BUSH, KATE Hounds Of Love (EMI) cd 14.98

BUSH, KATE Sensual World (Columbia / Legacy) cd 5.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**

BUSHMAN'S REVENGE A Little Bit Of Big Bonanza (Rune Grammofon) cd 17.98
Norway's always-on-it Rune Grammofon label seem to have a special penchant for finding "jazz" bands with electric guitars who really can rock, like the recently reviewed Hedvig Mollestad Trio, and the band currently under consideration, the oddly-named Bushman's Revenge, an instrumental bass/drums/guitar (and some vibraphone) trio. This is Rune G's third release by 'em, the follow up to 2010's Jitterbug, which we really liked a lot. And we like this one too!
First off, first off... the opening track is a slightly rambunctious, bass-burbling cover version of the gorgeous "As We Used To Sing" by the late great jazz guitarist Sonny Sharrock, from his criminally-out-of-print for years now 1990 masterwork, Ask The Ages! Excellent choice, making for an auspicious beginning to this album. So nice to hear that lovely melody again, as any Sharrock fan will surely agree. Bushman's Revenge bring to it a very lively feel, that's in keeping with the rest of the disc, recorded live in the studio, with few overdubs, and lots of energy. This band is quite electric, let's say, with dense squalls of guitar to the fore (of course, that's why they'd cover Sharrock, and heck last time out they covered Motorhead!), but they also take some serene detours too (even at volume). Among those mellower moments, "John Lennon Was The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived" has a title that might sound facetious, but the particularly calm and beautiful music so named seems quite sincere.
Once again, a great "jazz" album for folks who love amped-up, tangled-up rock.
Gatefold lp (with download), or digipaked cd, both with Rune G's usual distinctive Kim Hiorthoy graphics.
MPEG Stream: "As We Used To Sing"
MPEG Stream: "No More Dead Bodies For Daddy Tonight"
MPEG Stream: "Jeg Baker Kokosboiler"

BUSHMAN'S REVENGE A Little Bit Of Big Bonanza (Rune Grammofon) lp 24.00
Norway's always-on-it Rune Grammofon label seem to have a special penchant for finding "jazz" bands with electric guitars who really can rock, like the recently reviewed Hedvig Mollestad Trio, and the band currently under consideration, the oddly-named Bushman's Revenge, an instrumental bass/drums/guitar (and some vibraphone) trio. This is Rune G's third release by 'em, the follow up to 2010's Jitterbug, which we really liked a lot. And we like this one too!
First off, first off... the opening track is a slightly rambunctious, bass-burbling cover version of the gorgeous "As We Used To Sing" by the late great jazz guitarist Sonny Sharrock, from his criminally-out-of-print for years now 1990 masterwork, Ask The Ages! Excellent choice, making for an auspicious beginning to this album. So nice to hear that lovely melody again, as any Sharrock fan will surely agree. Bushman's Revenge bring to it a very lively feel, that's in keeping with the rest of the disc, recorded live in the studio, with few overdubs, and lots of energy. This band is quite electric, let's say, with dense squalls of guitar to the fore (of course, that's why they'd cover Sharrock, and heck last time out they covered Motorhead!), but they also take some serene detours too (even at volume). Among those mellower moments, "John Lennon Was The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived" has a title that might sound facetious, but the particularly calm and beautiful music so named seems quite sincere.
Once again, a great "jazz" album for folks who love amped-up, tangled-up rock.
Gatefold lp (with download), or digipaked cd, both with Rune G's usual distinctive Kim Hiorthoy graphics.
MPEG Stream: "As We Used To Sing"
MPEG Stream: "No More Dead Bodies For Daddy Tonight"
MPEG Stream: "Jeg Baker Kokosboiler"

BUSHMAN'S REVENGE Jitterbug (Rune Grammofon) cd 17.98
Hadn't heard this jitterbuggin' Norwegian bunch before, though they have a previous album on Rune Grammofon and one before that as well. Definitely gonna have to track down those too, 'cause this one is pretty great, if you're into avant rock/jazz instrumental rippage. At peak power, they're QUITE energetic and frenzied, but unfailingly musical too, and the disc has much in the way of moodier, mellower moments as well.
Bushman's Revenge are a trio of electric guitar, bass, and drums, with a cameo appearance on two tracks here by organist Stale Storlokken of Supersilent. The guitarist is also a member of the proggy and metallic "blackjazz" group Shining. Which maybe explains why this is often so much heavier and rockier than most quote unquote fusion, and also why they do a Motorhead cover ("Damage Case" from Overkill done as an instrumental, or what they call a "Happy Go Lucky Karaoke Version", which stomps along exuberantly with a full-on freakout in the mid-section). Elsewhere, they veer from tangled and distorted guitar onslaughts to stately melodic reveries... and even play some deviant blues ("While My Guitar Gently Breaks"). Bushman's Revenge are for fans of other Rune G "fusion" like Scorch Trio for sure, and also we'd recommend 'em folks partial to Nels Cline.
MPEG Stream: "Kill Your Jitterbug Darlings"
MPEG Stream: "Wind And Fire"
MPEG Stream: "Professor Chaos"

