypnotic and intense, to tripped out abstract skitter, all warbly distorted bass, and processed vox, to huge blown out chug and churn, heavy and epic and massively distorted and blown out.
Once again, more proof that these guys (and gals) are the current reigning kings and queens of crushing chaotic drugged out drone drenched drum corps psych-doom heaviness.
Killer packaging, very simple and cryptic, shit brown paper and metallic gold ink shine!
MPEG Stream: "Biggest Cock In Christendom"
MPEG Stream: "The Germans Call It A Swimming Head"
MPEG Stream: "Kuss Miche, Meine Liebe"

SHIT AND SHINE Kuss Miche, Meine Liebe (Load) lp 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
NOW ON VINYL!!!!
Ahhh, Shit And Shine, even the name give us the warm fuzzies. That's because multiple drummer-ed lawn mower bass tribal drug jams often do. And no one does it better, or quite like the UK's Shit And Shine. With a constantly shifting lineup that often swells to double digits, including as many drummers as they can pack into a room. And a wall of amplifiers that makes SUNNO))) seem like they're playing through practice amps, several bass players, often just a phalanx of shitty Casio keyboards, howling vocals, all tangled up into a heaving mass of post-Butthole Surfers drug psych heaviness.
Much like the cd reissue of Cherry (last week's Record Of The Week), Kuss Mich, Meine Liebe is not entirely brand new, the two longest tracks we've had before on a super limited, crazy expensive lp, but here on cd for the very first time. Along with one other loooooooong jam, and a handful of shorter, but no less appealing chunks of what-the-fuck tribal psych-out heaviness.
Let's cover the tracks we've heard before. "Biggest Cock In Christendom" is an in-the-red tribal workout, like a more metallic and way more distorted and druggy No Neck Blues Band. Or a WAY heavier Chain Reaction disc. Thick pulses of low end drift beneath streaks of super distorted amp damage, all very krautrock sounding, but filtered through a bank of effects pedals, all broken or with dying batteries. Definitely blissed out and mesmerizing, but so ominous and creepy. This is the shit musical dreams are made of. 15 minutes of this stuff is not nearly enough. Set it to repeat, drink a bottle of Nyquil and let yourself get sucked under. The other track from the 12", "Toilet Door Tits", is an endless rhythmic jam, with ultra blown out drums, sounding a bit like some Butthole Surfers / Laddio Bolocko hybrid, albeit WAY more distorted and damaged. The sound is completely fried, the whole track sounding like it's crumbling through your speakers, strangled vocals drift amidst the tribal pummel, as do weird alien sounding squiggly leads that squirm and slither from speaker to speaker giving the whole track a super disorienting effect.
The other long track on Kuss Mich is the epic and drowsily sprawling "Preventions Arise", 10 minutes of muted almost industrial sounding rhythms, way more moody and washed out than the other tracks, an endless muddy murky rhythmic jam, pulsing and throbbing, a propulsive groove beneath a very noir spoken word. Strange but a good balance to the sheer brutality of the other tracks.
Scattered all around these three massive jams are jagged little chunks of shiny shit, blasts of noise and crunch and buzz and pound, from brief flurries of machine like grind, furious blast beats, and stuttering off kilter rhythms, to total Buttholes worship, pounding tribal rhythm, buzzing fuzz guitar, hypnotic and intense, to tripped out abstract skitter, all warbly distorted bass, and processed vox, to huge blown out chug and churn, heavy and epic and massively distorted and blown out.
Once again, more proof that these guys (and gals) are the current reigning kings and queens of crushing chaotic drugged out drone drenched drum corps psych-doom heaviness.
Killer packaging, very simple and cryptic, shit brown paper and metallic gold ink shine!
MPEG Stream: "Biggest Cock In Christendom"
MPEG Stream: "The Germans Call It A Swimming Head"
MPEG Stream: "Kuss Miche, Meine Liebe"

SHIT AND SHINE Ladybird (Latitudes 0:01) (Latitudes / Southern) cd 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
These Latitudes cds have beeen a bitch to get. Thanks to everyone for beeing so patient. They are super limited and only a handful even make it to the states, and of that handful we have to fight tooth and nail to get enough to list. We only now managed to get 20 copies of the inaugural Latitudes dics, number ONE, from the UK's Shit And Shine, a gore soaked, bloody nosed, sweat stained knee to the groin. Multiple drummers, lots of guitars, a toy keyboard and one mighty riff. Think prime era Butthole Surfers, add some Stooges stomp and some Hawkwind spaciness, an unstoppable wall of crushing churning psychedelic crunch, thick sludgy basslines, fuzzy filthy guitars, grunted shouted vocals, all in a druggy swirl of effects, random noises and full on brain frying weirdness. A glorious forty minute pummelling.
Comes packaged in a super intricate hand screened die cut fold over sleeve with a full color insert. Each copy hand stamped and numbered. Limited to 1000 copies worldwide, 500 of which made it to the United States, only 20 of which made it here. So you know what that means!
MPEG Stream: "Ladybird (Excerpt)"

SHIT AND SHINE Ladybird (Latitudes 0:01V) (Latitudes / Southern) lp 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
One of our favorite in Southern's Latitudes series, available on super duper limited vinyl!!!! We got 30 copies and will never be able to get more. So jump on these quick...
Full on, over the top, freaked out psychedelic, drum drenched guitarnoise from this massive UK ensemble Shit And Shine, a a gore soaked, bloody nosed, sweat stained sonic knee to the groin. Multiple drummers, lots of guitars, a toy keyboard and one mighty riff. Think prime era Butthole Surfers, add some Stooges stomp and some Hawkwind spaciness, an unstoppable wall of crushing churning psychedelic crunch, thick sludgy basslines, fuzzy filthy guitars, grunted shouted vocals, all in a druggy swirl of effects, random noises and full on brain frying weirdness. A glorious forty minute pummeling.
Comes packaged in a cool diecut sleeve, a variation on the immediately recognizable Latitudes cd packaging, although this time, white on black instead of white on brown. Includes the same insert as the cd. Pressed on bright red vinyl. And of course, SUPER SUPER LIMITED!!!
MPEG Stream: "Ladybird (Excerpt)"

SHIT AND SHINE Le Grand Larance Prix (Riot Season) cd 15.98
Originally released on the Rock Is Hell label as a super limited triple lp, this twisted chunk of sprawling rhythmic whatthefuck weirdness from these Texas-by-way-of-the-UK-by-way-of-Texas-again multiple drummer-ed noiseniks is now finally available on cd, also super limited, originally only orderable direct from the label, we're the only store in the US to have these, and they won't last long, so grab one before they're gone...
Le Grand Larance Prix just might be Shit And Shine's most ambitious and most over the top record yet, which is saying a lot, considering pretty much everything these guys do pretty goddamn over the top. But this one really takes the cake, pushing their sound in a whole different direction. We might have imagined them going even noiser, more drum heavy, but no, instead, $&$ offer up a bunch of epic jams, looped out and tranced out, that tend toward the super minimal, the mesmerizingly rhythmic, ultra repetitive and hypnotic, but not in the usual bombastic heavy $&$ way, no these are like alternative universe minimal dancefloor chillout jams. Or something. Probably best to just go through em one at a time...
"Flirtations At A Cocktail Party", pretty much sets the template, looped tribal drumming, a revving engine, loping low slung bassline, all blurred and looped into a sort of abstract rhythmic mesmer, laced with strange robotic vox, like some sort of alien lo-fi electro, the track gradually growing more and more blown out, finally becoming extra melodic and dense right near the end. That's the most typically Shit & Shine track of the bunch, cuz the next one, "Frankies Theme" dials everything back, loopy and minimal, with muted melodies, a sort of circular slow motion groove, motorik and locked in, while around it sounds swirl and shimmer, distant melodic swells ebb and flow, it's sidelong but it's the sort of thing that sounds like it could have gone on forever.
"Switching 2 Nite Mode" definitely lives up to its title by swiping the main part of the Rolling Stones' "Emotional Rescue" and looping it into a jumbled psychedelic freakout, adding swirls of processed vox (even some sliced and diced Jagger falsetto), dubbed out production, some deep ominous vocals all slowed down, before the song transforms into a slo-mo creep, all weirdly muted and creepily sexy. Which leads right into "Frenchys Automotive", another super minimal loop-jam, a main melody repeated rhythmically, pulsing hypnotically, the vibe almost kosmische, but more sort of murky and mesmerizing, that main figure looped and looped, while all around it, random sounds swirl and shimmer druggily.
The home stretch starts off with "How To Rattle A White Tailed Buck", which unfurls a brittle looped melody, peppered with occasional rib cage rattling boomin' system low end bass thumps, the whole thing sort of blurpy and lumbering, a stuttery groove that shuffles through clouds of staticky hiss, which bleeds right into the final track, "Klipp", which is most definitely the most high fidelity of the bunch, super heavy, repetitive, Circle like hypno-rock, but a bit more minimal, the main guitar riff and shuffling rhythm totally in sync, while all around it sounds swirl and decay, shards of melodies and and crumbling FX, processed vocals and constantly shifting layers wreathe the hypno-rock in a buzzy, blurry, noisy gauze. Fuck yeah. The cd version comes in a green minimal digipak style sleeve that sort of apes the original lp packaging. And as mentioned above, SUPER limited, we have about 25 copies, and then that's probably IT!!
Packaged in a 6 panel hand screened triple gatefold jacket!
MPEG Stream: "Flirtations At A Cocktail Party"
MPEG Stream: "Switching 2 Nite Mode"
MPEG Stream: "Klipp"

