C RAYZ WALZ Ravipops (Definitive Jux) cd 13.98

C-AVERAGE Second Reckoning (Kill Rock Stars) cd 13.98
A two-piece band of indie rockers from the Pacific Northwest doing their best to play metal...no, not The Need. It's C-Average -- but these guys might need to think about changing their name, as on this release they've manage to bring their grade point average up a bit! I'd give them a B+ for Second Reckoning, and a little gold star for "most improved". It's way tighter and heavier than their not-so-great debut from a few years back. They still do a lot of covers (this time, "The Witch" by the Sonics and Mose Allison's "Parchment Farm" by way of Blue Cheer), but play them, and their originals, much more convincingly than before. Maybe they'll figure out that with a live bass player, they'd have a chance to be really really good. Punk rock classic rock for fans of Melvins, The (Fucking) Champs, etc.

C-UTTER / DEAD PENI split (Blossoming Noise) lp 19.98

C.O.B. Moyshe McStiff and the Tartan Lancers of the Sacred Heart (Sunbeam) cd 16.98
This longtime AQ British folk fave from Incredible String band offshoot C.O.B. is back in print again, and with tons of extras, thanks to the fine folks at Sunbeam. Now with vastly improved artwork, tons of liner notes (courtesy of the band themselves!), loads of photos, old album covers and show flyers, and SEVEN bonus tracks, instead of the previous edition's five. Wow! As if we didn't love this record enough already!!!
Here's what we had to say about it the first time around:
C.O.B. (Clive's Original Band) was the creation of Incredible String Band founding member and one of the grandfathers of today's fringe folk scene, Clive Palmer. We don't know if you got the chance to see Mr. Palmer alongside fellow ISB founder Mike Heron at last year's reunion show, but it definitely seemed like his banjo-picking was a little rusty and he looked kind of dazed (no wonder, what with 35 years out of the spotlight). When this record (C.O.B.'s second and best, or at least most exotic and weird) was made in 1972, though, he was in top form, and the result is such beautiful melancholy! Some of the instrumentation here is similar to that of ISB (acoustic guitar, banjo, clarinet) but with lots of harmonium and the addition of a dulcimer with a widened bridge (invented by C.O.B. band member John Bidwell), an odd droning sound that darkens the mood a bit more than most stuff you'll hear from ISB. If you're a fan of British folk in the traditional and/or acid vein such as Shirley Collins, Trees, Forest, Fairport Convention, or current underground folkies such as Espers, Vashti Bunyan, or Current 93, this cd promises to be a true wistful pleasure. WAY recommended!!
MPEG Stream: "Eleven Willows"
MPEG Stream: "Oh Bright Eyed One "

C.O.C.O. s/t (K) cd 13.98
The Olympia, WA-based duo of Chris Sutton (Dub Narcotic) on drums and Olivia Ness on bass pump out some bare bones quite Meters-inspired grooves while staying true to the lo-fi K Records spirit. At times C.O.C.O.'s off-kilter boy/girl vocals bring to mind those of fellow K-sters The Crabs.

CABARET VOLTAIRE Mix-Up (Mute) cd 16.98
"Mix Up" was the first album from Cabaret Voltaire, the pioneering Industrial trio of Richard H. Kirk, Chris Watson, and Stephen Mallinder, and is qualitatively the best from that period for Cabaret Voltaire. Their sound centered around the dessication of rhythm with sinewy guitar lines, super primitive electronic synthesis (cheap drum machines, rapidly spirally tape loops, warbling effects), and monotonous vocals rasping through tons of electronics effects. This last trick became a staple of the '80s industrialists, perhaps more due to Skinny Puppy's Ogre than vocalist Kirk. "Mix Up" succeeds by keeping things creepy, dark, and monotonous, whereas the albums that immediately followed got a little too clever in trying to outsmart the audience with their rhetoric of paranoia.
RealAudio clip: "Kirlian Photography"
RealAudio clip: "On Every Other Street"

CABARET VOLTAIRE Nagnagnag + remixes (Novamute) cd ep 8.98
"Nag Nag Nag" was an early single for Cabaret Voltaire, recording it initially back in 1979 when they mere meshing a hollowed-out electro-punk sound with William S. Burroughs' notion of the cut-up. Along with the title track, this features three contemporary remixes from Montreal's Akufen, CV's mainman Richard H. Kirk, and Vice-approved electro bass-bin boomers Tiga & Zyntherius.
RealAudio clip: "Nag Nag Nag (original)"
RealAudio clip: "Nag Nag Nag (Tiga & Zyntherius Radio Mix)"

CABARET VOLTAIRE Red Mecca (Mute) cd 16.98
Originally released in 1981 through Rough Trade, Cabaret Voltaire's third album "Red Mecca" now gets another reissue courtesy of the fine folks at Mute! Having taken their name from the club started in Zurich by the principals of the Dada art movement during the First World War, Cabaret Voltaire has always been considered one of the pillars of Industrial Culture, along side Throbbing Gristle, SPK, and Einsturzende Neubauten. That said, Cabaret Voltaire's sound was probably the weakest link in the Industrial lineage. This trio of Richard H. Kirk, Stephen Mallinder, and Chris Watson filtered disco grooves and afro-beat rhythms through paranoid constructions swelling with conspiracy theories, excessive drug use, and the politics of control, to arrive at a strangled funk, with all of the references to any sort of sensuality sucked dry. Often cited by their fans as the most horrific of the CV catalogue, "Red Mecca" had a lot of great ideas that don't seem as fully realised as their proponents would like us to believe. While many of the '80s bands have enjoyed recent renewed popularity due in part to a sudden spike of interest in all things 'new wave', time hasn't been all that kind to Cabaret Voltaire's early experiments (unlike contemporaries like 23 Skidoo, Suicide, This Heat, and even Throbbing Gristle) sounding very, very eighties (and not necessarily in a good way).
RealAudio clip: "A Thousand Ways"
RealAudio clip: "Red Mask"

CABARET VOLTAIRE The Living Legends (Mute) cd 16.98
"The Living Legends" is a collection of the earliest Cabaret Voltaire singles recorded for Rough Trade between 1978 and 1981. While still lumped in with the Industrial family alongside Psychic TV, SPK, and Chris and Cosey, the Cabs' may have been the most overreaching in their attempt to subvert pop structures. Their ideas were quite clear in their attempt to mutate disco and jangle pop through a bombardment of electronic effects (lots of frequency shifting, flange, delay, etc.), but they didn't really do that much in terms of altering what the root song was. Take for example the singles included on "The Living Legends," which transcribe upbeat pop songs into insectoid mutations that still essentially speak as upbeat pop songs. Their best work is of course when they actually turn their pop structures into something dark and paranoid such as in the electronic wasteland dub of "Silent Command" and "Seconds Too Late," but even these were effortlessly done better by The Pop Group a couple of years later.
RealAudio clip: "Silent Command "
RealAudio clip: "Seconds Too Late"