BUSHMAN'S REVENGE Jitterbug (Rune Grammofon) lp 24.00
Hadn't heard this jitterbuggin' Norwegian bunch before, though they have a previous album on Rune Grammofon and one before that as well. Definitely gonna have to track down those too, 'cause this one is pretty great, if you're into avant rock/jazz instrumental rippage. At peak power, they're QUITE energetic and frenzied, but unfailingly musical too, and the disc has much in the way of moodier, mellower moments as well.
Bushman's Revenge are a trio of electric guitar, bass, and drums, with a cameo appearance on two tracks here by organist Stale Storlokken of Supersilent. The guitarist is also a member of the proggy and metallic "blackjazz" group Shining. Which maybe explains why this is often so much heavier and rockier than most quote unquote fusion, and also why they do a Motorhead cover ("Damage Case" from Overkill done as an instrumental, or what they call a "Happy Go Lucky Karaoke Version", which stomps along exuberantly with a full-on freakout in the mid-section). Elsewhere, they veer from tangled and distorted guitar onslaughts to stately melodic reveries... and even play some deviant blues ("While My Guitar Gently Breaks"). Bushman's Revenge are for fans of other Rune G "fusion" like Scorch Trio for sure, and also we'd recommend 'em folks partial to Nels Cline.
MPEG Stream: "Kill Your Jitterbug Darlings"
MPEG Stream: "Wind And Fire"
MPEG Stream: "Professor Chaos"

BUSHMAN'S REVENGE Never Mind The Botox (Rune Grammofon) lp 24.00
Last list, we highlighted A Little Bit Of Big Bonanza, the newest full-length from this Norwegian improvising unit on Rune Grammofon. The takeaway: "...a great 'jazz' album for people who love amped-up, tangled-up rock."
Fans will be interested in this vinyl-only 12", intended as a companion to that new album, recorded at the same sessions. It consists of cover versions of some of their faves. Bushman's Revenge has previously covered Motorhead and Sonny Sharrock, among others, and the covers presented here are equally diverse. Jazz, alt-rock, metal, they know no boundaries. They cover The Pixies ("Monkey Gone To Heaven"), The Police ("No Time This Time"), Black Sabbath ("War Pigs"), Sun Ra ("We Travel The Spaceways"), and even themselves ("Bushman Rock", a song left off their earlier Jitterbug album). As you might expect, these compositions are all respectfully rearranged, and deranged, when given the Bushman's Revenge treatment.
Comes with mp3 download.

BUTCHIES 3 (Mr. Lady) cd 12.98
The third full length by the Butchies (aka Melissa York and Kaia Wilson former drummer and guitarist of beloved queercore hotties Team Dresch, and bassist Alison Martlew). With each album, they've moved farther and farther from their feisty punk days. That's not to say they don't rock out every once in a awhile. No, it's just generally more tempered down, more composed. And this slower, more melodic approach compliments Kaia's pleadingly emotive vocals. Three women in full command, and telling it like it is. On Kaia's very own Mr. Lady record label.

BUTCHIES, THE Population 1975 (Mr. Lady) cd 10.98

BUTLER, CHRIS The Devil Glitch (Future Fossil) cd 11.98
Chris Butler, former member of The Waitresses (y'know, "Square Pegs", "I Know What Boys Like", "I Could Rule The World If I Could Only Get The Parts"), has written the world's longest pop song according to the Guinness Book Of World Records... well, it held this honor back in 1996 at least. Don't know if it's been beaten yet!

BUTTHOLE SURFERS Blind Eyes Sees All (MVD) dvd 19.98
Reissue of the 'Blind Eye Sees All' video featuring amazing vintage footage of the Buttholes at their stumbling, drunken, high on LSD, crowd baiting best, recorded live in 1985 in detroit.
Tons of AMAZING live footage, as well as some ridiculous interviews, pontificating by Gibby, nudity, tons of rare photos, a live bonus track, and BUTTHOLES KARAOKE!! This rules. Buy it.

BUTTHOLE SURFERS Brown Reason To Live (Alternative Tentacles) lp 9.98
The debut recording by these legendary Texan drug punks, finally available again on vinyl! Brown Reason To live was the Surfers' first record, a seven song ep, originally released in 1983, and reissued later bundled onto a cd with their live PCPP ep, but as good as that live stuff was/is, these tracks all on their own constitute one of THEE legendary punk rock records EVER. And we say punk rock knowing full well that the Buttholes' version of punk rock had almost nothing in common with what the rest of the world at the time considered punk.
These songs are damaged and disturbing, wild and chaotic, extended stumbling lysergic blowouts, as likely to erupt into a strange woozy sea shanty or a bit of twangy gallop as a blown out blast of pounding punk, moreso really. And while the sound here is not as overtly whatthefuck as the records that would come right after, it's weird enough that you could tell something freaky was going on, and you can hear the seeds that would blossom into that the Surfers eventually became. The Buttholes merged the punk sounds that surrounded them, with their own twisted take on DIY music making, not to mention lots and lots and lots and lots of drugs. All of these songs are timeless, total classics, but "The Shah Sleeps In Lee Harvey's Grave" is practically a punk rock anthem, or no less than the genre's swan song. Depending on how you look at it, maybe both. For the band anyway, the track was every bit a standard as "Free Bird" was for Skynyrd. Listening to this again now, it seems insane that a band like this - who at one time seemed destined to a life of cult obscurity - achieved such enormous mainstream success. It's all urine under the bridge now though, we try to ignore the last few releases and focus on the years when the Butthole Surfers were untouchable ('83-'88?), and this is where it all started, a ferocious fucked up chunk of drug addled genius called Brown Reason To Live.