SHIT AND SHINE Le Grand Larance Prix (Rock Is Hell) 3lp 44.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Latest sprawling rhythmic whatthefuck epic from these Texas-by-way-of-the-UK-by-way-of-Texas-again multiple drummer-ed weirdos, and it's maybe their most ambitious and most over the top yet, which is saying a lot, considering pretty much everything these guys do pretty goddamn over the top. But this triple lp takes their sound in a whole different direction. We might have imagined them going even noiser, more drum heavy, but no, instead, $&$ offer up six sidelong jams, looped out and tranced out, that tend toward the super minimal, the mesmerizingly rhythmic, ultra repetitive and hypnotic, but not in the usual bombastic heavy $&$ way, no these are like alternative universe minimal dancefloor chillout jams. Or something. Probably best to just go through em one at a time...
Side A, "Flirtations At A Cocktail Party", pretty much sets the template, looped tribal drumming, a revving engine, loping low slung bassline, all blurred and looped into a sort of abstract rhythmic mesmer, laced with strange robotic vox, like some sort of alien lo-fi electro, the track gradually growing more and more blown out, finally becoming extra melodic and dense right near the end. That's the most typically Shit & Shine track of the bunch, cuz the next one, "Frankies Theme" dials everything back, loopy and minimal, with muted melodies, a sort of circular slow motion groove, motorik and locked in, while around it sounds swirl and shimmer, distant melodic swells ebb and flow, it's sidelong but it's the sort of thing that sounds like it could have gone on forever.
The second lp starts with "Switching 2 Nite Mode", which lives up to its title by swiping the main part of the Rolling Stones' "Emotional Rescue" and looping it into a jumbled psychedelic freakout, adding swirls of processed vox (even some sliced and diced Jagger falsetto), dubbed out production, some deep ominous vocals all slowed down, before the song transforms into a slo-mo creep, all weirdly muted and creepily sexy. The flipside, "Frenchys Automotive", is another super minimal loop-jam, a main melody repeated rhythmically, pulsing hypnotically, the vibe almost kosmische, but more sort of murky and mesmerizing, that main figure looped and looped, while all around it, random sounds swirl and shimmer druggily.
The final lp starts off with "How To Rattle A White Tailed Buck", which unfurls a brittle looped melody, peppered with occasional rib cage rattling boomin' system low end bass thumps, the whole thing sort of blurpy and lumbering, a stuttery groove that shuffles through clouds of staticky hiss, which finally leads to the final side / track, "Klipp", which is most definitely the most high fidelity of the bunch, super heavy, repetitive, Circle like hypno-rock, but a bit more minimal, the main guitar riff and shuffling rhythm totally in sync, while all around it sounds swirl and decay, shards of melodies and and crumbling FX, processed vocals and constantly shifting layers wreathe the hypno-rock in a buzzy, blurry, noisy gauze.
Packaged in a 6 panel hand screened triple gatefold jacket, pressed on white vinyl, and LIMITED TO 184 COPIES!!!

SHIT AND SHINE Le Grand Larance Prix (Red) (Rock Is Hell) 3lp 36.00
Back in print/stock, now in a red sleeve with black printing, these came in the mail slightly damaged, so anal record nerds steer clear, but for everyone else, these are seriously discounted, so if slightly bumped corners and less than perfect sleeves don't bug you, snap one of these up before they're gone...
Latest sprawling rhythmic whatthefuck epic from these Texas-by-way-of-the-UK-by-way-of-Texas-again multiple drummer-ed weirdos, and it's maybe their most ambitious and most over the top yet, which is saying a lot, considering pretty much everything these guys do pretty goddamn over the top. But this triple lp takes their sound in a whole different direction. We might have imagined them going even noiser, more drum heavy, but no, instead, $&$ offer up six sidelong jams, looped out and tranced out, that tend toward the super minimal, the mesmerizingly rhythmic, ultra repetitive and hypnotic, but not in the usual bombastic heavy $&$ way, no these are like alternative universe minimal dancefloor chillout jams. Or something. Probably best to just go through em one at a time...
Side A, "Flirtations At A Cocktail Party", pretty much sets the template, looped tribal drumming, a revving engine, loping low slung bassline, all blurred and looped into a sort of abstract rhythmic mesmer, laced with strange robotic vox, like some sort of alien lo-fi electro, the track gradually growing more and more blown out, finally becoming extra melodic and dense right near the end. That's the most typically Shit & Shine track of the bunch, cuz the next one, "Frankies Theme" dials everything back, loopy and minimal, with muted melodies, a sort of circular slow motion groove, motorik and locked in, while around it sounds swirl and shimmer, distant melodic swells ebb and flow, it's sidelong but it's the sort of thing that sounds like it could have gone on forever.
The second lp starts with "Switching 2 Nite Mode", which lives up to its title by swiping the main part of the Rolling Stones' "Emotional Rescue" and looping it into a jumbled psychedelic freakout, adding swirls of processed vox (even some sliced and diced Jagger falsetto), dubbed out production, some deep ominous vocals all slowed down, before the song transforms into a slo-mo creep, all weirdly muted and creepily sexy. The flipside, "Frenchys Automotive", is another super minimal loop-jam, a main melody repeated rhythmically, pulsing hypnotically, the vibe almost kosmische, but more sort of murky and mesmerizing, that main figure looped and looped, while all around it, random sounds swirl and shimmer druggily.
The final lp starts off with "How To Rattle A White Tailed Buck", which unfurls a brittle looped melody, peppered with occasional rib cage rattling boomin' system low end bass thumps, the whole thing sort of blurpy and lumbering, a stuttery groove that shuffles through clouds of staticky hiss, which finally leads to the final side / track, "Klipp", which is most definitely the most high fidelity of the bunch, super heavy, repetitive, Circle like hypno-rock, but a bit more minimal, the main guitar riff and shuffling rhythm totally in sync, while all around it sounds swirl and decay, shards of melodies and and crumbling FX, processed vocals and constantly shifting layers wreathe the hypno-rock in a buzzy, blurry, noisy gauze.
Packaged in a 6 panel hand screened triple gatefold jacket!
MPEG Stream: "Flirtations At A Cocktail Party"
MPEG Stream: "Switching 2 Nite Mode"
MPEG Stream: "Klipp"

SHIT AND SHINE Live At The aQuarius recOrds / WFMU Showcase - SXSW 2010 (Sleeping Giant Glossolalia) lp 17.98
The 2010 aQuarius / WFMU South By Southwest showcase was pretty tough to beat, if we do say so ourselves. An entire night of aQ faves, every single one kicking huge amounts of ass, and basically blowing us away over and over again. Just check out the lineup: Speedwolf, Iron Man, Moon Duo, Pierced Arrows, Dengue Fever, Epileptinomicon, Todd, True Widow, Sonny & The Sunsets, Headdress, Home Blitz, Drunkdriver, and Shit And Shine. We'd be hard pressed to pick a favorite set of the night, but lots of folks, ourselves included, might find ourselves leaning toward the rhythmic chaotic cacophony of Shit And Shine, a UK based multi-drummer drone-psych-noise unit who once called Texas home. And who, besides kicking up a glorious drum heavy racket, managed to keep the crowd riveted for their whole set, the members clad in strange costumes, a bunny suit, creepy plastic masks, furry animal heads, all while manning multiple drumkits and constantly switching instruments, and creating a glorious wall of pulsing, pounding, hypnotic sound. Luckily, the whole thing was captured on tape. And while maybe something is lost without the visuals, the music holds up surprisingly well on its own, the group's single song set spread out over two sides, right out of the gate, the band lock into a rhythm and don't let up.
The sound is blown out and in the red, helping make it sound exactly like being there (and like you forgot your earplugs), the legion of drummers, pounding out a rhythm in perfect unison, while the rest of the $+$ crew do their thing, their thing in this case being super distorted fuzzed out bass, processed alien vocals, blasts of screeching feedback, squalls of psychedelic white noise buzz, a sound that is basically krautrock writ NOISY and BLOWN OUT and HEAD CAVINGLY LOUD!
By the time the second half (side) rolls around, the buzz and pound are interrupted by thick shards of almost poppy melody, streaks of almost shogazey looped fragmented noise, until finally the jam switches gears, just a bit, and we get the $+$ version of 'bringing it down', a churning Circle like sludgekraut hypnorock groove that plays out until the record settles into a locked groove, which if you're not paying attention, will have you listening to that single groove for EVER, before realizing something is up. And hell, we actually listened to it for 5 or 6 minutes, and probably would have let it keep on playing... (and the first side ends with a locked groove too, so be prepared to be mesmerized, endlessly there too!)...
Heavy and hypnotic, the perfect sonic souvenir if you were there, an even more perfect slab of crushing corrosive rhythmic noise rock weirdness if you weren't.
Housed in a full color sleeve, an Austin backyard on one side, one of the $+$-ers on the other. Includes a Xeroxed insert, LIMITED TO 500 COPIES, each one hand numbered.