CABARET VOLTAIRE The Original Sound Of Sheffield '83/'87. Best of; (Virgin) cd 17.98
The Northern industrialized town of Sheffield, England was home not only to Cabaret Voltaire, but also to Warp Records, which is probably where the notion of a 'sound of Sheffield' came from. The period in question found the 'Cabs' on EMI, thus providing the band with much better access to equipment and good studios. They (Stephen Mallinder and Richard H. Kirk, as Chris Watson had departed to form The Hafler Trio with Andrew McKenzie) took the opportunity to further investigate the William S. Burroughs idea of the cut-up within a system of organized repitition. At the center of the Cabs' slice-n-dice funk, gritty beat-box repititions, and media samples was a urgency that club culture was a viable political atmosphere standing in opposition to mainstream control tactics. The sound that Cabaret Voltaire produced during this period was an incredibly influential one, inspiring Skinny Puppy, Nitzer Ebb, the early incarnations of Wax Trax / Ministry, and the ubiquitous presence of Adrian Sherwood's production work throughout the '80s. This influence ended up becoming a double-edged sword for the Cabs, as many of their innovations - the paranoid repititions of arpeggiating synths and their stuttering use of media samples (as in "Sensoria," with the constant declaration: "Do Right, D-D-Do Right") - have become incredibly tired, vapid signifiers of where Industrial Music was going to end up. There was of course a reason why so many artists had taken the ideas from this period of Cabaret Voltaire: it worked on the dance floor.
RealAudio clip: "Crackdown"
RealAudio clip: "Sensoria"

CABLE The Failed Convict (The End) cd 13.98
Man, another favorite of ours that somehow slipped through the cracks. These guys have been rocking for close to 15 years now, they've put records out on Hydra Head, Translation Loss, This Dark Reign, now The End, eight full lengths, even a sort of greatest hits cd/dvd, and we're only now giving these guys some love. Well, apologies to the band, the labels, and to you, if you've somehow managed to miss out on these guys this whole time, you've go some serious catching up to do, cuz these guys RULE. Heavy and dirgey and noisy, definitely reminiscent of the classic AmRep sound, if you dig stuff like Today Is The Day, Botch, Neurosis, Killdozer, all that sort of low slung pigfuck heaviness, you'll probably dig these guys. They sort of get lumped in with the post hardcore / emo outfits, but they're sort of more filthy and fierce, the guitars super thick and angular, crunchy, the drums massive, and the vocals, a totally impossible throat shredding howl, that manages to still be melodic even though it sounds like the dude must be coughing up blood after every show. The arrangements are mathy and complex, lots of starts and stops, and yeah, hooks too, for being heavy and obtuse and fucked up, this stuff is pretty goddamn catchy too.
Been a while since we listened to these guys, but this record is kicking our ass, and reminding us how hard these guys rocked. We're definitely gonna revisit all those old records. That is if we can get ourselves to stop listening to this one, which at this point seems very very unlikely...
MPEG Stream: "Jim's Dream"
MPEG Stream: "Gun Metal Grey"
MPEG Stream: "Be The Wolf"

CABOLADIES s/t (DNT Records) lp 12.98
Caboladies specialize in ecstatic electrical jams that have been making the rounds of the various psychedelic-post-noise-zonked tape and cd-r labels (Arbor, Gneiss, Peasant Magik, Digitalis, etc.). And at one time, these two Kentucky ex-pats (now living in Chicago) shared a tape release with Oneohtrix Point Never. They've always been a bit loopier and more shambolic than Oneohtrix, elevating their work to the druggiest plateau of spiralling bloop and eyes-dilated sparkle that you might expect from an Astral Social Club reworking of J.D. Emmanuel. Many of those tape and cd-r releases had disappeared from physical distribution, although some less than stunning sounding mp3s are making their way around the blogosphere. So, it's really great to hear Caboladies on wax, which is certainly the best medium for these celestial crystallizations blossoming from piles of analogue gear. Taken separately, each piece of electronic gear is dialed to a twitchy spasmodic set of bleeps and swoops, that would be ungainly had Caboladies not playfully situated five, six, eight, ten complementary sets of tones that smear together into an ambient shimmer that's anything but static. These irregular vibrations and delirious patterns are alive with psychedelic energy, that you could almost see fitting into some freak-folk nature jam session... but then again, everything needs to be plugged rather heavily into the grid. Great stuff!

CACCIAPAGLIA, ROBERTO Sei Note In Logica (Mupymup) lp+cd 29.00
Released in 1979, the same year as The Ann Steel Record we raved about awhile back, Roberto Cacciapaglia's second release, Sei Note In Logica, exists in an entirely different sonic universe, one closer to his minimal classical leanings. While The Ann Steel Record was a retro-future pop album, Sei Note In Logica is an avant-garde systems composition for voices, orchestra and computer, that takes a six note melodic phrase and runs it through every possible musical combination with a choir of female vocalists (including the processed spoken voice of Ann Steel!) and the instrumentation of marimbas. strings and woodwinds and computer-based electronics. Its emphasis on repetition and rhythm puts Cacciapaglia rightfully in a more well known circle of minimalist composers like Philip Glass, Steve Reich and Terry Riley and is a beautifully epic piece of economic means. Recorded in two parts, this vinyl reissue includes a cd of the vinyl recording plus a bonus version of the acoustic version of the piece with the ensemble without the computer derived enhancements and Ann Steel vocal. It's great to see this on vinyl, but don't hesitate as these great deluxe reissues have a way of disappearing fast! Highly Recommended!

CACCIAPAGLIA, ROBERTO The Ann Steel Album (Half Machine) lp 17.98
It took a while for us to be able to list these - first our supplier ran out, then we got copies that were damaged, but now we've got more and we're glad to be able to review it, 'cause few records in recent memory have brought us as much unbridled joy as this one. We've heard inklings here and there about this record over the years and when we heard it was being reissued several months ago, our excitement grew with each new report. Straddling the lines between post-disco and new wave electronica without quite being either, The Ann Steel Album from 1979 is the product of avant-classical composer Roberto Cacciapaglia, a multi-instrumentalist that performed on Franco Battiato's Pollution (a unanimous aQ favorite!) and who is mostly known for composing works of progressive classical minimalism (Wah Wah recently reissued his debut Sonanze from 1975, and Sei Note in Logica from the same year as this, is also worth seeking out). But The Ann Steel Album is an entirely different animal, not only because of its skewed electronic dance-pop leanings, but because it features the beautifully strange and charming vocal presence of American model Ann Steel, who obviously is the real star of this record. She sings like a warm bodied android in clipped chirps and strange phrasings like a machine with english language programming for public interaction. Think Siri with a higher register. In the awesome opening song, "My Time", she's ready to sell you on the artificial wonders of modern society, where consciousness is akin to commodification: "My life runs smooth like a highway / Billboards show me the way" (Belgian synth trio, Telex covered this in a smoother, more well known version on their debut a year later). Every song on here fully rejoices in the positive joys of the synthetic present, making this an infectiously grooving pop art statement with any trace of irony fully camouflaged under layers of glossy surface. It's easy to tell that retro-futurist bands like Stereolab and Sweden's Komeda were influenced heavily by this record, and it fits right in with the brilliant like-minded eccentric synthesis of Bruce Haack and Giorgio Moroder. Not sold yet? Go here to see an awesome clip from Italian dance show, Tilt, from 1980 and just try and remain unconvinced that this is awesome!: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tu2ESLpe-rE
Thank you Half-Machine for bringing this record back to life! Might just be reissue of the year! And apologies to you non-vinyl folks as this looks like for the present to be vinyl only.
MPEG Stream: "My Time"
MPEG Stream: "Sport et Divertissement"
MPEG Stream: "Portrait"

CADALLACA Introducing (K) cd 12.98
Cadallaca features Corin Tucker of Sleater Kinney. It's less fierce than Sleater Kinney, but just as heartfelt with organs and off-key vocals.

