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

SHIVER, THE Walpurgis (Garden of Delights) lp 34.00
Another official GoD vinyl reissue (following the Kalacakra we listed not long ago) of a krautrock rarity. Well, is it krautrock if it's from Switzerland? Sorta, it's heavy progressive Sixties blues psych in any case, full of hammering Hammond organ. And being Swiss, these guys were lucky enough to obtain appropriately shiver-inducing (and sexually suggestive) cover artwork by H.R. Giger, for their lone, rare, 1969 album release!
The music isn't quite creepy enough to live up to Giger's cover, though The Shiver can certainly get moody. The opener is fairly ominous, an instrumental called "Repent Walpurgis", with weeping wailing guitars and organ, and bombastic drumbeat breakdowns, though it has a nicely melodic piano passage too. And they sound quite liturgically somber - as well as psychedelic - on "Hey Mr. Holy Man", another of the other tracks here that might invite comparisons to AQ-fave Austrian krautrockers Paternoster. Also, we dig their downer cover of "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood", clearly inspired by The Animals' version more than that of Nina Simone.
While this is "pop music" it's certainly got something of a dismal, druggy vibe. Also this album is most definitely bluesy - and if you don't like that, then their song "What's Wrong About The Blues" will answer its own question!
Gatefold sleeve, numbered limited edition of 1000.
MPEG Stream: "Repent Walpurgis"
MPEG Stream: "Hey Mr. Holy Man"

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

SHIZUKA Heavenly (PSF) cd 17.98

SHIZUKA Live/Traditional (PSF) cd 17.98
Live in '95. Hmm, I think maybe that was right about when some of us here at AQ saw this Japanese psych band, they came to SF and played an amazing show at the Kilowatt, back when they had shows there. Tokyo's Shizuka, with their haunting female vocals drifting ahead of an inevitable onslaught of noisy, billowing, distorto-delic electric guitar murk, were one of the '90s precursors to such current bands as LSD-march, Suishou No Fune, and Up-Tight. At the time, we compared 'em to Angel 'In Heavy Syrup and Slapp Happy Humphrey, the latter especially 'cause of Shizuka's extreme mix of delicacy and destructiveness, of melancholic melody and sheer, feedback-laden guitar/amp/earhole abuse. Not abuse, though, not really... it's loud, sculpted sound that's actually quite beautiful. As with so many Japanese bands from the PSF/Tokyo Flashback scene, it's like a cotton candy dream of the most out there Neil Young & Crazy Horse amplifier meltdowns (a la Arc). This raw (but not to Rallizes-like levels of low fidelity) 52 minute live set is Shizuka in their element, and even if you've never heard 'em before wouldn't be a bad place to start, at all. The first song alone should make you a believer if you're at all open to this sort of thing (i.e. maybe already a fan of some of the other bands mentioned above). And it is 26 and a half minutes long! That's the biggest blow-out on the disc, the other three tracks trafficking more in the tranquil side of Shizuka, with long slow-moving stretches of sweet vocals backed by echo and hum and hiss as the shoegazing guitar bides its time before finally erupting into full flight.
And of course, those already into Shizuka know they're one of the best, unique within the pantheon, and should be pleased have another rare document of their sad dark mystery.
MPEG Stream: "Shizuka live track 1"
MPEG Stream: "Shizuka live track 2"

SHIZUKA Tokyo Underground '95 (Last Visible Dog) cd-r 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Japan's Shizuka were once (and maybe are again) an up-and-coming four-piece Tokyo psych outfit, you might know 'em from their contributions to PSF's Tokyo Flashback compilation series, or their studio album on that same label, or their amazing but now sadly out of print live cd on Persona Non Grata. They even played a great show here in San Francisco at the Kilowatt some years ago that some of us were lucky enough to witness. The prime elements of Shizuka's sound are the Keiji Haino-esque guitar storms of ex-Fushitsusha man Maki, combined with the haunting, sad female vocals of the band's namesake Shizuka (Japanophiles reading this probably also have seen her beautiful and spooky handmade dolls, on the cover of a Land of the Rising Noise comp and elsewhere). This band broke up a while ago, but have apparently recently reunited. No new material has been forthcoming, however, but they have released this live cd-r (recorded in 1995, before the break-up), which will be some consolation to fans. It's a 40-minute long live performance (complete with a fragment of the music being played through the PA prior to their set!) from a club in Tokyo. The recording is great, and their songs are phenomenal. Gorgeous, melancholic stuff, with the gently lulling singing of Shizuka being heartbreaking enough by itself, but also setting the listener up to be destroyed by the fantastic heavy psych controlled-noise outbursts of the guitar when they begin (usually a few minutes into each song). If you're already a Shizuka fan, you'll want this, and if you're into bands like Nagisa Ni Te, Slap Happy Humphrey, and Fushitsusha, you probably do too. Those with less expertise in modern underground Japanese psych -- but who dig the Velvets, Neil Young, or even an imaginary mix of Mazzy Star and Mogwai -- could do a lot worse for an introduction as well.
RealAudio clip: "Heavenly Persona"
RealAudio clip: "Lunatic Pearl"