SHIT AND SHINE Toilet Door Tits (Conspiracy) lp 18.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We discovered a little stash of these long out of print Conspiracy lps, we have between 5 and 10 of each left, and they're all sale priced, WAY cheaper than they were when we listen them a while back. So act fast, cuz these will be gone pretty dang quick, and obviously, once we run out that's it.
Our pals at Conspiracy Records, a label/distro based in Belgium, who in the past have brought us records by Boris, Jesu, Shora and more, are this year celebrating their 10 year anniversary. A decade of amazing music. From a bedroom based punk rock label, to one of Europe's most important and influential labels and distros, all we can say is HURRAY! And HUZZAH! It's always so exciting, when a bunch of folks get together to spread the word about great music, great WEIRD music, and survive, even thrive. Such is the case with Conspiracy. And as if that weren't already enough, just knowing that some great people were selling some amazing music, those sweeties at Conspiracy have decided to share the love with us. And you.
To celebrate their 10th anniversary, they've decided to do a super limited subscription series, 12 records over 12 months, each limited to somewhere between 200-500 copies, ONLY available to series subscribers. EXCEPT, they've decided to let AQ have 20 copies of each, we're the only store with copies of these subscriber only lps, and for a brief moment, we can offer them to you, our loyal AQ customers. Needless to say we are thrilled, as the series lineup reads like a who's who of AQ faves, as well as including a handful of lesser knowns. All pressed on super thick vinyl, and packaged in killer hand screened original art sleeves. But be warned, we only got 20 of each, and we will run out fast and we will not be able to get more. When we do run out, there is a chance you can still get one from Conspiracy direct, but what that means is act fast and prepare to leave empty handed.
We sure do love Shit And Shine. Every record we get by this UK sort-of-collective is weirder, noisier and more fucked up than the last. With a massive lineup featuring multiple guitarists, multiple drummers as well as various unorthodox, non-musical noise makers, these guys manage to make beautiful sounds ugly, and ugly sounds beautiful. It's confusing actually. Their sound is so chaotic and harsh, but so totally captivating and hypnotic, this 12" is no different. Two epic, massive sidelong tracks. The first, an endless rhythmic jam, with ultra blown out drums, sounding a bit like some Butthole Surfers / Laddio Bolocko hybrid, albeit WAY more distorted and damaged. The sound is completely fried, the whole record sounding like it's crumbling through your speakers, strangled vocals drift amidst the tribal pummel, as do weird alien sounding squiggly leads that squirm and slither from speaker to speaker giving the whole track a super disorienting affect.
The second side is a bit more subdued, but only a bit. An in-the-red tribal workout, like a more metallic and way more distorted and druggy No Neck Blues Band. Thick pulses of low end drift beneath streaks of super distorted amp damage, all very krautrock sounding, but filtered through a bank of effects pedals, all broken or with dying batteries. Definitely blissed out and mesmerizing, but so ominous and creepy. A side of this stuff is not nearly enough. Set it to repeat, drink a bottle of Nyquil and let yourself get sucked under.
Cool silkscreened 'bug' cover and some amazingly problematic song titles!

SHIT AND SHINE You're Lucky To Have Friends Like Us (Riot Season) lp 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
You might want to keep an old rag next to your turntable for this one, to wipe the grit and grime and goo off your needle when you're done listening to this slab of sonic what-the-fuck. A confusional mix of buzzy, damaged psych rock spaceout, Buttholes style tribal weirdness, straight up icepick in the ear noise rock, speaker melting sludge and some very unlikely pop filigree. Instrumentation includes multiple drummers, multiple lawnmowers (?) and lots of guitar all melded into a pummelling wall of grindsludgepopnoisepsych. White vinyl with a hand scibbled insert in a thick plastic sleeve. Limited to 500 copies.
MPEG Stream: "The Trees Will Mourn"
MPEG Stream: "Don't Look At Me Don't Leave Me"
MPEG Stream: "Recommencons"

SHIT AND SHINE / EXPENSIVE SHIT Romantic And Macho At The Same Time (Monofonus Press) 7" 8.98
A pretty good match up, and not just based on the band names (although it doesn't get much more perfect than that). Our beloved Texas by way of the UK by way of Texas drum heavy rhythmic noise rockers Shit And Shine start things off with some super lo-fi, looped and repetitive dubbed out minimalism, weird echoey vox draped over a surprisingly super mellow bit of drift and drag, creepy and spaced out, a little skittery and shuffly, at least until it EXPLODES in a blast of grinding distorto noise and howling feedback, transforming the sound into some sort of blacknoise power electronics industrial stomp, yet for all it caustic noisiness, it remains surprisingly rhythmic and hypnotic, the sound SO distorted it seems to be crumbling and decaying as the track plays, replete with all manner of glitches and drop outs, which makes it almost sound like Shit And Shine covering Faxed Head!
We had never heard of Expensive Shit before, but it definitely sounds like the equipment they're using is anything BUT. They counter with their own sort of lo-fi noise rock dubbiness, a twisted, murky, FX flecked dark sonic churn, laced with all manner of clatter and crunch, all over a roiling spaced out dronescape. After a brief blast of noise, the track settles into a slithery, skeletal bit of abstract industrial noise dub, that sounds like Throbbing Gristle recording at King Tubby's and as that might have you imagining, it sounds pretty damn good.

SHITMAT / LADYSCRAPER Grungecore Volume 1 (Fukdup) 7" 6.50
There's been much talk about grunge around aQ these days. A lot of it has to do with the fact that a bunch of us just love grunge, STILL, and thus talk about it all the time. But beyond that, Andee recently dedicated an entire radio show to his grunge favorites, and this summer is the Sub Pop 20th anniversary celebration, which rumor has it, might entail a Green River reunion! And now there's this, the first volume in a proposed series called Grungecore. And the second we heard about it, we knew we needed it!
Gabber jungle dancehall electronic freak Shitmat, covering Nirvana's "Negative Creep"!!! As if that weren't enough, the flipside is some other crazed electronic tweaker taking on Nirvana's "Senseless Apprentice" (aka "Scentless Apprentice"). And if even that weren't still enough, every single 7" comes in a sleeve, hand sewn from actual flannel shirts! Holy shit!!!
So the Shitmat side is a killer. It begins with all this throbbing black ambience, weird rhythmic skitter, which explodes into a fierce relentless blast of gabber madness. But it no way does it sound anything like Nirvana. UNTIL, the vocals kick in, and then it fits, it sound so right, it wouldn't be hard to imagine Kurt Kobain fronting some band on DHR back in the nineties, the rhythm of the original is kept intact, with the little pauses filled with flurries of jungle instead of that moaning guitar, the howling at the end of the chorus processed into some fucked up digital scream. Only reminds us how much we love Shitmat.
The flipside is someone called Ladyscraper, and their version of "Scentless Apprentice" sounds nothing like the original, less of a remix, more of an interpretation. Huge chunks of throbbing sizzling synth, massive grinding bass, the beats are more like speaker shredding bolts of digital crunch, the churn and skitter and occasionally explode into impossibly dense tangles of digital glitch. The vocals are super distorted, almost black metal, the whole thing stops and starts, super convoluted, it's basically impossible to tell it's a Nirvana song, but that doesn't mean it's not awesome.
Each 7" comes in its own flannel sleeve, hand sewn, from various parts of various different flannel shirts. Some are sleeves, and have buttons or cuffs, others have parts of collars, a few have a strange mudflap that flops outside the plastic sleeve. Each sleeve has a Grungecore sticker affixed to the front and a FUKDUP label Sub Pop parody sticker on the back, LIMITED TO 500 COPIES, the label on the 7" is hand stamped and hand numbered, and includes a photocopied insert with liner notes and rad high school drawings. WAY recommended.