CADALLACA Introducing (K) lp 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Cadallaca features Corin Tucker of Sleater Kinney. It's less fierce than Sleater Kinney, but just as heartfelt with organs and off-key vocals.

CADAVER IN DRAG Raw Child (Animal Disguise Recordings) cd 12.98
Ok, let's start adding 'em up. This band gets point for their name, first off. 'Cadaver In Drag' is both disturbing and humorous enough to be worth a nervous chuckle (it's even funnier if you imagine that they know something about the Swedish death metal band Cadaver that we don't know). And their knack for names extends to album and song titles too, especially that of track two, "Fuck This Place". Could be an anthem for folks sick of living in, say, Kentucky (from whence Cadaver In Drag hail). Plus, they get points for this being released on the Animal Disguise label, run by one of the guys from Mammal, whose recent album was an Aquarius Record Of The Week, last week. That certainly piques our interest. And also then there's more points for this being picked, before it was even released, as an Album Of The Month (October 2007) by pagan pope Julian Cope on his Head Heritage website, which puts 'em in league with such past heavy AQ faves as Harvey Milk, Orthodox, Om, Death Comes Along, Vincent Black Shadow, The Heads, SUNNO))), and others. As always, we recommend reading his reviews.
So, before we even heard this, Cadaver In Drag had already run up the score pretty high in their favor. And now that it's here, and blasting on our stereo, the verdict is: hella more points!! For being a totally fucked, mesmeric mash of doooomic sludge metal and shrill psychedelic noise rock... part Khanate, part Wolf Eyes (or Mammal), and, as Julian Cope sez, part Les Rallizes Denudes. Nasty, noisy, nauseous. Early on in both the first two of this disc's three tracks, some angsty, wretched screams carry on about something or other, but those are quickly forgotten as Cadaver In Drag concentrate on their plodding, powerful instrumental raison d'etre: monomaniacal repetitive riff-bashing, each track an extended, distorted, metallic, trebly throb, crashing and clanging, staying more or less the same for up to 19 minutes in the case of the first and longest cut, the aptly titled "Walking Through The Gates Of Hell". However, subtle, simple shifts in sound do occur, almost as if they're playing their own destroyed dub versions of these compositions. It's like Skullflower covering Super Roots 3 (or 5) by the Boredoms, if you can imagine that sort of sickeningly hypnotic hybrid. Or Eyehategod and Hair Police (a member of whom contributes synths here) locked in a minimal march to death, freaking out with as few chords as possible, but plenty of FX. Or Cavity vs. Harry Pussy... Yowza. And it must be said that Cadaver In Drag does mellow the fuck out for the almost melodic, calm-in-comparison album closer "Secession '61". Nice. Points for that too.
MPEG Stream: "Walking Through The Gates Of Hell"
MPEG Stream: "Secession '61"

CADAVER IN DRAG Raw Child (Animal Disguise Recordings) lp 14.98
Ok, let's start adding 'em up. This band gets point for their name, first off. 'Cadaver In Drag' is both disturbing and humorous enough to be worth a nervous chuckle (it's even funnier if you imagine that they know something about the Swedish death metal band Cadaver that we don't know). And their knack for names extends to album and song titles too, especially that of track two, "Fuck This Place". Could be an anthem for folks sick of living in, say, Kentucky (from whence Cadaver In Drag hail). Plus, they get points for this being released on the Animal Disguise label, run by one of the guys from Mammal, whose recent album was an Aquarius Record Of The Week, last week. That certainly piques our interest. And also then there's more points for this being picked, before it was even released, as an Album Of The Month (October 2007) by pagan pope Julian Cope on his Head Heritage website, which puts 'em in league with such past heavy AQ faves as Harvey Milk, Orthodox, Om, Death Comes Along, Vincent Black Shadow, The Heads, SUNNO))), and others. As always, we recommend reading his reviews.
So, before we even heard this, Cadaver In Drag had already run up the score pretty high in their favor. And now that it's here, and blasting on our stereo, the verdict is: hella more points!! For being a totally fucked, mesmeric mash of doooomic sludge metal and shrill psychedelic noise rock... part Khanate, part Wolf Eyes (or Mammal), and, as Julian Cope sez, part Les Rallizes Denudes. Nasty, noisy, nauseous. Early on in both the first two of this disc's three tracks, some angsty, wretched screams carry on about something or other, but those are quickly forgotten as Cadaver In Drag concentrate on their plodding, powerful instrumental raison d'etre: monomaniacal repetitive riff-bashing, each track an extended, distorted, metallic, trebly throb, crashing and clanging, staying more or less the same for up to 19 minutes in the case of the first and longest cut, the aptly titled "Walking Through The Gates Of Hell". However, subtle, simple shifts in sound do occur, almost as if they're playing their own destroyed dub versions of these compositions. It's like Skullflower covering Super Roots 3 (or 5) by the Boredoms, if you can imagine that sort of sickeningly hypnotic hybrid. Or Eyehategod and Hair Police (a member of whom contributes synths here) locked in a minimal march to death, freaking out with as few chords as possible, but plenty of FX. Or Cavity vs. Harry Pussy... Yowza. And it must be said that Cadaver In Drag does mellow the fuck out for the almost melodic, calm-in-comparison album closer "Secession '61". Nice. Points for that too.
MPEG Stream: "Walking Through The Gates Of Hell"
MPEG Stream: "Secession '61"

CAESAR, J.A. Jashumon (Phoenix) cd 17.98

CAESAR, J.A. Kokkyou Junreika (Phoenix) cd 17.98
Woah. Only previously available in the form of expensive Japanese imports, this is the first time we've been able to stock and list this amazing album, and we've wanted to for a long time. It's one that anyone into weird heavy '70s psych / prog, particularly of the Japanese variety, should add to their collections posthaste. Seriously. You perhaps have heard of J.A. Caesar (variously, J.A. Seazer, J.A. Ceaser), a Tokyo based playwright and composer, responsible for many wild, psychedelic theatrical productions that we can only imagine were utterly mindblowing to witness, judging by their soundtracks. This disc, reissuing a 1973 record, contains the highlights of his dramatic score for a 5-hour play called Kokkyou Junreika, here about 54 minutes of music. And it's an intense 54 minutes, this album being the best, and heaviest, J.A. Caesar release we've heard, with ceremonial-sounding Buddhist chant and fuzzed out guitars and doomy organ and heavy riffs and moody female vocals out the wazoo. Wow. Magical Power Mako meets Magma would be one good (if potentially puzzling) description. Or perhaps imagine Flower Travellin' Band participating in a freaked out rock opera / ritual, with the fate of mankind hanging in the balance. For krautrockier comparisons, Amon Duul II and Necronomicon are obvious ones, and should suffice as an excellent recommendation. Another would be that this album was highly rated by Julian Cope in his Japrocksampler book (ranking at number 5 of his top 50). This reissue says it's remastered, and is limited and numbered to boot, packaged in a gatefold sleeve.
By the way, one of the tracks here was later covered by druggy doomsters Solar Anus, you can hear it on their tUMULt double disc, Skull Alcoholic...
MPEG Stream: "track 1"
MPEG Stream: "track 3"
MPEG Stream: "track 6"

CAESARS 39 Minutes Of Bliss (In An Otherwise Meaningless World) (Astralwerks / Dolores) cd 14.98