BUTTHOLE SURFERS Electric Larryland (Capitol) cd 15.98

BUTTHOLE SURFERS Hairway To Steven (Latino Bugger Veil) cd 14.98

BUTTHOLE SURFERS Humpty Dumpty LSD (Latino Bugger Veil) cd 14.98
Let's get the negative stuff out of the way first. The Butthole Surfers went from being possibly one of our all time favorite bands, to embarrassing unoriginal MTV second stringers. Everything post 'Hairway To Steven' has been pretty lame. And those of you unfortunate enough to have heard the most recent record thus bore witness to the saddest beck-meets-eminem-meets-land-of-the-loops-meets-king-missile bid for MTV stardom. Which of course failed. And on top of that, they engaged in a scene alienating greed-not-common-sense based lawsuit against Touch and Go records, who were basically responsible for their popularity, but none of that really affects the music, these guys used to make, and while the above stuff has us a little hesitant to recommend buying anything on the Butthole's label Latino Bugger Veil, RECOMMEND WE MUST! 'Cause this collection of live tracks and outtakes is vintage Butthole Surfers, at their drug-addled, tribal-drumming, chaos-causing, club-crushing, strobe-lighted, naked-dancing, on-stage puking, audience-pulverising BEST! Lots of rare compilation tracks (from P.E.A.C.E., God's Favorite Dog, Cottage Cheese From The Lips Of Death, A Texas Trip, the Roky Erickson tribute), 4 track and 8 track home recordings, practice tapes, outtakes from the Rembrandt Pussyhorse sessions, alternate versions of album tracks, and more. Weird sickly sweet warbly ballads to full on tribal drug stomps, with war whoops and processed vocals careening all over the place. Supposedly culled from close to 300 tapes. Hope there's more on the way!
RealAudio clip: "One Hundred Million People Dead"
RealAudio clip: "I Love You Peggy"
RealAudio clip: "SpaceI"
RealAudio clip: "Perry Intro"

BUTTHOLE SURFERS Humpty Dumpty LSD (Latino Bugger Veil) 2lp 21.00
Recent Aquarius Record of the Week, now available in the lavish double LP vinyl format. Our 'controversial' write-up about the cd version:
Let's get the negative stuff out of the way first. The Butthole Surfers went from being possibly one of our all time favorite bands, to embarrassing unoriginal MTV second stringers. Everything post 'Hairway To Steven' has been pretty lame. And those of you unfortunate enough to have heard the most recent record thus bore witness to the saddest beck-meets-eminem-meets-land-of-the-loops-meets-king-missile bid for MTV stardom. Which of course failed. And on top of that, they engaged in a scene alienating greed-not-common-sense based lawsuit against Touch and Go records, who were basically responsible for their popularity, but none of that really affects the music, these guys used to make, and while the above stuff has us a little hesitant to recommend buying anything on the Butthole's label Latino Bugger Veil, RECOMMEND WE MUST! 'Cause this collection of live tracks and outtakes is vintage Butthole Surfers, at their drug-addled, tribal-drumming, chaos-causing, club-crushing, strobe-lighted, naked-dancing, on-stage puking, audience-pulverising BEST! Lots of rare compilation tracks (from P.E.A.C.E., God's Favorite Dog, Cottage Cheese From The Lips Of Death, A Texas Trip, the Roky Erickson tribute), 4 track and 8 track home recordings, practice tapes, outtakes from the Rembrandt Pussyhorse sessions, alternate versions of album tracks, and more. Weird sickly sweet warbly ballads to full on tribal drug stomps, with war whoops and processed vocals careening all over the place. Supposedly culled from close to 300 tapes. Hope there's more on the way!
RealAudio clip: "One Hundred Million People Dead"
RealAudio clip: "I Love You Peggy"
RealAudio clip: "SpaceI"
RealAudio clip: "Perry Intro"

BUTTHOLE SURFERS Locust Abortion Technician (Latino Bugger Veil) cd 14.98

BUTTHOLE SURFERS Pioughd / Widowermaker (Latino Bugger Veil) cd 14.98

BUTTHOLE SURFERS Psychic, Powerless, Another Man's Sac (Latino Bugger Veil) cd 14.98

BUTTHOLE SURFERS Rembrandt Pussyhorse (Latino Bugger Veil) cd 14.98

BUTTHOLE SURFERS s/t ep + Live PCPPEP (Latino Bugger Veil) cd 14.98
Now available for the first time ever on CD. It's hard to believe after the band has been around for what, over 20 years now, has been played on top forty radio and has seen practically everything they've released, down to the most obscure tracks, get reissued, has only now had their first two -- now practically legendary -- eps released on compact disc. "The Shah Sleeps In Lee Harvey's Grave" is practically a punk rock anthem, or no less than the genre's swan song. Depending on how you look at it, maybe both. For the band anyway, the track was every bit a standard as "Free Bird" was for Skynyrd. I don't know what's weirder, the fact that these haven't been reissued until now, or that the band -- who at one time seemed destined to a life of cult obscurity -- has acheived such enormous mainstream success. It's all urine under the bridge now though, as you can have it all on disc and then some. Along with the original self-titled (a.k.a Brown Reason To Live) ep, and the follow up live PCPPEP from 1984, there are an additional three live ("Gary Floyd", "Matchstick" and an additional version of "Something") and one studio ("Sinister Crayon") bonus tracks that make it hard for those of us who already own the vinyl to resist the temptation.
RealAudio clip: "The Shah Sleeps In Lee Harvey's Grave"
RealAudio clip: "Sinister Crayon"