SHITS AND GIGGLES Trick Or Treat (Free Dope And Fucking In The Streets) lp 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
***Ariel Pink alert!!!!*** ***Total mind-fuck alert!!!***
Shits And Giggles is a brand new band that features Ariel Pink alongside the mutant sonic terrorists the Vas Deferens Organization. While everyone in the world seems to be biting on Ariel Pink's brand of outsider pop, recently, it's kind of awesome to see him take a total left turn and create a completely different, but equally warped sonic beast.
Shits And Giggles wander in a musical landscape that feels like it's being beamed over from a different galaxy. Collapsing fucked up jazzy rhythms melt into plunderphonic like excursions while taking turns into psychedelic funk and other worldly whatthefuckness. All totally insane yet somehow still so damn compelling and weirdly trance inducing. You can hear how records by Negativland, Nurse With Wound, John Oswald, Throbbing Gristle, Muslimgauze, Wicked Witch, Sublime Frequencies, etc. have seeped their way into Shits And Giggles' subconscious, and no doubt about it this is a uniquely distorted musical adventure. Vas Deferens Organization are some of the folks who run the totally awesome blog Mutant Sounds, so it's no surprise that they have found their own way to create some completely tripped out magic of their own. Even though it's nothing like an Ariel Pink album there are still moments, the production, specific sounds, certain melodies and phrases, that are still so recognizably Ariel Pink. A total must have for Ariel Pink fans and everyone else into the demented done right!

SHITTY LISTENER, THE Crying Sweater (Ruralfaune) cd 13.98
Latest from The Shitty Listener, still one of the greatest band names EVER, and the work of Jason Honea, a satellite member of the Jewelled Antler Collective, having done time in Child Readers, Franciscan Hobbies, Knit Separates, Chord Fort, Teenage Panzercorps and loads of others, but The Shitty Listener finds the Berlin-based Honea going it mostly alone, creating, delicate, hushed, ultra fragile minimal anti pop, gorgeous drifts of barely there sound, the various non musical elements as much a part of the sound as anything else. Organs whir, Honea's gentle croon hovers and flits, suspended in a cloud of tape hiss, while all around, children play, footsteps clomp by, dishes clank and crash, as if Honea was huddled in the corner, trying desperately to capture a sound, before the outside world intrudes, and only sort of succeeding, but in that partial failure lies the magic of the Shitty Listener. Each song is a captured moment, alive, and immediate, and organic, this is not music you can play in the store, or blast in your car stereo, this is music made to get lost in, the sonic equivalent of the musician, sneaking up to you and crooning directly in your ear. A pair of headphones, and your transported to the world of The Shitty Listener, where music is only a part of the sound.
The songs are not just home recorded, many are captured out in the open, on walks, in fields, by the beach, near the seaside, birds chirp, people walk by, oblivious to the fact that they are contributing to a magical micro moment of musical mystery.
And for all its low fidelity, the sound is strangely lush, and impossibly warm and enveloping. Hissing melodies and softly strummed guitars are whipped up into blurred swirling clouds of feedback drenched drones, but somehow it's never noisy, just dense, and layered, and even in these noisy moments, you can still hear the detritus of life surrounding the music.
"I Keep Dreaming To Myself" sounds as close to a proper song, until Honea stops midsong to talk, and again, lovely strummed guitar is wrapped around, weird moaning melodies, creaks and rumbles, distant bells, a slowly crumbling collage, which leads right into the 12+ minute "The Burst Heart", which begins with a cacophony of crunch and scrape before settling into an ultra minimal bit of dronefolk, which builds to some intense strumming, before slipping right back to a whisper.
The record plays out in a similar fashion, fractured folk gives way to abstract ambience, gentle croons set amidst fluttering flutes, and strange space-y melodies, loops and drones way off in the distance, while rattles rattle and bells tinkle, and voices chatter in a cloud of burnished hiss, finishing off with the Shitty Listener version of a Murder Ballad, melancholy and mournful, infused with a bit of blurred warmth, some streaks of feedback, some tinkling toy xylophones, some reverberant buzz, before Honea instructs everyone to stop playing, and Shitty Listener's buzz and chime finally stumbles to a halt. So strange and magical and fantastic.
MPEG Stream: "Seeing Through Eyes Of Tears"
MPEG Stream: "Area Women"
MPEG Stream: "Pray Me Away"
MPEG Stream: "Grow Up To Dreams"

SHIVER San Francisco's Shiver (Shadoks Music) cd 15.98
The music on this cd represents the entire recorded output of this obscure early '70s acid-rock band. Shiver recorded this stuff live to two-track tape in the summer of 1972, and while they never released an album back in the day, it's clear that the world is ready for their heavy guitar jams now. Well, maybe not the world -- but certainly those of us, mostly too young to have "been there then", who aren't entirely satisfied with today's stoner metal and are always looking for the real deal, the lost stoner psych monster.
Basically, Shiver were a bunch of hard-rocking hippie freaks, brought together by a Texas-bred drummer who moved to San Francisco to take up where his obvious heroes Blue Cheer left off. They soon had a rather rough, tough reputation, playing Haight street fairs and Hells Angels biker parties. At one point they even had a singer with an iron hook for a hand, which he could use as a slide for his guitar, or for more violent purposes. Shiver played "heavy psychedelic rock" at its most primal -- no overdubs, raw as hell.
Portions of this were previously available as an expensive Rockadelic LP, but the cd adds quite a few extra, lower-fidelity tracks as a "bonus."
RealAudio clip: "Bone Shaker"

SHIVVERS, THE Lost Hits From Milwaukee's First Family Of Power Pop: 1979-82 (Hyped To Death) cd 13.98

SHLOHMO Bad Vibes (Tall Corn Music) 2lp 27.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We don't care what the rest of the world says, we still love Witch House, or drag, or grave rave, or cave rave, or whatever you want to call it, we still can't seem to get enough of it, the murky slithery soundscapes of slo-mo rhythms, tarpit soul, slowed down vocals, everything wreathed in a cough syrupy haze, it's the perfect late night music, like a bastardized drug addled Portishead, which sounds amazing right? We've been particularly partial to the recent spate of groups crafting a sort of abstract soul, a minimal, washed out, woozy RnB that takes the tropes of the original sound and stretches 'em waaaay out and slows them waaaaay dooooown, the result being a blissed out sonic comedown, all lumbering shuffling beats, woozy washed out melodic swells, vocals alternatingly chopped and screwed or left to drift angelically amidst hazy clouds of druggy drift. Think How To Dress Well, Crypt Thing, D'eon, Holy Other, Dirty Beaches, Hype Williams and the like.
We had never heard Shlohmo before, and actually first discovered him via a recent local show featuring Water Borders, oOoOO, White Ring and other sonically similar soundscapers (think Witch House if you want, it's okay). Shlohmo definitely traffics in a similar sound. fans of any of the above mentioned bands, will no doubt dig Shlohmo as well, his sound leaning more toward the swirling slow motion melodicisim of Balam Acab or Clams Casino, the sound all slow strummed chords, wreathed in effects and layered beneath blurred vocals, occasionally deep and dramatic, but more often, a fluttery Prince like falsetto, spidery melodies, creepy rickety rhythms, slow motion stutters and woozy warble, those distinctly witch house-y female vox all layered into a sort of chordal thrum, the sounds here hovering mainly in some ethereal sun dappled Technicolor dreamworld, but once in a while the sounds gain momentum, and become darker, the sounds more caustic and crunchy, but even then, the vibe is more shoegazey and dreamily druggy, with the sound eventually slipping back into something much more drifty and ephemeral.
Gorgeous stuff. WAY recommend for fans of prettier dreamier drag (Balam Acab, Clams Casino, etc.)É
Packaged in a super swank full color gatefold sleeve, includes a download code as well.
MPEG Stream: "Big Feelings"
MPEG Stream: "Places"
MPEG Stream: "Anywhere But Here"

SHOCK Heaven (Voltaire) 12" 11.98
Latest 12" jam from local label Voltaire, and the first we've heard from local trio Shock, their song "Heaven", starts out all noisy and synthy, driven by a dark house-y pulse, which sort of had us expecting something all Carpenter/Goblin-y, but then the vocals come in, and the song is transformed into a gorgeous slab of retro electro pop shimmer, all groovy low slung bass line, reverby guitar jangle, ominous synth pulse, dubbed out handclaps, skittery beat, and some seriously divine, sultry vox, all wreathed in a gorgeously lush production, that had us thinking M83 for sure, a fantastic blast of fuzzed out shoegaze electronic house-pop.
The remixes are pretty bad ass too, probably most exciting for aQ-ers, is Steve Moore from Zombi's mix, which transforms it into a glistening cascade of percolating synth melodies, the house music pulse left intact, but the vocals blurred and smeared into long stretches of breathy looped drones. So good!
The other remixes are less dramatic, Beatbroker, as his name would suggest, goes heavier on the beat, while letting all the other sounds blur into something more ethereal and washed out, while Hatchback go the other direction entirely, and take the song in a much more eighties pop direction, more fuzzy retro-pop, all hazy and almost Beach House-y at times.
MPEG Stream: "Heaven"
MPEG Stream: "Heaven (Steve Moore Remix)"