CAESARS Paper Tigers (EMI) cd 13.98
The Residents made an astute point when they noted that pop songs are commercial jingles (something to that effect or perhaps it was vice versa). A lot of the folks who compose music for commercials are undeniably some serious hook writers... which is why it's not at all surprising that ad execs got savvy to buying up current and past proven hits for use in ads. Hence, you might already unknowingly be familiar with this band (or at least one song of theirs) 'cause as a big sticker proclaims on this cd's shrinkwrap, it "features 'Jerk It Out' as heard in the iPod Shuffle commercial". Hell, it's definitely a great song (the band and their label both know it, having dished out different versions of the tune already on two other releases to date), but it's sad that it's gonna forever be associated with a product and not, say, your summer fun day at the beach or sumthin'. Anyhoo, that said, this is a bright bouyant pop album with nods to both the '60s and '80s. Lead singer Cesar Vidal's slightly nasal, emotive vocals sound quite a bit like those of Oasis... that is, if those Gallagher brothers took an enormous happy pill and moved to Sweden. Good stuff!
MPEG Stream: "Jerk It Out"
MPEG Stream: "Good And Gone"

CAESURA More Specific, Less Pacific (54 40' or Fight!) cd 9.98
In spite of being a 'post-rock' band, this local trio actually knows how to rock. Both live and on this new cd, they're quite impressive, intense and precise...but also not super original. Everything they do sounds kinda like it could be something by Circus Lupus, Shellac, or every other post-rock band on the screamier side of things...maybe a little Bastro, a little Fugazi too. And perhaps the brief Latin hand percussion break halfway through the disc is their nod to Tortoise or Gastr del Sol? So, great if that's your scene and you're not really looking for something new (that is, you want more of what you like, rather than something else). Perhaps these guys should go into temporary retirement for twenty years, and then emerge right about when there's (likely to be) a retro-post-rock revival in 2022, they'd kick everyone's asses then. In the here-and-now, though, they're still really good.
RealAudio clip: "For Staged Encore"
RealAudio clip: "Trap Door"

CAESURA Wallpaper The Witness (Birds Go South) lp 9.98

CAETHUA The Long Afternoon Of Earth (Preservation) 2cd 19.98
It's the moment that reminds us why we still love doing all the work it takes to run AQ. The moment when you put on a record by an artist you have never heard before and are immediately transported to another dimension, all senses completely heightened as you realize that you are hearing for the first time what will be sounds and songs that you will be playing over and over for years to come.
This is the moment that occurred the first time we put on this album by Caethua. We knew that the label it was on Preservation, had given us some tender and dreamy releases in the past, especially the great bliss out Japanese band Eddie Marcon, but other then that we had nothing to go on. But the moment we pressed play, that sensation hit harder than it has in so long. With its sparse and haunting arrangements and daydream inducing vocals this is one of those records that we thought could only exist in our imaginations. You know that fun 'what if' game you play to invent the perfect record. What if Machinefabriek and Jasper TX merged forces with Beach House??!! And for once one of those too good to be true imaginary concoctions has totally come to life!!!
Caethua really manage to meld so many of our favorite worlds. That feeling of being somewhere between waking and sleeping worlds, faded and melting layers of sound creating the perfect bed for the irresistible vocal delivery, the magical soft force behind Caethua, Clare Hubbard.
The Long Afternoon Of Earth is spread out over two discs, bursting at the seams with the layered and haunting elements of her sound. Like if Vincent Gallo and Mira Cook jammed together with disintegrating Chet Baker records woven into the mix. There are also songs with a more straightforward approach that evoke a modern day Karen Dalton or Shirley Collins, if teamed up with the Tenniscoats, maybe. Makes sense that Hubbard is from Maine as these would be the perfect sounds to keep you warm and safe and protected when the world around you turns so frosty and dark. Absolutely stunning!
MPEG Stream: "Lament"
MPEG Stream: "The Old Ones Go First"
MPEG Stream: "In A Garden Barely Looked At"

CAGED ANIMAL s/t (Warthog Speak) 7" 4.98
Debut blast of feral, furious, knuckle dragging hardcore from this SF crew, with a very UN-hardcore pedigree, featuring non other than Tony from the Ovens on vocals, and members of aQ pop faves the Sopors and Violent Change as well. But as CA, these guys ditch all that poppiness for something much more fierce and fucked up, brief blasts of grinding punk energy, the songs measure in seconds not minutes, pounding caveman drums, bellowed vox, wild squalls of guitar, sheets of feedback, buzzing bass, their live shows are bloody and brief, all hoodies and mic cords wrapped around fists, and they last about as long as this 7", which as far as we know is in fact their whole set captured on wax. Needless to say, this is some frantic heaviness, some pit destroying punk destruction. As the label describes it "There's not one ounce of originality in these grooves, but if it ain't broke, don't try to fix it". Haha fuck yeah. Includes a killer into from Bay Area rapper Antwon, whose Ormolycka tape End Of Earth was a big hit around here.
LIMITED TO 300 COPIES!!!

CAIN Stinger (Vintage / Rockadrome) cd 13.98
Been waiting for this, those of us here into the authentic, ass-kicking Seventies hard rock action that is. After their 1975 debut, Pound Of Flesh, the cd reissue of which we reviewed some time ago (you know, the one with the gross can o' meat cover, to illustrate its title), Cain returned with a second album in '77. Now it's been reissued on cd too, with six live bonus tracks.
Like we said about Pound Of Flesh, this is music made to loudly blare from an 8-track in a muscle car. These long-haired and bushy-mustachioed Minnesota boys, lead by bare-chested, leather-lunged frontman Jiggs Lee (how did he not become a big rock star with that name?) sure knew how to rock n' roll it, in a very '70s swaggery cock rock style that mixes hard riffing and sweet melodies. Lotsa badass boogie here, and some more "sophisticated" moments too - "The Minstrel Song" is their pomp rock opus, recalling early Styx (when Styx were sorta heavy, yes they were) and Queen. There and elsewhere we're also reminded of Rainbow (and Elf) and Starz and other more famous '70s contemporaries. Cain's songs are designed to get a crowd goin' with wailing guitar heroics, soaring vocal hooks, and what might be just the right amount of cowbell - definitely dated but damn good fun, though maybe they didn't really need to do a cover of "Gimme Some Lovin'".
If disco and new wave hadn't come along, Cain might have gone places, 'cause apparently they were one heck of a live band, as you can kind of get a taste of here from the bonus tracks, most of which were recorded at the 1977 Minnesota State Fair. Jiggs was even known to do magic tricks and juggling, in addition to belting it out, wow.
So yeah, Rockadrome/Vintage deliver the '70s hard rock/proto-metal goods again, after the Hooker and Sainte Anthony's Fyre reissues we've reviewed on recent lists. Especially if you liked Hooker, you'll like this. Keep 'em coming, guys! (They have the proto-doom legend Icecross on deck next, yeah!!)
MPEG Stream: "Freedom"
MPEG Stream: "The Minstrel Song"
MPEG Stream: "Stinger"

CAIRO GANG, THE s/t (Narnack) cd 14.98
What's this? Some unexpected prettiness on the usually angular edgy Narnack label? A refreshing change. The Cairo Gang's music brings many other non-Narnack artists to mind. Despite the moniker, this is a one man band. Most notably Mr. Emmett Kelly's softly lilting vocals and bossanova rhythms that pepper the album draw immediate comparisons to Sam Prekop and Sea And Cake. Further into the album, the ninth song "Last Time Since September" seems like a breezy lil' something that The Shins might do on a mellow afternoon, while the eleventh track "Silhouette" is very awash in swishy shoegazin' guitars a la Ride, Slowdive or Jesus And Mary Chain. To boot, the sweet flittery recorder playing evokes a wide-eyed innocence seldom heard these days. Amid all of this laidback, contemplative melodicism though Kelly does on occasion descend into brief periods of dissonance and wooziness which prevents the listener from completely drifting off into dreamland. Taken in one sitting, this album's variety of indie pop sounds is quite reminiscent of Unrest and The Lilys too. A hazy late summer evening kind of listen.
MPEG Stream: "Last Time Since September"
MPEG Stream: "Silhouette"