BUTTLESS CHAPS Cartography (Mint) cd 16.98
Been meaning to list this for a while... Sadly this is the swan song for this fine Vancouver band who decided to call it quits earlier this year. Yeah, we've always given them a good natured hard time over the years about their band name. Quite simply, we felt it seriously undermined their songcraft which was so much more than the goofy moniker expressed. Turn a blind eye to the name, and you'll find that you can't knock their music. With each album they've gotten increasingly dark, lush, smoldery and composed. The dramatic somberness of the Americana stylings (or should that be Canadiana?) is quite a contrast to their earlier hybrid of new wave synth pop and rootsy folk, but Cartography still finds the band striking chords and balances between seeming opposites. The rustic and the elegant. The intimate and the expansive. The stormy and the utterly serene. The subtly applied electronic instrumentation are much more integrated into their rich earthy tapestry. A vocoded vocal here, a softly blooping synth countermelody there. Fans of the deep velvety voiced solemn twang bands such as Lambchop, Handsome Family, Red House Painters and on the other side of the pond Tindersticks or Pulp even, take note! A beautiful brooding farewell! Recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Cartography"
MPEG Stream: "Water By The Wayside"

BUTTLESS CHAPS Love This Time (Mint) cd 13.98
Okay, we mentioned this already a couple of AQ lists ago, but we've just gotta ask again... what's the deal with so many Canadian indie bands' names? Are they trying to prevent people from checking them out? Take this band for example, they're called The Buttless Chaps! C'mon, that rivals Corn On Macabre or Cream Abdul Babar on the wince-o-meter. Contrary to what almost everyone who has encountered the band's moniker has thought, they are not a joke band! They are in fact a mighty fine hybrid of country and '80s new wave pop... yes, their instrumentation includes a synth *and* a banjo! I know, I know! Even the description makes them sound like a joke band, but give these fellows a listen and you'll surely see things a little differently. They move effortlessly from barnyard boot stompers and moonlight porchswing ballads to ABC-esque synth melodramas -- often fusing them together within a single song with nary a smartaleck wink nor a clumsy stumble. They seem quite sincere in their love of both genres. And we haven't even mentioned yet that lead singer Dave has a strong deep voice very well-suited to both musical styles (at times very akin to ABC's Martin Fry, Pulp's Jarvis Cocker or Handsome Family's Brett Sparks). Truly, if they were only a country band or conversely only a retro synth pop band, they'd be a damn good one, and no eyebrows would be raised (uhh, unless they were still called the Buttless Chaps... wink!).
MPEG Stream: "Numan"
MPEG Stream: "Babbles"

BUTTLESS CHAPS Where Night Holds Light (Mint) cd 16.98
Getting a bit caught up with our friends to the north at Mint Records... We've just gotten in a few new and new-to-us titles on this fine Vancouver indie label (this one as well as some by Neko Case's early band Maow, The Awkward Stage, The Pack A.D. and Immaculate Machine)!
This somber earthy beauty is from a couple of years back, but still sounds fresh as a daisy today! Actually we also just got in the 'Chaps most recent, terrific (but alas final) album in stock too (it hasn't been reviewed yet, so if you'd like to order it, just ask!). But with regards to this album in front of us... What do you do when a band's name sends unforgivable groaning shudders down your spine... but their albums send warm good tunes to your ears? When a band's this good, you just have to grin and bear it, we s'pose! As we recall, The 'Chaps who made 2003's Love This Time were an unconventional fusion of the new waver and the lonesome cowboy. This time around it sounds like the ol' country boys have taken control of the reins. Still, these Vancouver gents keep us on our toes with occasional injections of cascading empassioned piano, flighty bright horns, and wordy mouthful lyrics like "migratory birds". Definitely for fans of deep voiced shadowy twang artists such as Lambchop, M. Ward, and Tindersticks!
MPEG Stream: "Blanket Of Pain"
MPEG Stream: "Migratory Birds"

BUZZ See You Sioux (Dark Entries) lp 15.98
Jean-Christophe Van Thienen formed the French new wave project Buzz in 1983, after several formative years spent in the UK soaking up the divergent post-punk scene which spawned the artful pop of Adam & The Ants, the majestic gloom of Anne Clark and The Cure, and the DIY energy of countless bedroom / shed / garage acts tinkering with drum machines, electronics, and tape. Upon returning to Lille, France, he found a local radio station who would let him use the studio during off hours; and as such he recruited a couple of friends and neighbors to come into that studio to flesh out the sketches he had made on a couple of synths and drum machine. See You Sioux was the result of those sessions, self-released in 1985 as a cassette with hand-assembled artwork and press-type lettering in an edition of 250 copies. Van Thienen takes up the elliptical, somber atmospheres of the Belgian post-punk outfit Trisome 21 as well as the eccentric theatrics of Fad Gadget. The songs work through urgent synth melodies, jittery sparkplug guitar scratches, and propulsive rhythms from a nice combination of live drums and drum machines, with Van Thienen conjuring more of a French rock persona, perhaps striving towards the stylings of a Jacques Dutronc. Another great find from Dark Entries.
MPEG Stream: "Orange Mechanique"
MPEG Stream: "Berlin"
MPEG Stream: "L'Agent Secret"