SHOCKED, MICHELLE Threesome (Limited Edition) (Mighty Sound) 3cd 33.00
The latest from Ms Michelle Shocked is quite a doozy! Three differently themed full length albums -- Mexican Standoff, Don't Ask Don't Tell and Got No Strings -- offered up as a limited edition triple disc set on her own label, Mighty Sound.
MPEG Stream: "Early Morning Saturday"
MPEG Stream: "Baby Mine "

SHOCKING PINKS s/t (DFA) cd 13.98
DFA and Flying Nun Records unite, finally? Who knows why in the hell those two labels would ever get together, other than the fact that DFA's James Murphy seems intent on sticking his finger into every single existing part of music history -- sometimes effectively updating sounds and creating some interesting syntheses. Mr. Murphy's possible personal ambitions aside, the resulting product is pretty great. New Zealand's own Nick Harte comprises the one-man indie arsenal Shocking Pinks, which is an adept synthesis of its own. Try to imagine an album conceived and executed on a strict dietary regimen of Flying Nun, Sarah, and Creation Records, maybe even a little bit of Afghan Whigs' Gentleman. The result is a super chunk (wink, wink) of indie-pop goodness. Controlled, fuzzy guitars find a comfy home next to simple drums and simpler, more twee, slightly out-of-tune vocals, plus a dab of new wave synth-ibility. Not bad! Are we saying this is on par with what amounts to the absolute best indie labels of the '90s? Nah. But it is an awesome trip down memory lane, back to the days when indie rock wasn't perceived as being burnt-out hasbeens playing mediocre material for arena crowds or seriously lame highschoolers with black eyeliner. These were the days when it was acceptable, nay, required to embrace your inner (or outer) nerd and run with it. Yup. Mix tapes, 7"s, and '60s-style bowlcuts. Hell, do lovelorn, daydreaming teenagers even know what tapes are now?! Sigh... Well, half those labels are bankrupt, barely licensed out, but dammit, some of us just aren't done with it all yet. There is one little aberrant track entitled "Smokescreen," which isn't bad at all, but its cowbell and post-punk drumming really have no place on this record. Also, don't be scared of Harte's album closer, a warm and hazy cover of Arthur Russell's supremely beautiful "You Can make Me Feel Bad." Ah, but it feels so good. Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "How Am I Not Myself"
MPEG Stream: "You Can Make Me Feel Bad"

SHOES Black Vinyl Shoes (Black Vinyl / Numero Group) lp 16.98
Whenever we review some classic sounding pop record or vintage power pop reissue, we inevitably reference the Shoes, one of THEE seminal power pop groups, but one whose records have been out of print and unavailable for ages. Finally, all of the classic Shoes records are getting deluxe vinyl reissues, and what better place to start than their debut Black Vinyl Shoes (there were a few small run private press releases, but Black Vinyl Shoes was their proper debut)
These Illinois power poppers had it all, fuzzy jangly guitars, dreamy vox, lush vocal harmonies, hooks galore, and some of the catchiest songs EVER, their sound so obviously the blueprint for so many bands that would follow, plus there was a weirdness to their sound too, crazy effects, strange arrangements, all woven into their perfect power pop.
Black Vinyl Shoes is pretty much all killer no filler, every song a seemingly potential hit, in some perfect world where power pop filled up the charts, and you can hear lots of other bands past and present - Big Star, Dwight Twilley Band, Cheap Trick, Tinted Windows, Barreracudas, Jellyfish, Redd Kross, Purling Hiss, Home Blitz, Telekinesis!, we could go on and on and on and on, needless to say, absolutely essential listening for pop fans, and anyone who digs the current crop of fuzzy jangly pop groups, and wonders where that sound came from, well the answer is right here. Seriously, an essential. So glad for the reissue, wish they'd do cds too.
MPEG Stream: "Tragedy"
MPEG Stream: "Boys Don't Lie"
MPEG Stream: "Do You Wanna Get Lucky?"
MPEG Stream: "She'll Disappear"

SHOGUN KUNITOKI Tasankokaiku (Fonal) cd 17.98
Wow!!! Most loyal AQ customers are pretty aware of our total love and adoration of almost all things Finnish, especially pretty much everything released on Finnish label Fonal. They just have not done us wrong yet. Islaja, Kemialliset Ystavat, Paavoharju, Es, the list goes on and on. And while for the most part their releases focus on the more murky free folk side of Finnish underground rock they have proven to be a label that isn't just about one 'sound' but instead are simply about beautiful music. Period. Whether it's random ethereal forest folk, dreamy drifty swooning ambience, or crunchy chaotic tribalistic clatter. Their latest release, from the Helsinki quartet Shogun Kunitoki, is further proof to that effect, and dare we say this might even be the greatest thing Fonal has released. Some of you may be shouting IMPOSSIBLE! And under different circumstances we'd be right there with you. But just listenening to Tasankokaiku has us thinking not only is it possible, it's damn near for certain. Color! So much vibrant color just bursting out of Shogun Kunitoki's instrumental onslaught. It starts out on fire and every song and sound just feeds the flame. It's almost as if Steve Reich and Terry Riley raised a child weaned on the BBC Radiophonic experiments, a young Rick Wakeman who grew up listening to the fuzzy guitarscapes of M83's Dead Cities, Red Seas... and the dreamy and propulsive instrumental jams of Stereolab, and thus cultivated a totally informed yet unique outlook and approach to music and music making. The sounds on Tasankokaiku are triumphant and assured, flickering then bursting, warm and so totally alive! Knowing how to perfectly use repetition to build momentum and then suddenly blast off to sparkling spaces that make you feel like you're being spirited away to a place that you've never been to but have always dreamed about. A sparkling glistening land of thick warm keyboards, hypnotic prog laced krautrockiness, Neu-infused soundscapes, basically a world populated by all the sounds that drive us wild. This is another one of those rare records that is an across the board unanimous AQ favorite. Everyone who works here loves it. We all hear different things too, besides the above mentioned bands, Andee hears bits of Goblin and Zombi and Heldon, Allan hears hints of Aavikko and Cluster and Circle, Irwin noticed a little Broadcast and even some Raymond Scott, but no matter what you hear, or what shades of sound reveal themsleves to you, the sum is SO much greater than its parts. A gloriously dense and warm world of fuzzy sound that we just can't stop listening to. No matter what music you've been obsessed with lately, this is one of those special records that somehow trumps whatever it is, straight to the top of your listening pile, elbowing it's way past all the other discs in your collection right into your cd player where it will effortlessly fend off any other records wanting to get in there. It's that good.
MPEG Stream: "Montezuma"
MPEG Stream: "Leivonen"
MPEG Stream: "Piste"

SHOGUN KUNITOKI Vinonaamakasio (Fonal) cd 17.98
It's been over three years since we made Shogun Kunitoki's debut our Record Of The Week, which was just about the same time we fell deeply in love with this Finnish group's unique approach to songcraft, most noticeably using analog electronics to create dizzying and melodic songs that ensorcell and enthrall as they burst with color and dynamic flair.
This follow up picks right up where that amazing debut left off. So full of urgency and melody. Taking cues from minimalists like Reich and Glass and infusing a catchy intensity, reminiscent of M83's Dead Cities Read Seas & Lost Ghosts. There is a bombastic overload that grabs a hold of your imagination and lets it run wild amidst its bold and immaculately crafted popscapes. Songs that demand, command and pleasure all of your sensations. Shogun Kunitoki are able to make organs, ring modulators, and oscillators sound both classic and futuristic. Imagine a huge church with a high ceiling and stained glass windows, jammed with massive and ornate organs, while members of Broadcast, Stereolab and Black Moth Super Rainbow rock out on a grandiose Rick Wakeman like setup blasting out sounds that bring joy and ecstasy to all in the congregation.
Shogun Kunitoki are one of those rare bands that you can really get anyone into. Prog freaks, electro heads, pop lovers, psych fanatics, 20th century composer aficionados, experimental music fans, there's something for just about everyone in the dense and dizzying sounds that they create. Simply stunning!
MPEG Stream: "Holvikirkko"
MPEG Stream: "Mulberg"
MPEG Stream: "Svileto"

SHOLI Hejrat (Holocene) 7" 6.98
As featured on the cd that came with the latest music issue of The Believer, local SF group Sholi tackle a song by the seventies "Queen of Persian Pop", Googoosh, a beloved Iranian singer who brought much glamorous style and beauty to Middle Eastern pop music, before being forced underground by the Iranian revolution. According to Payram Bavafa, the bands singer/guitarist, "'Hejrat' is often regarded as one of Iran's most beautiful and romantic pop songs". Sholi extends the cover tributes to the B-side where they bravely take on Joanna Newsom's "The Sprout and The Bean" with surprisingly good results. Recorded by Greg Ashley it comes with a coupon to download mp3 versions of the two tracks. Nice!