CAIRO GANG, THE The Corner Man (Empty Cellar) lp 14.98
One man folk outfit, The Cairo Gang, gets his solo vinyl debut on local label Empty Cellar and it's quite beautifully melancholic and intimate. We've been familiar with singer songwriter Emmet Kelly's work for awhile now, especially his collaborations with Bonnie Prince Billy where he managed to take Oldham's recent maximal ambitions back to the spare economy of his work as Palace Brothers. Like another Will Oldham release we favor above most of the others, Master and Everyone, The Corner Man is a spare and close set of tracks that has lovely British folk lyrical qualities with guitars, pedal steel and soft thumping drums. Kelly's clear resonant tones lay out wistful moods of impermanence and a weary knowing regret. On the Corner Man, The Cairo Gang's sound has become fully realized, and it's a thing of beauty indeed.
Comes with download card!

CAKE Comfort Eagle (Columbia / Sony) cd 16.98
These local favorites, that for painfully obvious reasons, have made it big (-ish). The worst song on this cd is the hit on MTV. With embarrassing lyrics, funky, kooky riffs, and gratuitous poppy bullshit, this release was unbearable for me to listen to. Yuck.

CAKE Fashion Nugget (Capricorn/Mercury) cd 12.98
As seen on MTV.

CAKE Pressure Chief (Columbia ) cd 16.98

CAKEKITCHEN, THE How Can You Be So Blind (Hausmusik) cd 16.98
Graeme Jefferies and his brother Peter have been stalwarts of the New Zealand indie-pop community since the beginning practically, with their careers beginning with their gritty re-invention of Joy Division and Swell Maps as the little heard Nocturnal Projections way back in the early '80s. The Jefferies brothers' sound matured as they founded This Kind Of Punishment, often contrasting the agitated punk energies of Peter's songwriting tendencies against Graeme's introspective tracks which highlight his emotive baritone and simple acoustic guitar numbers. Eventually, This Kind of Punishment collapsed and the brothers parted ways, with Peter producing some questionable solo projects and Graeme forming The Cakekitchen in which he continues to hone his skills as an indie-rock troubadour. It's a little bit surprising, although sort of appropriate that "How Can You Be So Blind" has been released by Hausmusik, the German label best known for Village Of Savoonga and Notwist. While The Cakekitchen shares none of the indietronica that the beloved Notwist embraced or the post-rock deconstruction of Village Of Savoonga, the melancholic sentimentality of Jefferies' singer / songwriter ideals definitely resonates with both German projects. Serene and bittersweet, Jefferies croons over beautifully rough-hewn arrangements for guitar, drums, bass, and a lilting violin; but on occasion, his voice waltzes into surprisingly carnivalesque harmonies, sounding a bit more like Syd Barrett. Nevertheless, fans of Iron & Wine, Elliott Smith, 16 Horsepower, and M. Ward will definitely find much to love in The Cakekitchen.
MPEG Stream: "The Rainmaker"
MPEG Stream: "The Resurrection of Lieutenant Ghmpinski"

CALCULATORS Circuit Breaking Silence (Fine Line) cd 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Popular but now sadly defunct SF synth-wave quartet easily recognized by their white belts and ties. Quite frankly this band rocked with a hearty dose of thick Roland Juno 60 and Moog synth lines. Half this album was recorded by Helios Creed at Half Machine Studios. Also check out their 10" record "Simplicity And Style".

CALCULATORS Simplicity And Style (Spectator) 10" 7.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.The now-defunct Calculators certainly fired up quite a new wave frenzy in their short life. Thick analog synth lines do battle with distorted guitars. This medium sized piece of vinyl features four prime examples of youthful SF synth rock.

CALCULATORS, THE Circuit Breaking Silence / Simplicity & Style (Princehouse) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Curious what some of those boys from The Rapture were up to prior to hookin' up with the DFA production team and hittin' the dancefloor? Here's your answer! The Calculators' Circuit Breaking Silence cd and Simplicity & Style 10" have both been out of print for a few years now, but have just been reissued together on one disc by uber hip'n'cool SF label Princehouse Records!
Here's what we had to say about them back then... first the cd:
Popular but now sadly defunct SF synth-wave quartet easily recognized by their white belts and ties. Quite frankly this band rocked with a hearty dose of thick Roland Juno 60 and Moog synth lines. Half this album was recorded by Helios Creed at Half Machine Studios.
and as for the 10":
The now-defunct Calculators certainly fired up quite a new wave frenzy in their short life. Thick analog synth lines do battle with distorted guitars. This medium sized piece of vinyl features four prime examples of youthful SF synth rock.
MPEG Stream: "Worthless In A World Of Wires"
MPEG Stream: "Electricity"

CALDER, KATHRYN Bright & Vivid (FU:M / File Under: Music) cd 17.98
Although her introduction into the public eye was trumpeted with the news of her being Carl Newman's long-lost niece, and she was subsequently somewhat saddled with the daunting task of filling the mighty shoes of Neko Case as female vocalist for the New Pornographers, Kathryn Calder has proven time and time again that she is a strong creative force in her own right. And she's not only fully defined her roles in the NPs and her own band (the sadly now defunct) Immaculate Machine, but on the solo stage as well. Bright & Vivid is her sophomore solo album, and such a lovely one it is. Far more lush than any of her previous recordings, she continues to explore and incorporate other instruments into the basic indie pop palette. This time synthesizers get the call, and from the opening track "One Two Three", the affair swoons with a dreamy '80s pop feel. Whereas her 2010 solo debut Are You My Mother was a wistful and poignant and deeply personal work, written and recorded during a two year period when Calder was caring for her terminally ill mother; Bright & Vivid's production was comparatively swift. However, the speed in which it came into being by no means indicates that it was in any way rushed. Each song is at once sweetly easy going and richly detailed. For this release, she enlisted the kind support and fine talents of friends Jon Wurster (of Superchunk and Mountain Goats), drummer Barry Mirochnick and guitarist Paul Rigby (both from Neko Case's band). Despite the autumnal hues of the cover art, the title is far truer to the overall feel. Although we've been a bit tardy in reviewing this (it came out a few months ago). we think now is the perfect time to give it a spin. Its blossoming warm tones are ready to sweep aside the grey winter doldrums and make way for spring!
MPEG Stream: "One Two Three"
MPEG Stream: "Who Are You?"