BUZZCOCKS Flat-Pack Philosophy (Cooking Vinyl) cd 15.98
Yes, your eyes and ears aren't deceiving you... this is a brand new Buzzcocks album! Back in 2003 we were caught plenty off-guard when these grandfathers of punk pop reassembled and released a new self-titled album, and now they've gone and given us another surprise wallop in Flat-Pack Philosophy. And again, the band picks right up where they left off. One thing tho' we sure wish the vocals were up front in the mix like the Buzzcocks' recordings of yesteryear, but no, instead they're somewhat buried. Likewise, we were wishing that the guitars were crisper and crunchier, but no, they're more the 'modern' thick wall o' distortion kind that they used on their last album. Sigh, can't have everything can we? We're yearning for the Buzzcocks of old, but the Buzzcocks of new haven't veered too far off their original course. One of the album's highlights is certainly the tenth song ("Dreamin'") with its catchy neat picked guitar counter-melody, but the song that hits closest to home is the second to last song ("I've Had Enough"). The vocals are prominent and guitars crackle with that familiar Shelley/Diggle electricity. Yeah, that's the ticket!
MPEG Stream: "Dreamin'"
MPEG Stream: "I've Had Enough"

BUZZCOCKS s/t (Merge) cd 14.98
Who doesn't love this band? Who can resist those rapid-fire hooks or that relentless energy? Unlike many other veteran bands who've either continued sloggin' on long past their prime, or conversely broke up early only to reform in recent years, the Buzzcocks haven't stuck with the safe, the tried and true, nor have they become a tired, lackluster version of their former selves. They came together in 1975, kicked pop punk ass (and to this day have had an immeasurable influence on countless bands), split in 1981, reformed in 1989, and here they are fourteen (!) years later with a new super-charged album on Merge Records. As a band, they've not withered nor have they rested on their punk rock laurels. On the up side, the songs are still filled with lots of crunch, but they're also much beefier - often more reminiscent of the Husker Du/Bob Mould fuzzy wall of roaring guitars. On the down side, unfortunately the vocals are buried a bit deeper in the mix which somewhat obscures their wry lyrical wit. Actually come to think of it, this also adds to the Husker Du-iness. However, one thing's for certain, the tip of Pete Shelley and Steve Diggle's songwriting pen sure hasn't dulled over the years. Trademark Buzzcocks' hooks galore. Given that though, we would like to draw your attention to one song here that rang rather familiar not as a Buzzcocks tune but instead as one by the Gin Blossoms - weird! The Diggle penned "Sick City Sometimes" = "Hey Jealousy". Really! Give it a listen. This is definitely much less raw and immediate sounding that the Buzzcocks of old, but this is not at all troublesome nor disappointing, as they've successfully moved onto a much more refined and fleshed out presence. If you want the rambunctious, rough'n'tumble lower-fi pop-punk energy of yesteryear, don't waste another moment, revisit their classic Singles Going Steady. If you want to hear a band who've aged very very well, check out this self-titled album.
MPEG Stream: "Jerk"
MPEG Stream: "Sick City Sometimes"

BUZZCOCKS Singles Going Steady (IRS) cd 12.98
A total, absolute, complete, utter classic from this seminal punk pop band! So many hooks! So much energy! So influential! So damn good!

BUZZCOCKS Singles Going Steady (4 Men With Beards) lp 15.98
A total, absolute, complete, utter classic from this seminal punk pop band! So many hooks! So much energy! So influential! So damn good! 'Tis time for some serious jubilation because Singles Going Steady is once again available on the format on which it was originally released back in '79 - that is, on record! And of course an album this fine deserves to be pressed on a fine slab of 180 gram vinyl, and it is! Tops! (Is that enough exclamation points for you?)

BUZZOV-EN Welcome To Violence (Alternative Tentacles) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

BXI Boris & Ian Astbury (Southern Lord) cd 12.98
When we first heard about this, we had to check the calendar to make sure the release date wasn't April 1st. But no, this is real, the latest collaborative project undertaken by everyone's favorite Japanese psychedelic heavy rockers, Boris, wherein they team up with, yes, Ian Astbury of The Cult!! Seems like something out of an episode of Ripley's Believe It Or Not, does it not? Well believe it. BXI is Boris + Ian (or times Ian?), and the disc's blatant/redundant title makes the concept plain.
So... what do we think? Well what do YOU think? Basically, a lot depends on A) what you think of Ian's singing, which may or may not depend on how big of a Cult fan you are or once were, and B) how much of a hardcore devoted Boris fanboy (or girl) you are. If you like everything Boris and/or Ian Astbury, then this is for you. Otherwise, maybe check out the sound samples before reflexively "adding to cart" just 'cause it's a Boris (related) release.
This 20 minute, 4 track ep includes 3 songs newly written by the BXI unit, plus a version of The Cult's "Rain", from their 1985 album Love, sung by Boris guitarist Wata. The fairly dynamic first track, "Teeth And Claws", finds Astbury wailing about how "animals will save us... yeah, yeah they will, yeah they will, yes they will" over some sub-grunge, big-beat, quasi-heavy quasi-psych that wouldn't sound out of place on most modern rock stations. The next song, "We Are Witches", is much "tougher" and more metallic, with chunky distorted guitar chug. After that, comes "Rain", which is the best cut here in our opinion. Wata's gentle, dreamy vocals are a nice change from Astbury's overwrought rock dude yowl, and guest guitarist Michio Kurihara's stinging acid rock leads are glorious. Though, if they'd chosen to cover "Love Removal Machine" we'd have been into it too... The finale, "Magickal Child" is slow and majestic, with Astbury being dramatic but not ridiculous. Still, it's the closest Boris has ever come to U2 territory, that's all. Kurihara also plays guitar on this track too, again a plus. It's kinda funny he's on this disc with Astbury, in a six-degrees of separation way, since Kurihara was a member of Tokyo retro psych act White Heaven, who sounded a lot like The Doors, whose frontman Jim Morrison was of course famously portrayed by Val Kilmer in a movie, wait no that's not it, it's that The surviving Doors recently toured with Ian "The Lizard King II" Astbury as their singer, didn't they?
Really, not bad as long as you don't hate Astbury. But also, not what we were hoping for (well, had we ever envisioned this collaboration in the first place). Boris definitely seems to be meeting Astbury much more than halfway here, this coming off more like Astbury with Boris as a backing band (or Boris paying tribute to him for some reason) than Boris doing some weird and heavy Boris thing and then making it weirder by having the guy from The Cult sing on it. Oh well, we'll admit we're Boris (and/or Cult) fans enough to pick this up just for "Rain" alone, and then can enjoy the other tracks to varying degrees, or not...
NB. vinyl coming soon (within a couple weeks).
MPEG Stream: "Teeth And Claws"
MPEG Stream: "We Are Witches"
MPEG Stream: "Rain"