SHOLI s/t (Quarterstick) cd 14.98
The first full length from this young SF band is given an admirable launch on the highly regarded Quarterstick label (home to Calexico, Mekons, Shipping News, Rachel's among many other wonderful music makers), and they've really taken flight! Though the band is certainly not new to us, their sound on this debut sure is. Caught us a bit by surprise, in fact! This is a far different from the by-the-books shufflin' slouchy indie rock Sholi of 2006. Indeed, the band has honed their chops and their songcraft quite a bit since their first (also self-titled) three song cd-r that they brought into our shop a mere three years ago almost to the day!
The 43-minute long album's eight songs feature lots of lush, expressive dynamics and post-rock complexities both in melody and rhythm. Solid from start to finish, but definitely check out the opening track "All The We Can See" and "Out Of Orbit". An impressive warm and beautiful 'official' debut!
MPEG Stream: "All That We Can See"
MPEG Stream: "Out Of Orbit"

SHOLI s/t ep (self-released) cd-r 3.98
Here's a short lil' three song introduction to this new Bay Area trio. This self-titled EP features gentle slouchy, slightly retro-pop sounding indie rock played out on the basics -- jangly electric guitar, solid bass and tumbling drums. Warm summery shades of Olympia, WA / K Records days past, old Sebadoh, or maybe imagine a lower-fi Sloan? Like what you hear? There'll be a full length comin' out soon, and rumor has it that it's gonna be produced by Mr. Greg 'Deerhoof' Saunier!
MPEG Stream: "Aimless"

SHOLI / DEAD SCIENCE split (KDVS Recordings) 7" 4.98

SHOOTING SPIRES s/t (Cardboard Records) cd 11.98
Shooting Spires is one fella, BJ Warshaw from the Brooklyn band Parts & Labor. His debut solo album raises a warmly familiar indie rock racket with its furious strumming, clatterous drumming, wheezing organ keyboards, and hazily bristled male vocals. Very much drawing from the tweaked, buzzy, raucous pop vein of Guided By Voices. Heck, we hope he never does, but if Robert Pollard ever does decide to close up his pop shop, it's comforting to know that he's already left such an indelible mark. And that there are young'uns who will fly his noise pop flag and do him proud.
MPEG Stream: "Right"
MPEG Stream: "At Last At Least"

SHOP ASSISTANTS s/t (4 Men With Beards) lp 19.98
NOW ON VINYL!!
Only a few of us had even heard of this Scottish '80s indie sensation when this amazing reissue first hit our shelves but as soon as we listened we all instantly became huge fans and couldn't believe how they had managed to slip under our radar.
Coming out of the same scene that spawned The Pastels, this is really the precursor to the amazing twee and indie rock that would so dominate the underground music scene in the decade to come. Kind of like an impossibly amazing mix of Heavenly, The Vaselines and the driving spirit of early R.E.M. The songs of the Shop Assistants practically sound like the blueprints for K records. We have to believe folks like Beat Happening and The Softies had copies of this record when the whole International Pop Underground movement started up. We hear so much of our favorite indie pop sounds in this record: Magnetic Fields, Yo La Tengo, Belle & Sebastian, Electrelane, Vivian Girls, The Aislers Set, we could go on and on. It also makes perfect sense that Stephen Street engineered the record as it also fits so nicely sonically next to the records he worked on with The Smiths. The Shop Assistants can sound so dreamy and also so peppy and rocking, fully charming and irresistible without every being cutsey. This is a must have for anyone with a love for any of the bands mentioned above, indie rock, twee, dream pop, etc. Totally endearing and so damn good! If we have anything to do with it, Shop Assistants will no longer be the best kept secret in indie pop history. This is amazing!
MPEG Stream: "I Don't Want To Be Friends With You"
MPEG Stream: "All That Ever Mattered"
MPEG Stream: "All Of The Time"

SHOP ASSISTANTS Will Anything Happen (Cherry Red) cd 17.98
Only a few of us had even heard of this Scottish '80s indie sensation when this amazing reissue first hit our shelves but as soon as we listened we all instantly became huge fans and couldn't believe how they had managed to slip so far under our radar.
Coming out of the same scene that spawned The Pastels, this is really the precursor to the amazing twee and indie rock that would so dominate the underground music scene in the decade to come. Kind of like an impossibly amazing mix of Heavenly, The Vaselines and the driving spirit of early R.E.M. The songs of the Shop Assistants practically sound like the blueprints for K records. We have to believe folks like Beat Happening and The Softies had copies of this record when the whole International Pop Underground movement started up. We hear so much of our favorite indie pop sounds in this record: Magnetic Fields, Yo La Tengo, Belle & Sebastian, Electrelane, Vivian Girls, The Aislers Set, we could go on and on. It also makes perfect sense that Stephen Street engineered the record as it also fits so nicely sonically next to the records he worked on with The Smiths. The Shop Assistants can sound so dreamy and also so peppy and rocking, fully charming and irresistible without every being cutsey. This is a must have for anyone with a love for any of the bands mentioned above, indie rock, twee, dream pop, etc. Totally endearing and so damn good! If we have anything to do with it, Shop Assistants will no longer be the best kept secret in indie pop history. This is amazing!
MPEG Stream: "I Don't Want To Be Friends With You"
MPEG Stream: "All That Ever Mattered"
MPEG Stream: "All Of The Time"

SHORA Malval (Conspiracy) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
It's been a struggle to figure out what to write about this record. It's a gorgeous moody slab of blissed out mathy post rock. We love that stuff. A lot. But it's really difficult to explain exactly why this record is somehow WAY more than just a post-rock record. It's maybe MORE, more moody, more mathy, more blissed out, but there's still some ineffable thing that turns Shora into a whole other proposition. Similar to the way that Fuehler and Turing Machine in the past took the sound of their post rock forefathers to whole new realms, Shora, breathe new life, breathe fire even, into what has become the sound du riguer of the indie underground. How exactly is a bit tougher to pin down. It's very repetitive, some riffs practically become loops, repeating over and over, inducing some serious mesmeric listening, each looped post-rock-scape is underpinned by dense but complex krautrocky rhythms, that occasionally explode into spikey tangles of free jazz mathrock octopoidal polyrhythms before settling back into dreamy head nodding grooves. The guitars are like chameleons, snakey smokey tendrils one second, huge jagged metallic shards the next, turning from bell like chimes into slinky slippery smears of sound all within a matter of seconds. Majestic, haunting, repetitive and completely fascinating. That's just the first three tracks too, 24 minutes of dense, layered, experimental instrumental rock music perfection. Then there's the very strange final track, which starts out as a soft focused dreamscape, all gauzy and shimmery, before out of the blue, down comees a blast of bizarre pounding Gary Glitter sounding glam rock stomp, right there in the middle of the song! The stomp quickly gives way to some organ drenched Goblin worship before slipping softly back into dark droney ambience. But that's not all, suddenly there are female vocals, and not wispy soft ones, no we're talking a throaty belt, more PJ Harvey than Grouper or Paavoharju, at first it's a little bit jarring, but after a few moments it makes perfect sense. But it only lasts a few moments. Which is maybe indicative of why this band is so great. Putting that much thought into a tiny part, and finding a vocalist, coming up with melodies, lyrics, all for the last minute or two of the last song on your record. Few bands would bother. Which is precisely the point wethinks. It's easy to tell that the same sort of meticulous preparation and deep thought went into every part of this record. But without sacrificing any of the passion or immediacy that makes music so vital. Which is a rare thing indeed.
MPEG Stream: "Parhelion"
MPEG Stream: "Arch & Hum"

SHOTMAKER The Complete Discography 1993-1996 (Troubleman Unlimited) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SHOULD A Folding Sieve (Captured Tracks) cd 14.98
The first in a new series of archival shoegaze reissues from Captured Tracks comes from the late great and almost entirely unsung Texas shoegaze outfit Should, who were in fact called shiFt when these tracks were first recorded and released in 1995, the record was re-released a few years later with more tracks including some killer covers (18th Dye, Jean Paul Sartre Experience) and the cd version of this collection is essentially a new version of that record (the lp version includes the bonus tracks as downloads), and Should / shiFt offer up exactly what you would expect from a mid-nineties shoegaze combo, shimmering atmospheres, dreamy male/female vocals, hushed minimal drumming, and warm washed out woozily distorted electric guitars, the guitar sound of particular note, as the liner notes explains that Should mainman Marc Ostermeier not only didn't own a guitar, but also couldn't PLAY guitar, so created loops and samples from pre-recorded guitar parts, and also didn't own any distortion or effects pedals, so basically just misused and abused his mixer to achieve the desired effect, and the results are pretty fantastic. Indie rock jangle, a little twee, wreathed in thick swaths of warm whirling guitar buzz, minimal programmed beats, lazy vox, sun dappled and dreamy, warmly distorted, sometimes thick and lush, other times delicate and crystalline, but dreamy and divine throughout.
MPEG Stream: "Rolling"
MPEG Stream: "Breathe Salt"
MPEG Stream: "Feels Like Morning"
MPEG Stream: "Clean"