SHIZUO Fuck Step (Digital Hardcore Limited) cdep 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Beyond two-step, dark step, tech step, and hard step, Shizuo embodies his own mutant brand of drum 'n' bass... Fuck Step. This music is so fresh and vital it will get your blood going like Black Flag and the DKs did for that 35 year old who lives next door to you. (Hey hey now don't get defensive, Grampa, I'm over 30 too.)

SHIZUO High On Emotion (DHR) cdep 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Shizuo, one of the noise/breakbeat/punk standouts on the intense Digital Hardcore label (with a great 7" out on Grand Royal), releases this studio & live ep, 10 tracks of Berlin electronic mayhem.

SHIZUO New Kick (DHR) 12" 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
One of our favorites from Alec Empire's Digital Hardcore stable, with a new ep the title track of which is apparently a Cramps cover.

SHIZUO New Kick (DHR) cdep 9.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
One of our favorites from Alec Empire's Digital Hardcore stable, with a new ep the title track of which is apparently a Cramps cover.

SHIZUO Sweat (Digital Hardcore/Grand Royal) 7" 3.50
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
One of 4 singles from Digital Hardcore Recordings, Germany's nastiest, most extreme hardcore techno label, issued here in tasty uninitiated-friendly 7" format by the Beastie's Grand Royal label. A cheap way to learn all about what the hell is going on.

SHIZUO Vs. Shizor (Digital Hardcore/Grand Royal) cd 12.98
The weirdest of the Digital Hardcore crew breaks out with his first full length. Unanimous store favorite. Includes his stellar Sweat single, and features some of the hardest, most distorted yet intelligent bass and drums this side of Panacea. Recommended (esp. the next time you're pissed off.)

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

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

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

SHOEMAKER, MATT Erosion Of The Analogous Eye (The Helen Scarsdale Agency) cd 14.98
A very prescient, and very good, record by the sound-artist / field recordist Matt Shoemaker, Erosion Of The Analogous Eye pushes his work of tonal exploration and exaggerated found sounds into the neighborhood of many of the post-noise cosmic explorers who have been blossoming in every corner of the US it seems. At the same time, this is very much a Matt Shoemaker record, following a trajectory set forth through his acclaimed work on the once-mighty Trente Oiseaux label.
An ur-drone of analog synthesis opens the album, obviously harkening to '70s kosmische activities certainly a muscular revisitation of Schulze or even an extraction from Richard Pinhas. Such a lazerbeam of a drone has a lysergic sunrise feel to it, with the light and shadow brought into sharp relief, the colors shifted and separating into spectral bursts of yellow, red, pink, and orange. Yet, slowly, Shoemaker introduces atonal drones which clash with that introductory suspension. At first, the metallic slashes have almost an Andrew Chalk and Jonathan Coleclough feel, but Shoemaker quickly dispels those notions with a layer of field recordings of insects ravenously scurrying about. That introductory tone, which still continues through this first track, bends like a divebombing plane with Doppler tones trailing behind, descending in a series of bell tones. All of this in a seamless 17 minutes. A steady rhythm of gamelan bell tones opens the second track with accumulated complimentary drones shimmering and vibrating while harmonic dissonance abounds, collapsing into a quiet stream of percolating textures. Spread across 24 minutes, this track seems ancient and sounds beguilingly beautiful. Bellowing rumbles amplify out of recordings of rain, mud, and water and steadily arching through a metallic rattling of various pipes and gongs for the final track, which eventually gives way to an uneasy set of recordings of birds in a rainforest whose calls echo through the trees.
As with all Helen Scarsdale releases the packaging is stellar. Letterpressed text with hand-dyed paper. Each are different, each are quite special. Oh yeah, limited to a mere 300 copies!
MPEG Stream: "Erosion A"
MPEG Stream: "Erosion B"
MPEG Stream: "The Analogous Eye"