BXI Boris & Ian Astbury (Southern Lord) 12" 13.98
Now here on vinyl too!!
When we first heard about this, we had to check the calendar to make sure the release date wasn't April 1st. But no, this is real, the latest collaborative project undertaken by everyone's favorite Japanese psychedelic heavy rockers, Boris, wherein they team up with, yes, Ian Astbury of The Cult!! Seems like something out of an episode of Ripley's Believe It Or Not, does it not? Well believe it. BXI is Boris + Ian (or times Ian?), and the disc's blatant/redundant title makes the concept plain.
So... what do we think? Well what do YOU think? Basically, a lot depends on A) what you think of Ian's singing, which may or may not depend on how big of a Cult fan you are or once were, and B) how much of a hardcore devoted Boris fanboy (or girl) you are. If you like everything Boris and/or Ian Astbury, then this is for you. Otherwise, maybe check out the sound samples before reflexively "adding to cart" just 'cause it's a Boris (related) release.
This 20 minute, 4 track ep includes 3 songs newly written by the BXI unit, plus a version of The Cult's "Rain", from their 1985 album Love, sung by Boris guitarist Wata. The fairly dynamic first track, "Teeth And Claws", finds Astbury wailing about how "animals will save us... yeah, yeah they will, yeah they will, yes they will" over some sub-grunge, big-beat, quasi-heavy quasi-psych that wouldn't sound out of place on most modern rock stations. The next song, "We Are Witches", is much "tougher" and more metallic, with chunky distorted guitar chug. After that, comes "Rain", which is the best cut here in our opinion. Wata's gentle, dreamy vocals are a nice change from Astbury's overwrought rock dude yowl, and guest guitarist Michio Kurihara's stinging acid rock leads are glorious. Though, if they'd chosen to cover "Love Removal Machine" we'd have been into it too... The finale, "Magickal Child" is slow and majestic, with Astbury being dramatic but not ridiculous. Still, it's the closest Boris has ever come to U2 territory, that's all. Kurihara also plays guitar on this track too, again a plus. It's kinda funny he's on this disc with Astbury, in a six-degrees of separation way, since Kurihara was a member of Tokyo retro psych act White Heaven, who sounded a lot like The Doors, whose frontman Jim Morrison was of course famously portrayed by Val Kilmer in a movie, wait no that's not it, it's that The surviving Doors recently toured with Ian "The Lizard King II" Astbury as their singer, didn't they?
Really, not bad as long as you don't hate Astbury. But also, not what we were hoping for (well, had we ever envisioned this collaboration in the first place). Boris definitely seems to be meeting Astbury much more than halfway here, this coming off more like Astbury with Boris as a backing band (or Boris paying tribute to him for some reason) than Boris doing some weird and heavy Boris thing and then making it weirder by having the guy from The Cult sing on it. Oh well, we'll admit we're Boris (and/or Cult) fans enough to pick this up just for "Rain" alone, and then can enjoy the other tracks to varying degrees, or not...
MPEG Stream: "Teeth And Claws"
MPEG Stream: "We Are Witches"
MPEG Stream: "Rain"

BY THE END OF TONIGHT A Tribute To Tigers (Temporary Residence) cd 14.98
Mathy, almost jazzy, instrumental post-rock from a band who manage to be as melodic as they are complex and quirky -- which is to say, quite. Lotsa warmth and emotion here, suffusing their dynamic and dramatic crescendos and deft musical twists and turns. Not so metallic as we'd been led to believe -- although they do rock out a bit here and there (apparently, on a child's drum kit no less!), this is pretty darn soft and sensitive at the same time. One of those bands that's definitely really good, but don't break out of the widdly post rock mold either. However, well worth it to fans of the genre! (That is, they fall somewhere amidst Mogwai, Don Caballero, Sonna, Thee Speaking Canaries, Lynx, Cheval de Frise...not bad company!)
This disc clocks in at five tracks, 30 minutes (which by the way is just long enough to make you go, dang it's over? and play it again when its done).
MPEG Stream: "Stop, Drop And Roll Does Not Work In Hell"
MPEG Stream: "Setting Sail In April"

BY THE END OF TONIGHT / TERA MELOS Complex Full of Phantoms (Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 10.98

BYLA / JARBOE Viscera (Translation Loss) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

BYRDS, THE (Untitled)/(Unissued) (Columbia) 2cd 25.00
What was once a 1970 double LP set of live and studio material is now a double cd, with the original "(Untitled)" now accompanied by an extra disc of previously unissued tracks. The lineup: Roger McGuinn, Skip Battin, Clarence White, and Gene Parsons. Worth it alone for the jammed-out sixteen-minute (a whole side of the original vinyl) version of "Eight Miles High." And with all the other stuff here, this is a great place to start with The Byrds as well as an essential item for longtime fans!