CALDERA LAKES Arranged (Ecstatic Peace) cassette 9.98
Kevin Shields! There's a name that garners a lot of attention; and it's pretty obvious why Eva Aguila uses that moniker for her scalding noise ventures which she has broadcast up and down the West Coast. We're sure that a few must have stumbled into grimy warehouse noise shows expecting The Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine to be slumming it, instead to find a woman behind a table of pedals and some weird typewriter looking thing, all of which sizzle and shriek with a blaring electricity. So, if the ruse has ever drawn anybody in, were they pissed? Bemused? Hard to guess, but in addition to her activities as Kevin Shields, Aguila also records and performs in the duo Caldera Lakes with Brittany Gould. Here, they swing between deconstructed dream-time, avant-folk meanderings and full-on noise mode. Everything on this tape is swimming in a suitably lo-fi soup that could be the shittiness of this cassette (ostensibly a 'professional' duplication job) or the antique haze purposefully grafted onto the production. Detached folksongs strummed in monotone on guitar, with spluttered events, eerie tones, and haunted voices that drone-on creating a vibe that's not too far from those of Christina Carter or Grouper; but as these tracks proceed, convulsive noises ramp their activity from minor overloads on a four-track into concussion bomb explosions muffled through the constant gauze of tape hiss. Elsewhere, percussive scrabblings trickle through a multitude of delay pedals, forming stoned / hypnogogic patterns in keeping with some of the early experiments by Zoviet France (e.g. Eostre, Signal Gesture Threat, etc.). Static electricity cracks the ether around these phasing delays gradually building into another swelling cloud of ominous charged particles. Limited to 100 copies!

CALE, JOHN Black Acetate (EMI) cd 15.98

CALE, JOHN Hobosapiens (EMI) cd 15.98
Can't teach an old dog new tricks huh? Here's a founding member of the Velvet Underground and avant-garde/drone artist in his own right, John Cale, at 61 doing somersaults over his typically dour dirge with an open and eclectic musical palette. Neither truly avant-garde nor contemporary, Hobosapiens might remind one of Eno's Taking Tiger Mountain at points. It offers sonic-scapes of contemplation punctuated by an artful and considered assortment of unexpected instrumentation. This album's a critic-pleaser now but seems as though it's only the beginning of some fresh steps in Cale's music making!
MPEG Stream: "Reading My Mind"
MPEG Stream: "Twilight Zone"

CALE, JOHN New York in the 1960's (Table Of The Elements) 5lp 64.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Totally gorgeous vinyl reissue of the three archival cds released by Table Of The Elements a few years back, that documented Cale's early sixties minimal explorations. This new version comes housed in a black lacquered 12" box, beautifully silkscreened, with a hand screened oversized booklet (including extensive liner notes and a libretto) inside as well. In addition to the material from the three cds, there are two bonus tracks also previously released, that appeared originally on the Jack Smith compilations also on Table Of The Elements. Here's what we had to say about the three volumes originally.
John Cale's "Sun Blindness Music" is the first in a trilogy of archival recordings from this founder of the Velvet Underground. Much has been made already about Cale's contribution to both the history of rock and the history of minimalism, so we'll cut to the chase and get to the contents of this album, which features three of Cale's earliest compositions from the mid to late '60s. The title track spans almost 45 minutes, with Cale sustaining clusters of notes on a Vox Continental Organ, before indeterminately hammering down Phillip Glass-esque arpeggiations and then returning to the open ended drone. The two following tracks are quite good representations of '60s minimalism - with the proto-Amon Duul guitar strum of "Summer Heat" and the eerie electronic modulations on "Second Fortress."
Second in this trilogy of recordings culled from John Cale's personal archive of material from the late '60s. Upon listening to these visceral documents, one realizes that Cale, a founding member of the Velvet Underground, was more likely than not the one responsible for the wailing screech and howl that makes such Velvets songs as "Sister Ray" so stunning, and that it was the push and pull of his drone-leanings balanced with Lou Reed's more conventional songwriting that made the band great. Here, the Welshman Cale bestows upon us two pieces recorded with kindred spirit Tony Conrad on violin, and Cale on viola -- their twenty minute "Dream Interpretation" is a wonderful shimmering drone that is at once warm and organic yet also metallic and grating. "Ex-Cathedra", our favorite track here, is from 1967/68 and features Cale simply pumping on Vox organ, conjuring up yet another tense yet melodic, trebly drone that's macabre (isn't the sound of an organ often delightfully macabre?) and strangely lulling. Other tracks include Cale making solo electronic sounds, and a 'duet' with Angus Maclise (another founding member of the Velvet Underground) on cimbalon, an Eastern European hammered dulcimer. The only dud features Cale "playing" piano, innards and all, a rather been-there-done-that idea even in the late '60s.
As with volume II of this series, there are a few great tracks on volume III that make the price of ths disc worth it, and some throwaways that are of limited interest. The 10-minute "Stainless Steel Gamelan" track is the highlight here, and it's excellent even though it has nothing to do with gamelan per se. It features the Velvet's Sterling Morrison and Cale both "playing" the same guitar at the same time, an experiment which resulted in shimmering atmospherics and metallic percussive pulses, sounds that're as usefully evocative for today's DJ Shadow or Aphex Twin as they are here, maybe 30 years earlier. Also included on this disc is a funny hoedown of a piece wherein Cale plays with tape delay, Angus Maclise pounds various hand drums, and Terry Jennings -- a free saxophonist and crony of Lamonte Young -- sings on soprano sax. There's also a tremendous piece with Tony Conrad on a Vox reverb unit and Cale on electric piano -- it sounds like the soundtrack to a nightmare that won't end.
If you're a fan of the noise-loving modern heirs to the Cale droneologist throne, bands such as Skullflower, Pelt, and Sunroof!, you've got to hear this. Recommended.

CALE, JOHN Paris 1919 (Warner Bros.) cd 12.98
We've been meaning to list this for a long time. One of those special records that so many past and present aQ employees hold close to their hearts. This is John Cale's orchestral pop masterpiece! Last list we made his collaboration with Terry Riley one of our records of the week and while this is a different beast all together it definitely shows what a wide range of musical genius Cale had going on during the early '70s. Paris 1919 is most certainly a pop record, but not just any kind of pop record. This is one that immediately transports you to the lavish and lush fantastical worlds these songs take place. Backed by a band featuring members of Little Feat as well as the UCLA Symphony Orchestra, Cale was able to create songs that somehow are as delicate and understated as they are glowing and baroque.
It's a record that always makes us want to wander along pastoral hillsides filled with the greenest grass, a cup of delicious hot tea in our hands as we twirl and daydream through the afternoon. Cale's voice has never sounded better, and it's for sure his most emotive and sensitive statement ever put to tape. It's amazing how many newer bands we love that for sure had to be influenced so strongly by this record. Just listen to The Hidden Cameras, Kelly Stoltz, Jens Lekman, Beck or Belle & Sebastian and you can hear the legacy of Paris 1919 in their songs. Total pop perfection!
MPEG Stream: "Paris 1919"
MPEG Stream: "The Endless Plain Of Fortune"
MPEG Stream: "Hanky Panky Nohow [Drone Mix] "

CALE, JOHN Paris 1919 (4 Men With Beards) lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
ALSO ON VINYL! We've been meaning to list this for a long time. One of those special records that so many past and present aQ employees hold close to their hearts. This is John Cale's orchestral pop masterpiece! Last list we made his collaboration with Terry Riley one of our records of the week and while this is a different beast all together it definitely shows what a wide range of musical genius Cale had going on during the early 70's. Paris 1919 is most certainly a pop record, but not just any kind of pop record. This is one that immediately transports you to the lavish and lush fantastical worlds these songs take place. Backed by a band featuring members of Little Feat as well as the UCLA Symphony Orchestra, Cale was able to create songs that somehow are as delicate and understated as they are glowing and baroque.
It's a record that always makes us want to wander along pastoral hillsides filled with the greenest grass, a cup of delicious hot tea in our hands as we twirl and daydream through the afternoon. Cale's voice has never sounded better, and it's for sure his most emotive and sensitive statement ever put to tape. It's amazing how many newer bands we love that for sure had to be influenced so strongly by this record. Just listen to The Hidden Cameras, Kelly Stoltz, Jens Lekman, Beck or Belle & Sebastian and you can hear the legacy of Paris 1919 in their songs. Total pop perfection!
MPEG Stream: "Paris 1919"
MPEG Stream: "The Endless Plain Of Fortune"
MPEG Stream: "Hanky Panky Nohow [Drone Mix] "