SHOULD A Folding Sieve (Captured Tracks) lp 16.98
The first in a new series of archival shoegaze reissues from Captured Tracks comes from the late great and almost entirely unsung Texas shoegaze outfit Should, who were in fact called shiFt when these tracks were first recorded and released in 1995, the record was re-released a few years later with more tracks including some killer covers (18th Dye, Jean Paul Sartre Experience) and the cd version of this collection is essentially a new version of that record (the lp version includes the bonus tracks as downloads), and Should / shiFt offer up exactly what you would expect from a mid-nineties shoegaze combo, shimmering atmospheres, dreamy male/female vocals, hushed minimal drumming, and warm washed out woozily distorted electric guitars, the guitar sound of particular note, as the liner notes explains that Should mainman Marc Ostermeier not only didn't own a guitar, but also couldn't PLAY guitar, so created loops and samples from pre-recorded guitar parts, and also didn't own any distortion or effects pedals, so basically just misused and abused his mixer to achieve the desired effect, and the results are pretty fantastic. Indie rock jangle, a little twee, wreathed in thick swaths of warm whirling guitar buzz, minimal programmed beats, lazy vox, sun dappled and dreamy, warmly distorted, sometimes thick and lush, other times delicate and crystalline, but dreamy and divine throughout.
MPEG Stream: "Rolling"
MPEG Stream: "Breathe Salt"
MPEG Stream: "Feels Like Morning"
MPEG Stream: "Clean"

SHOUT OUT LOUDS Work (Merge) cd 14.98
The third full length by this Stockholm based band is the first to reach our ears... thanks to those fine folks at Merge Records. Seriously, have they ever steered us wrong? We think not!
Although the black and white band photo on the front cover made us think this was an obscure '80s Talking Heads or Camper Van Beethoven record, Shout Out Louds are a perfect fit on the label who delivered Superchunk, Destroyer, Arcade Fire, The Clientele, She & Him, and Camera Obscura among many others. If you dig pretty chiming guitar lines and sweet boy vocals, don't miss this! The album starts out with a punch then gradually mellows out over the course of the next few songs. Along the way they incorporate elements of '70s soft rock, '80s art rock, '90s college rock. Yes, that's a lot of rock rock rock, but they do dish out the pop aplenty too! Definitely for fans of New Pornographers, Death Cab For Cutie, Peter, Bjorn And John, and The Pernice Brothers!
MPEG Stream: "Fall Hard"
MPEG Stream: "Throwing Stones"

SHOUT OUT LOUDS Work (Merge) lp 16.98
Also on vinyl... The third full length by this Stockholm based band is the first to reach our ears... thanks to those fine folks at Merge Records. Seriously, have they ever steered us wrong? We think not!
Although the black and white band photo on the front cover made us think tis was an obscure '80s Talking Heads or Camper Van Beethoven record, Shout Out Louds are a perfect fit on the label who delivered Superchunk, Destroyer, Arcade Fire, The Clientele, She & Him, and Camera Obscura among many others. If you dig pretty chiming guitar lines and sweet boy vocals, don't miss this! The album starts out with a punch then gradually mellows out over the course of the next few songs. Along the way they incorporate elements of '70s soft rock, '80s art rock, '90s college rock. Yes, that's a lot of rock rock rock, but they do dish out the pop a-plenty too! Definitely for fans of New Pornographers, Death Cab For Cutie, Peter, Bjorn And John, and The Pernice Brothers!
MPEG Stream: "Fall Hard"
MPEG Stream: "Throwing Stones"

SHOW ME STATE CCAC / Western Heirs (Hella Rad) 7" 3.98
You may recall an ultra-soothing self-released cd-r we carried here a while ago by a local atmospheric post-rock band named Carrier. Well, Jerry Jai from that very band has moved on to this like-minded new combo, and this 7" is your pleasant introduction to them. A short'n'sweet pair of glistening indie pop tunes. Nice!

SHRIMP BOAT Something Grand (Aum Fidelity) 4cd 39.00
For many a year Chicago has churned out some of the most polished, impressive musical artists. Shrimp Boat's membership boasted many of them back when they were mere... uh, brine shrimp? Sam Prekop and Eric Claridge went on to form the Sea And Cake, while Brad Wood went on to produce Liz Phair's Exile In Guyville, as well as loads of Chicago bands. Shrimp Boat's sound is a childlike haphazard amalgam of folk, jazz and pop (among other things!). Percussion is tapped out in rustic, ramshackle fashion. Vocals are often hillbilly-ish yelps and yowls singing spur of the moment storytelling lyrics. Wheezing woozy saxophones stop in for neighborly visits. Really, this gets stranger and more dislocated, but also more cohesive, as it progresses. There are definitely hints of the smooth suave sound that would eventually become the Sea And Cake, and it seems like musically adventurous Sea And Cake fans will definitely want to check this out. For a limited time, this three cd set is actually a FOUR cd set with a whole extra disc of bonus unreleased rarities. Beautifully packaged with a huge book of liner notes and photos.
MPEG Stream: "Rocks Are Oil"
MPEG Stream: "Born In A Sour"
MPEG Stream: "Bumble Bees"

SHRIMP BOAT Speckly (Aum Fidelity) cd 14.98
If you're a Shrimpboat neophyte who found their recent Something Grand boxset (three cds packed with an immense amount of previously unreleased material) simply too massive and unwielding to digest or conversely if you're a fan who just yearns to revisit their more familiar old songs, this is the cd you want/need! It's the reissue of this highly influential Chicago band's debut album from back in 1989. Hurrah! Often seeming inspired by the quirksome likes of Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers (check out "Greenhouse") and clearly a precursor to the yelpy ramshackle pop sounds of bands such as Modest Mouse (check out "Seven Crows") as well as the breezy jazz-inflected postrock sounds of band member Sam Prekop's later endeavors (both solo and in Sea & Cake).
MPEG Stream: "Seven Crows"
MPEG Stream: "Greenhouse"

SHRINE, THE Primitive Blast (Tee Pee) cd 14.98
The Shrine to what? The gods of high energy rock n' roll action, we assume. Such a shrine, we're imagining, would consist of one or more big ass amplifiers, probably draped with an Amerikkkan flag (upside down?), ringed with empty beer cans and broken bottles. Oh, and skateboards, a bunch of skateboards. Musically, that's what we're gettin' here, the three hairy dudes in heavy, punked out power trio The Shrine mainlining such influences as Black Flag, Black Sabbath, and the MC5. They don't hold back, with opener "Zipper Tripper" defining The Shrine's style of speedy SoCal "psychedelic violence" pretty plainly from the get-go. Furthermore, as the disc spins, The Shrine soon make it obvious that their particular primitive blast is in fact a damn catchy one, yeah! They rip it up with snakey riffs and plenty of 'tude on all nine tracks here, a little over a half hour of gnarly shake appeal for stoner punks & skate metallers; this is definitely for anybody who was into another, sorta similar Tee Pee band, Annihilation Time (R.I.P.), recipients of a T-shirt shout out from The Shrine on this album's back cover band pic. Another good comparison would be to the 2nd, more SST-ish album from J. Mascis doom project Witch.
For us, what really seals the deal is that track four happens to be a cranked-up cover of "Run The Night", originally by '70s heavy psych British biker band Wicked Lady, whose reissues we just highlighted. We were like, hmmm, this sounds familiar, then figured it out. And it fits right in with the vibe of the whole album. Killer!!!
MPEG Stream: "Whistlings Of Death"
MPEG Stream: "Run The Night"
MPEG Stream: "Primitive Blast"

SHRINE, THE Primitive Blast (Tee Pee) lp 15.98
The Shrine to what? The gods of high energy rock n' roll action, we assume. Such a shrine, we're imagining, would consist of one or more big ass amplifiers, probably draped with an Amerikkkan flag (upside down?), ringed with empty beer cans and broken bottles. Oh, and skateboards, a bunch of skateboards. Musically, that's what we're gettin' here, the three hairy dudes in heavy, punked out power trio The Shrine mainlining such influences as Black Flag, Black Sabbath, and the MC5. They don't hold back, with opener "Zipper Tripper" defining The Shrine's style of speedy SoCal "psychedelic violence" pretty plainly from the get-go. Furthermore, as the disc spins, The Shrine soon make it obvious that their particular primitive blast is in fact a damn catchy one, yeah! They rip it up with snakey riffs and plenty of 'tude on all nine tracks here, a little over a half hour of gnarly shake appeal for stoner punks & skate metallers; this is definitely for anybody who was into another, sorta similar Tee Pee band, Annihilation Time (R.I.P.), recipients of a T-shirt shout out from The Shrine on this album's back cover band pic. Another good comparison would be to the 2nd, more SST-ish album from J. Mascis doom project Witch.
For us, what really seals the deal is that track four happens to be a cranked-up cover of "Run The Night", originally by '70s heavy psych British biker band Wicked Lady, whose reissues we just highlighted. We were like, hmmm, this sounds familiar, then figured it out. And it fits right in with the vibe of the whole album. Killer!!!
MPEG Stream: "Whistlings Of Death"
MPEG Stream: "Run The Night"
MPEG Stream: "Primitive Blast"