BYRDS, THE Ballad Of Easy Rider (Columbia / Legacy) cd 5.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
Y'know the special $5 sale cd list we did a few weeks ago? Well, there's actually a few more really good $5 deals available that we'll try to list, while they last. We reviewed 1968's Notorious Byrds Brothers before, now here's another Byrds gem for just $5 (or, $30, if you wanna spring for the brand new vinyl reissue that just came out!)É Originally issued in '69, with its title track appearing on the soundtrack to Peter Fonda's countercultural film classic Easy Rider, this was The Byrds 8th album, and their last of the '60s, with Roger McGuinn the only original founding member still on board (the other Byrds here being Gene Parsons, Clarence White, and John York). Still, it's a great bunch of songs, including not just the aforementioned Dylan-inspired title track (he wrote some of the lyrics), but also a fine interpretation of Dylan's "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" (its sad vibes perhaps appropriate for the end of the '60s, the decade's revolutionary promise on the wane). This album also boasts one of our all time Byrds favorites, the rousing, rocking "Jesus Is Just Alright", originally by gospel singer Art Reynolds. Elsewhere, the record is mostly all about melancholic country and old timey folk, lovely songs including a traditional sea shanty and a Woody Guthrie protest number and even a timely drone-folk homage to lunar-landing Apollo astronauts "Armstrong, Aldrin And Collins".
Regarding the cd, this nicely done reissue tacks on 7 bonus tracks, alternates and out-takes, including one written by a young Jackson Browne, and a spaced-out synthesizer / Appalachian folk hybrid from McGuinn called "Fiddler A Dram (Moog Experiment)". And, plenty of informative liner notes are to be found in the cd booklet. Well worth the five bucks for sure!
MPEG Stream: " Ballad Of Easy Rider"
MPEG Stream: "Oil In My Lamp"
MPEG Stream: "Jesus Is Just Alright"

BYRDS, THE Ballad Of Easy Rider (Columbia) lp 29.00
Originally issued in '69, with its title track appearing on the soundtrack to Peter Fonda's countercultural film classic Easy Rider, this was The Byrds 8th album, and their last of the '60s, with Roger McGuinn the only original founding member still on board (the other Byrds here being Gene Parsons, Clarence White, and John York). Still, it's a great bunch of songs, including not just the aforementioned Dylan-inspired title track (he wrote some of the lyrics), but also a fine interpretation of Dylan's "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" (its sad vibes perhaps appropriate for the end of the '60s, the decade's revolutionary promise on the wane). This album also boasts one of our all time Byrds favorites, the rousing, rocking "Jesus Is Just Alright", originally by gospel singer Art Reynolds. Elsewhere, the record is mostly all about melancholic country and old timey folk, lovely songs including a traditional sea shanty and a Woody Guthrie protest number and even a timely drone-folk homage to lunar-landing Apollo astronauts "Armstrong, Aldrin And Collins".
Gatefold, 180 gram audiophile vinyl.
MPEG Stream: " Ballad Of Easy Rider"
MPEG Stream: "Oil In My Lamp"
MPEG Stream: "Jesus Is Just Alright"

BYRDS, THE Live At The Fillmore, February 1969 (Columbia / Legacy) cd 5.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
Previously unreleased live concert recording from '69, with Roger McGuinn/Clarence White/John York/Gene Parsons lineup. Sixteen tracks.

BYRDS, THE Notorious Byrd Brothers (Columbia / Legacy) cd 5.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
Oooh, we love 1968's Notorious Byrd Brothers. Well, most Byrds albums are pretty great, but this one's a reall beaut. Pedal steel and Moog synth co-exist exquisitely, along with 12-string guitar jangle and lovely vocal harmonies, there's songs about drugs and hippies and Vietnam, it's got "Space Odyssey" and other sci-fi mystical stuff while of course they're kinda country too. This reissue includes plenty of liner notes, and six bonus tracks, including "Moog Raga", which is exactly what you think it is, and rad.
MPEG Stream: "Goin' Back"
MPEG Stream: "Tribal Gathering"
MPEG Stream: "Space Odyssey"

BYRDS, THE The Preflyte Sessions (Sundazed) 2cd 27.00
In 1964 recording engineer Jim Dickson set down on tape the earliest incarnation of the Byrds, even, it seems, before they named themselves that -- they had also used the monikers Beefeaters and Jet Set (a Jet Set single is included here). This is what some refer to as the purest version of the Byrds -- the quintet of Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby, Michael Clarke and Chris Hillman. It's pre-"Mr Tambourine Man", pre-their debut album, pre-Gram Parsons, pre-country rock, pre-psychedelia... this is The Beginning of The Byrds. Some tracks feature McGuinn before Dickson had even introduced him to the Rickenbacher 12-string, so the Byrds-style twangy lushness isn't always present here. Some of you will most likely say, well, if it was pre-everything that made them special, then what's the point? Well, fair enough. This is certainly only for the Byrds collectors amongst us. But the warbly acoustic versions of many Byrds songs are glorious to hear. And as David Fricke rightly says: "This may be the most honest music the Byrds ever made, because they did it without a thought for who might hear it or how it would sell." McGuinn himself recalls, "We *barely* knew the tape was rolling."
The cd comes packaged in a slipcase with an excellent accompanying book of liner notes, many darling photos (those guys were like 20 years old, so young!), 2 nice postcards, discographical info, & comments from all the bandmembers, plus Pamela Des Barres, Domenic Priore, etc.
Annoyingly, the LP version, while it is on 180 gm vinyl and features a nice gatefold sleeve for its two albums, only features 28 tracks. The cd version has 40! Huh? And while the 16 of the tracks on the cd version were previously unissued, only 9 from the LP version have never before seen the light. I never understand the logic with these things -- is Sundazed ripping off the LP buyers amongst us, or are they trying to tell us that the extra tracks on the cd version are kinda throwaways anyway? Sigh...
RealAudio clip: "You Showed Me (Acoustic)"
RealAudio clip: "Boston (vers. II)"