CALE, JOHN Vintage Violence (Columbia) cd 5.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
This is John Cale's first solo recording, digitally remastered and with 2 bonus tracks. Originally released in 1970, this record was recorded shortly after Cale left the Velvet Underground to strike out on his own musically (away from Lou Reed mostly) and to produce other artists like Nico. The first few tracks on this record sound almost like they could be from some obscure Elephant 6 band, with howling throaty Neutral Milk Hotel-ish vocals over quirky sixties/seventies off kilter pop! As the record progresses it begins to show its age a little more, reminding us more of Brian Eno or maybe Jonathan Richman, also cool.
MPEG Stream: "Gideon's Bible"
MPEG Stream: "Hello, There"

CALE, JOHN Words For the Dying (All Saints) cd 16.98

CALE, JOHN & TERRY RILEY Church Of Anthrax (Wounded Bird) cd 15.98
More music needs to be like this! Open and unfettered yet baroquely mysterious and cryptic; taking strange careening detours that cast endlessly distorting sonic reflections. Minimal but complex, driving and repetitive, yet sloppily unraveling with a ponderous noisy pop undercurrent that is both reverent and perverse. Is this a rock record led by a chamber ensemble? Or an avant-garde composition ambushed by lurching bass and drums? Or both? Makes sense that this album is called Church of Anthrax and both of its high priests are one time Velvet Underground and Dream Syndicate members John Cale and the guru of minimalism Terry Riley.
This one time collaboration from 1971 has just been re-issued and it's never sounded better! Touching on experimental jazz, minimalist composition, free rock and baroque pop yet remaining elusive and restless, never settling neatly into any one genre. It was recorded at a time when such cross-pollination of sounds was not only new but very necessary. John Cale plays all sides of his musical personae returning to his avant-garde roots with LaMonte Young in the Theater of Eternal Music but infusing it with the noisy economy of The Velvet Underground and the poetic pop of his subsequent output. While Terry Riley allows his more purist minimal aesthetic to become looser and emotive, paving the way towards his soundtrack works a few years later. Add to it the shambling drums of Bobby Columby from Blood Sweat and Tears (uncredited here) and the strange guest appearance of little known singer, Adam Miller (probably best known for the sesame street song, "We all Live in the Capital I") and what we have is this truly odd and hypnotically amazing document. Something that sounds more Germany than New York, like a collaboration between Can and Ralf and Florian of Kraftwerk or between Faust and Cluster. Or more contemporarily and unlikely, say between Wooden Shjips and Shogun Kunitoki with a guest vocal appearance by Thom Yorke of Radiohead!
The title track opens with a deep low multi-horned drone before the bass and drums kick into what begins to sound like a more driving version of The Kinks'"Powerman". But instead of going into a formal song structure, the riff repeats with Riley's pipe organ laying circular filigree riffs over the top, maintaining a constant lurch forward, and glassy saxophone stabs and atonal guitar rising from underneath creating an uneasy rhythm that slowly unravels into a propulsively droney stew. The air clears for the beautiful "Hall of Mirrors in The Palace of Versailles" with Cale on piano and Riley on solo saxophone trading off building and lilting riffs that rise and coalesce into shimmering tones. It's the moment that feels unique to each of them: the melodic minimalism of Cale's Dream syndicate days, and the all night time-delayed sax pieces of Riley's "Poppy Nogood and The Phantom Band". But with its mirror imagery and gorgeous repetitions, it feels wonderfully cinematic like a lost score for Alain Resnais' "Last Year at Marienbad". The next track, "The Soul of Patrick Lee" is perhaps the strangest because it's the only one with vocals, which wouldn't be unusual for John Cale as he wrote it and it sounds like him, but oddly he relegates the singing duties to his friend Adam Miller, an obscure singer-songwriter who wrote a Partridge Family tune and sang the above mentioned Sesame Street song. This track provides a breather of sorts, a short baroque folk ballad interlude between the other longform pieces, but it's like a haunting theme that adds to the mysterious soundtrack feel of the whole record. "Ides of March", the longest piece, features chugging piano riffs and skittering drums over a looped but drunkenly lopsided groove that wavers in and out of sync, building in a weird way where all the notes that seem off finally becoming locked in and right. Closing the record is the short "Protege" which ups the vampy piano riffs and Moe Tucker like drums before careening into a swift blast of noisy distortion. A sudden ending to this curious record that leaves us wanting more. Thankfully there's the repeat button!
MPEG Stream: "Church of Anthrax"
MPEG Stream: "The Soul of Patrick Lee"
MPEG Stream: "Ides of March"

CALE, JOHN & TERRY RILEY Church Of Anthrax (Columbia) lp 22.00
Now reissued on swank 180 gram virgin vinyl, an old fave and former Record Of The Week, when issued on cd, about which we said all this...
More music needs to be like this! Open and unfettered yet baroquely mysterious and cryptic; taking strange careening detours that cast endlessly distorting sonic reflections. Minimal but complex, driving and repetitive, yet sloppily unraveling with a ponderous noisy pop undercurrent that is both reverent and perverse. Is this a rock record led by a chamber ensemble? Or an avant-garde composition ambushed by lurching bass and drums? Or both? Makes sense that this album is called Church of Anthrax and both of its high priests are one time Velvet Underground and Dream Syndicate members John Cale and the guru of minimalism Terry Riley.
This one time collaboration from 1971 has just been reissued and it's never sounded better! Touching on experimental jazz, minimalist composition, free rock and baroque pop yet remaining elusive and restless, never settling neatly into any one genre. It was recorded at a time when such cross-pollination of sounds was not only new but very necessary. John Cale plays all sides of his musical personae returning to his avant-garde roots with LaMonte Young in the Theater of Eternal Music but infusing it with the noisy economy of The Velvet Underground and the poetic pop of his subsequent output. While Terry Riley allows his more purist minimal aesthetic to become looser and emotive, paving the way toward his soundtrack works a few years later. Add to it the shambling drums of Bobby Columby from Blood Sweat and Tears (uncredited here) and the strange guest appearance of little known singer, Adam Miller (probably best known for the sesame street song, "We all Live in the Capital I") and what we have is this truly odd and hypnotically amazing document. Something that sounds more Germany than New York, like a collaboration between Can and Ralf and Florian of Kraftwerk or between Faust and Cluster. Or more contemporarily and unlikely, say between Wooden Shjips and Shogun Kunitoki with a guest vocal appearance by Thom Yorke of Radiohead!
The title track opens with a deep low multi-horned drone before the bass and drums kick into what begins to sound like a more driving version of The Kinks' "Powerman". But instead of going into a formal song structure, the riff repeats with Riley's pipe organ laying circular filigree riffs over the top, maintaining a constant lurch forward, and glassy saxophone stabs and atonal guitar rising from underneath creating an uneasy rhythm that slowly unravels into a propulsively droney stew. The air clears for the beautiful "Hall of Mirrors in The Palace of Versailles" with Cale on piano and Riley on solo saxophone trading off building and lilting riffs that rise and coalesce into shimmering tones. It's the moment that feels unique to each of them: the melodic minimalism of Cale's Dream syndicate days, and the all night time-delayed sax pieces of Riley's "Poppy Nogood and The Phantom Band". But with its mirror imagery and gorgeous repetitions, it feels wonderfully cinematic like a lost score for Alain Resnais' "Last Year at Marienbad". The next track, "The Soul of Patrick Lee" is perhaps the strangest because it's the only one with vocals, which wouldn't be unusual for John Cale as he wrote it and it sounds like him, but oddly he relegates the singing duties to his friend Adam Miller, an obscure singer-songwriter who wrote a Partridge Family tune and sang the above mentioned Sesame Street song. This track provides a breather of sorts, a short baroque folk ballad interlude between the other longform pieces, but it's like a haunting theme that adds to the mysterious soundtrack feel of the whole record. "Ides of March", the longest piece, features chugging piano riffs and skittering drums over a looped but drunkenly lopsided groove that wavers in and out of sync, building in a weird way where all the notes that seem off finally becoming locked in and right. Closing the record is the short "Protege" which ups the vampy piano riffs and Moe Tucker like drums before careening into a swift blast of noisy distortion. A sudden ending to this curious record that leaves us wanting more.
MPEG Stream: "Church of Anthrax"
MPEG Stream: "The Soul of Patrick Lee"
MPEG Stream: "Ides of March"