SHRINEBUILDER s/t (Neurot) cd 14.98
Most people cringe upon hearing the word "supergroup," and not without good reason: most supergroups fucking suck. Shrinebuilder, however, is a rare beast, an exception to the general rule, and it almost seems offensive to call them a supergroup. BUT... that's sort of what they are. Consisting of Scott Kelly (Neurosis), Al Cisneros (Om, Sleep), Dale Crover (the Melvins), and Wino (you should know him by now, but let's mention The Obsessed, Spirit Caravan and Saint Vitus!!), Shrinebuilder raised some pretty high hopes, and it seemed impossible that these four living legends would let us down. Thankfully, they haven't. In fact, Shrinebuilder's debut has far exceeded any expectations we had for a project which was pretty much destined to kick our asses in all kinds of different directions. You can detect each musician's individual style, sure, but more than anything, Shrinebuilder seems to follow a decidedly old school approach to heaviness - think Sabbath, Buffalo, that kind of thing - delivering five lengthy songs of groove laden metal heavy on the riffs (no surprise there), doomy bass, awesome to the point drumming, and plenty of spacey FX. There are moments where you have to remind yourself that you aren't listening to Sleep, especially when Al lays on the wah wah pedal, and parts of this album fulfill the fantasies of those who sometimes wish Om had a guitar player. Scott Kelly and Wino are one hell of a guitar team, and there are some amazing moments of fuzzy, sustained harmonies and plenty of chugging overdriven riffage. Crover's drumming is particularly impressive here, not that anyone needs to remind you that the guy slays. His playing here is less busy than it tends to be with the Melvins, and his steady pound suits these songs perfectly. The unmistakable vocal stylings of Wino, Scott, and Al all show up, but one of the band's greatest strengths is the fact that this sounds like the work not of some half assed side project, but of an actual band. So yeah, don't let the whole "supergroup" tag throw you off, as this is a potent brew of fully realized HEAVIOSITY.
MPEG Stream: "Solar Benediction"
MPEG Stream: "Pyramid Of The Moon"

SHUB NIGGURATH Les Morts Vont Vite (Gazul / Musea) cd 21.00
Here's something we haven't had in a while, so it seemed worth highlighting again now that we've tracked down some more copies. It's the 1986 debut album (plus 2 bonus tracks) from an amazing French prog band with a shuddersome name, and sound. It combines the classical grandeur of their obvious influence Magma with looser, more experimental sounds. Very dark, heavy and ominous; creepy like Universe Zero. Spooky soprano female vocals give way to noise guitar freakouts and rhythmic passages that bring to mind This Heat. It's kind of mind-blowing, actually in keeping with the concepts of cosmic horror evoked by their H.P. Lovecraft-inspired band name (and if evoking Shub Niggurath weren't enough, there's also a song here called Yog Sothoth). Really, if you want something that sounds like Magma venturing into the realms of sanity-blasting horror, this is it. The first, nearly 17 minute track should have you knocking on the door of the nearest asylum, begging to be let in. Such ominous art rock. Definitely one of our all time fave "Zeuhl" albums outside of the actual Magma masterpieces themselves, indescribably infused with epic Magmoid drama, and that band's signature throbbing bass heavy rhythms.
MPEG Stream: "Yog Sothoth"
MPEG Stream: "Incipit Tragaedia"
MPEG Stream: "La Ballade De Lenore"

SHUDDER TO THINK Curses Spells Voodoo Mooses (Sammich / Dischord) cd 12.98
This review comes courtesy of former Outpunk label head, current A.C.R.O.N.Y.M. label mastermind, gay gangsta and AQ pal Matt Wobensmith!
First time ever on CD, after being out of print for over a decade! Before "emo" was a noun, it was an adjective used to describe the sensitive, post-hardcore stylings of artistic DC punkers, who weren't afraid to cry in public and dedicate songs to trees. Some say Rites of Spring's 1986 self-titled debut album (Dischord Records) is the holy grail of emo. However, this album may well be that genre's defining document. The operatic wailings of Craig Wedren's falsetto -- not unlike Pere Ubu's David Thomas -- were a peculiar contrast to the band's more aggressive punk leanings. Says Craig of this era: "I joined a 'hardcore' group, we did not like each other's sound, they banged, I screeched ... [it] came out sounding, a little like, Ozzy?" From a time when "US hardcore" was mired in socio-political aggression and macho posturing, STT were perhaps a reaction -- ironically from within the ranks of DC bands that were so influential to that movement in the first place. This is a beautiful and enthralling album, impossibly melancholic, with perplexing lyrics from someone who's "heart is filled with 'All May Rise' and 'X Ray Eyes'". Lots of people know Shudder to Think's bizarre, dramatic alt-rock material from subsequent recordings for Dischord and later, Epic, from which most of their fan base is likely drawn. But this record -- while technically inferior and unpolished from a production standpoint -- is still many fans' favorite STT release. Reissue includes four bonus tracks from their first 7" and one unreleased cut as well.
MPEG Stream: "A Vampire's Proposal"
MPEG Stream: "Abysmal Yellow Popcorn Wall"

SHUSHA Shusha / This Is The Day (BGO) cd 9.98
If Googoosh and Shirley Collins were somehow melded together into one incredible singer, you would have Shusha. Shusha was a Persian singer from the early seventies most famous for her debut album, Persian Love Songs and Mystical Chants from 1971. But her love of music extended beyond her native Iran towards the British folk of Shirley Collins and Sandy Denny and the American protest music of Dylan and Joan Baez. That is what inspired her on these two 1974 recordings, Shusha and This Is The Day. Reissued together for a very affordable price, these two albums of chamber folk-rock divide time between English-sung originals, covers and reworkings of traditional British songs and poems. No native songs here, the only inkling that we're given that Shusha is not English born is her woozy phrasing on some of the American covers such as Dylan's "Knocking on Heaven's Door" and the Elvis Presley social ballad, "In The Ghetto". But her singing really becomes transcendent on the British traditional material, where her range is allowed to soar around the song structures rather than being confined by them. This is an incredible discovery of two rare recordings by this amazing singer. Fans of Bridget St. John, Vashti Bunyan, and Joan Baez take note!
MPEG Stream: "Ariel"
MPEG Stream: "Wind of Keltia"
MPEG Stream: "South of The Great Sea"
MPEG Stream: "Bye Bye Johnny"

SHUT-INS Sing Songs Of Pain And Joy (self-released) cd 14.98
You might find the title and cover art of this new Shut-Ins' album to be a bit deceiving... We sure did! They give nary a hint of the ol' style hoedown -- with a little luau ("Hawaiian Cowboy" and "Hapa Haole Hula Girl") and sock hop ("Just Because") thrown in for good measure -- contained within. Although the instrumentation (deep warm standup bass, frantic banjo pluckin', sparkling mandolin, slip-slidin' pedal steel) and overall tone is certainly traditional country, the Shut-Ins keep the barndoor wide open and inviting, ably hoppin' about from style to style as they so please, and they do so at such a fevered pace. They even cover Blondie's "Dreaming" in earnest twangin' fashion! Such fun! Just don't forget your gingham tablecloth, saddleshoes and grass skirt. Eighteen songs in all.
MPEG Stream: "Hapa Haole Hula Girl"
MPEG Stream: "Dreaming"

SHY CHILD Noise Won't Stop (Kill Rock Stars) cd 14.98

SI, CLARO Static on the Station (Phonograph) 7" 4.98
Folks in SF probably remember Brian Girgus from stints behind the kit for AmRep noise rockers Lowercase and of course beloved SF popsters Track Star, but since then, Girgus has been doing something a little different. Well a LOT different than Lowercase, a little different from Trackstar.
The sound is still pop, but unlike Trackstar's jagged loud/soft noisepop, Si, Claro is more straight ahead, more simple and heartfelt. For a while now Girgus has been playing around town with nothing but an acoustic guitar, but for his first foray into a recording studio, he recruited a whole band, and even recorded one track in Sweden with Wyatt from Trackstar. The sound is quite reminiscent of nineties college rock, pure jangle indie rock. Though where Trackstar channeled Pavement, Girgus is less concerned with the noise and dynamics and snark of that side of indie rock, and instead focuses on simple solid songcraft. The two track are both straight ahead, verse chorus verse, acoustic they sounded a bit folky, but fleshed out with an actual band, they sound surprisingly lush, multiple guitars, strummed acoustic and sharper electric, some piano here and there, the drumming solid and swinging, and Girgus' vocals sweet and earnest, the lyrics are simple, sincere, the delivery plaintive, perfectly suited to the strum and jangle and shuffle that backs it up.
A sweetly solid chunk of modern indie jangle pop.