BYRDS, THE The Preflyte Sessions (Sundazed) 2lp 16.98
In 1964 recording engineer Jim Dickson set down on tape the earliest incarnation of the Byrds, even, it seems, before they named themselves that -- they had also used the monikers Beefeaters and Jet Set (a Jet Set single is included here). This is what some refer to as the purest version of the Byrds -- the quintet of Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby, Michael Clarke and Chris Hillman. It's pre-"Mr Tambourine Man", pre-their debut album, pre-Gram Parsons, pre-country rock, pre-psychedelia... this is The Beginning of The Byrds. Some tracks feature McGuinn before Dickson had even introduced him to the Rickenbacher 12-string, so the Byrds-style twangy lushness isn't always present here. Some of you will most likely say, well, if it was pre-everything that made them special, then what's the point? Well, fair enough. This is certainly only for the Byrds collectors amongst us. But the warbly acoustic versions of many Byrds songs are glorious to hear. And as David Fricke rightly says: "This may be the most honest music the Byrds ever made, because they did it without a thought for who might hear it or how it would sell." McGuinn himself recalls, "We *barely* knew the tape was rolling."
The cd comes packaged in a slipcase with an excellent accompanying book of liner notes, many darling photos (those guys were like 20 years old, so young!), 2 nice postcards, discographical info, & comments from all the bandmembers, plus Pamela Des Barres, Domenic Priore, etc.
Annoyingly, the LP version, while it is on 180 gm vinyl and features a nice gatefold sleeve for its two albums, only features 28 tracks. The cd version has 40! Huh? And while the 16 of the tracks on the cd version were previously unissued, only 9 from the LP version have never before seen the light. I never understand the logic with these things -- is Sundazed ripping off the LP buyers amongst us, or are they trying to tell us that the extra tracks on the cd version are kinda throwaways anyway? Sigh...

BYRDS, THE Younger Than Yesterday (Columbia / Legacy) cd 5.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**

BYRNE, DAVID Grown Backwards (Nonesuch) cd 17.98
Much like fellow art rock vet David Bowie, David Byrne keeps a finger firmly planted on the pulse of the music industry, but unlike Bowie he's never been one to jump on board trendy bandwagons. Both in Talking Heads and solo, Byrne has consistently remained ever the elegant and absurd music man with more than a few surprises up his sleeve. The gently lilting lead-off track to the restrained yet gloriously theatrical Grown Backwards is a prime example -- a light musicbox-y melody, smooth low strings, lightly tapped percussion, and Byrne's unmistakable vocals. Wonderfully composed with an ever-present air of slightly melancholic nostalgia, Grown Backwards sidesteps current trends and achieves a much more timeless appeal.
MPEG Stream: "Glass, Concrete & Stone"
MPEG Stream: "Tiny Apocalypse"

BYRNE, DAVID Lead Us Not Into Temptation (Thrill Jockey) cd 15.98

BYRNE, DAVID Look Into The Eyeball (Luaka Bop) cd 17.98
Brand new album from ex-Talking Head David Byrne. Big production with lots of guest musicians. Almost sounds like it was produced by Tchad Blake, but it isn't. The coolest thing about the album is the cover art and moiree effect slip cover. You can pass each panel of the fold out booklet through the slip cover and see: David Byrne blink, scream, a cup break, a hand pass through fire, a bug take to flight and a chair disintegrate.

BYRNE, DAVID & BRIAN ENO Everything That Happens Will Happen Today (Todomundo Ltd. / Opal Ltd.) cd 16.98
The long awaited follow-up collaboration between these two musical giants is finally here in physical form, after only being available as a digital download. Although, this time it feels more like a David Byrne solo album rather than a revisiting of musical territory from their stellar My Life In The Bush of Ghosts. Not bad though, as long as you're a fan of David Byrne!
MPEG Stream: "Home"
MPEG Stream: "Everything That Happens"

BYRNE, DAVID & ST. VINCENT Love This Giant (4AD) cd 14.98

BYRNE, DAVID & ST. VINCENT Love This Giant (4AD) lp 16.98

C & B, THE s/t (Siltbreeze) 7" 8.98
A gloriously shambolic, stumbling and clattery lo-fi chunk of strum and clang from Graham Lambkin, pre-Shadow Ring, and it definitely sounds like Shadow Ring, but WAY more low fidelity, like if maybe Shadow Ring put out a cassette on Shrimper way back in the day. Which is not at all a bad thing. Monotonous, detuned guitar strum, THOSE vocals, laid back and weary, deep and heavily accented, spoken, but a little bit song songy, heavily distorted in places, weirdly distant sounding in others, the rhythms sound like pipes hitting other pipes, someone pounding on a cardboard box, or thumping on a table top, it's all very Jandekian, but even more skeletal and haunting, woozy, warped, warbly, plenty of tape hiss and dropouts, all woven together into a strangely ghostly bit of spaced out psychedelic minimal drug folk, or something. Dark and gloomy and creepy and cool, fans of the Shadow Ring will definitely want this, but even folks who just like cool weird dark creepiness, might definitely dig this, and find yet another band to obsess over.