CALEXICO Aerocalexico (Our Soil, Our Strength) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Attention all Calexico fans! We're pleased as punch to be one of only two shops in the whole world to have not one but two splendid self-released Calexico discs which are otherwise only available at their shows or on their website. However, please note: we've got very limited quantities of these, so hop to it! Both make fine companions to the band's albums proper.
This is their 2001 collection of recordings which took place in a number of locales - at home in Tucson, in the Wavelab studio also in their hometown, in Nashville, TN, and live on the KPRO Radio in Amsterdam. It should actually be subtitled "Family and Friends" as it features exactly that! The Burns brothers, Mia Convertino, Howe and Sofie Gelb, Doug McCombs among many others. A whopping twenty three tracks in all that make for a remarkably cohesive 56 minutes of music! Included are a stirring cover of Nick Drake's "Clothes Of Sand", an instrumental of Goldfrapp's "Humano", as well as a handful of traditionals "Bees And The Flies", "All The Pretty Horses" and "6 White Horses". Recommended!
RealAudio clip: "Clothes Of Sand"
RealAudio clip: "Bees And The Flies"

CALEXICO Carried To Dust (Quarterstick) cd 14.98
A while back, we thought it would make an excellent April Fool's Day New Arrivals List, to have all the reviews written not by staffers, but by our Moms! The logistics proved a bit too tricky, but some Moms were definitely into it, especially Andee's Mom, Gail. Now without airing too much dirty laundry, teenage sons and Moms often clash, and in many cases it has to do with music, in my (Andee) case, it was heavy metal, of course. And what's a Mom to do when her son starts dressing weird and wearing spikes and listening to that devil music?! Well a lot has changed in 20 years, and now Gail is a regular rad music aficionado, putting other Moms to shame. She even hung up on me once because she was watching a special on VH1 about heavy metal. Man would the sixteen year old me have had a meltdown! Well, it just so happens, that Gail is a big fan of Tucson boys Calexico, so we figured we'd get her to weigh in on their new record. Thanks Mom! Here's what she has to say:
My son, Andee has been quite generous over the years, giving me cds I like and request, cds he THINKS I should like, and then there's Calexico, a band we both like. Neither of us can remember what sparked my interest in this band, but since I now live in Tucson, I appreciate their fascination with the Southwest, and their fusion of country, Latin and folk (I am, after all, a '60s gal!). Ironically, I will see them live on September 20th at a Democratic fundraiser, at the Rialto Theater in Tucson. Take that, teenage Andee!
Other than their newest release, I only have 2 of Calexico's albums, The Black Light and Hot Rail, and like them both, even though I think they are quite different from each other. There's an evocation of place in their songs, which to me is one of the most appealing elements of their music. In Carried to Dust, a beauty from start to finish, I was transported from the first track, "Victor Jara's Hands", to a road trip somewhere near the border, a la Thelma & Louise, in an old convertible, music blaring, hiding a beer between my legs, and feeling young, happy and free. I don't know who Victor Jara is or was, but the verses are sweet and melancholy and then the chorus soars with horn fanfare. Definitely feel-good music!
"Two Silver Trees" morphs into an entirely different mix of instrumentation and vocals. I can't help but think they were influenced just a tad by the opening music from The Sopranos, but perhaps I'm hearing what others won't.
My favorite track has to be "The News About William". Flowing, but desolate... I'm lying on my chaise lounge looking at the amazingly bright stars in a gorgeous blue/black Tucson night sky, letting the music of Calexico spirit me away.
MPEG Stream: "Victor Jara's Hands"
MPEG Stream: "The News About William"

CALEXICO Carried To Dust (Quarterstick) lp 14.98
A while back, we thought it would make an excellent April Fool's Day New Arrivals List, to have all the reviews written not by staffers, but by our Moms! The logistics proved a bit too tricky, but some Moms were definitely into it, especially Andee's Mom, Gail. Now without airing too much dirty laundry, teenage sons and Moms often clash, and in many cases it has to do with music, in my (Andee) case, it was heavy metal, of course. And what's a Mom to do when her son starts dressing weird and wearing spikes and listening to that devil music?! Well a lot has changed in 20 years, and now Gail is a regular rad music aficionado, putting other Moms to shame. She even hung up on me once because she was watching a special on VH1 about heavy metal. Man would the sixteen year old me have had a meltdown! Well, it just so happens, that Gail is a big fan of Tucson boys Calexico, so we figured we'd get her to weigh in on their new record. Thanks Mom! Here's what she has to say:
My son, Andee has been quite generous over the years, giving me cds I like and request, cds he THINKS I should like, and then there's Calexico, a band we both like. Neither of us can remember what sparked my interest in this band, but since I now live in Tucson, I appreciate their fascination with the Southwest, and their fusion of country, Latin and folk (I am, after all, a '60s gal!). Ironically, I will see them live on September 20th at a Democratic fundraiser, at the Rialto Theater in Tucson. Take that, teenage Andee!
Other than their newest release, I only have 2 of Calexico's albums, The Black Light and Hot Rail, and like them both, even though I think they are quite different from each other. There's an evocation of place in their songs, which to me is one of the most appealing elements of their music. In Carried to Dust, a beauty from start to finish, I was transported from the first track, "Victor Jara's Hands", to a road trip somewhere near the border, a la Thelma & Louise, in an old convertible, music blaring, hiding a beer between my legs, and feeling young, happy and free. I don't know who Victor Jara is or was, but the verses are sweet and melancholy and then the chorus soars with horn fanfare. Definitely feel-good music!
"Two Silver Trees" morphs into an entirely different mix of instrumentation and vocals. I can't help but think they were influenced just a tad by the opening music from The Sopranos, but perhaps I'm hearing what others won't.
My favorite track has to be "The News About William". Flowing, but desolate... I'm lying on my chaise lounge looking at the amazingly bright stars in a gorgeous blue/black Tucson night sky, letting the music of Calexico spirit me away.
MPEG Stream: "Victor Jara's Hands"
MPEG Stream: "The News About William"