SHOEMAKER, MATT Groundless (Trente Oiseaux) cd 14.98
Before the days of email blasts and newsletters, mail order was almost always done by way of xeroxed lists from various outlets. One of the more incredible lists cam courtesy of Anomalous Records, who had itemized hundreds of records, cassettes, and various shapes of vinyl on one or two pieces of paper by printing everything an incredibly small font, often hovering around 3 pt in Helvetica or something like that. Not only was the list a task to read in terms of the sheer volume of material crammed into a very condensed amount of space, but the list also held an extraordinary amount of incredibly cool experimental, post-industrial, and avant-garde music that could not be found anywhere else. Sadly, Anomalous Records decided to close up shop about five years ago; but their importance as an outlet for obscure music is still felt today.
Matt Shoemaker's Groundless was one album that had been stocked from time to time on the Anomalous list with a curious description that said something to the effect that Groundless resembled the work of Andrew Chalk. Then in 2001 when Shoemaker's debut was released on Trente Oiseaux, references to Andrew Chalk were not all that common, as his seminal project Mirror had only just begun and his solo records had yet to catch the imagination of every producer of dronemusik. Needless to say, such a parallel was one that caught our attention; and the album was quickly ordered only to discover a strident realm of quiet crackling that was quite foreign to Chalk's all-consuming dronescaping. While Groundless sounds nothing like any of Chalk's recordings, it is still a brilliant piece of tactile sound abstraction. It may seem a stretch but perhaps Anomalous was only making comparisons on the impeccable quality of both Shoemaker and Chalk as composers, even if they don't share much in the way of aesthetics. Instead of the expansive drone, Shoemaker posits a dizzyingly cinematic sound design of streaming crackles, agitated piles of sand, and sympathetic field recordings that burst in dynamic fashion out of extended passages of queasy stasis into sharp snaps of electromagnetic propulsion. These techniques have more of an avant-garde film drama to them as blurry, soft focus objects give way to something which snaps to the foreground announcing all of its ugly bruises and scars with a sharpened clarity. Groundless emerges as yet another amazing recording from Matt Shoemaker.
MPEG Stream: "Excerpt 1"
MPEG Stream: "Excerpt 2"

SHOEMAKER, MATT Isolated Agent / Stranding Behavior (Elevator Bath) picture disc 17.98
Seattle's Matt Shoemaker has long stood as one of the few consistently great drone tacticians around, principally because his take on the drone supreme is punctured by humid field recordings laced with occasional bellowings of atmospheric dread. His previous works such as Erosion Of The Analogous Eye and The Wayward Set are demonstrations in equal parts of rich transcendence and hallucinatory isolationism. Given the titles of the two pieces on this gorgeous picture disc released by Elevator Bath, you can make a pretty solid bet that this tends more toward the latter aesthetic of Shoemaker's black-hole expressionism.
Shoemaker begins with a tense diamond-shot drone from overlapping sinewaves generated from controlled feedback. These pierced frequencies slide downwards amidst a curious set of clattering noises, almost like the amplification of a paramecium undulating its way into the crevices of its host body. Extended wheezes of grey gasps of air and motorized growlings swallow everything that came before with a ghostly echo of those feedback tones broadcast from way back at the event horizon. The second side (which may be the first, as Elevator Bath's picture discs are very trickly to discern track listings!) immediately expands into one of Shoemaker's signature pieces of lysergic darkness, with all of his ill-tempered vibrations colliding into huge phase patterns that mutate, deviate, and detour the linearity of his cold drone fundamental. Always bending and set off-kilter this composition is dangerously slippery as if set upon quicksand with the various layers upon layers splitting off in asynchronous, oozing, droning directions.
Very highly recommended as with all of Shoemaker's work! Limited to 233 copies.

SHOEMAKER, MATT Mutable Depths (Ferns) 3"cd 9.98
If Aquarius Records wasn't located in the temperate climate of San Francisco, would we be so enamored with the sounds of ice? If we had to deal with burst water pipes or having to shovel through several feet of snow just to get to the front door or trying to stay warm in bone chilling temperatures, the romance of ice would probably be lost on us. But as it stands, we love the sounds of a frosty winter. Give us the sounds of the windswept Nordic tundra, the subaqueous squawks of Antarctic penguins, the clank of Finnish oddballs building instruments out of ice, and these frigid recordings from one of our favorite sound artists.
Ice, the source material for Matt Shoemaker's contribution to the Ferns series of 3" cds, which seems to be on the way to rivalling Metamkine's Cinema Pour L'Oreille series of electro-acoustics through their set of expressive drones and molded field recordings. This all-too brief composition begins with a stoic set of raw field recordings from drippings of cold water, the crack of ice breaking under temperature fluctuations and pressure, and unsettled squigglings of water being forced through tiny fissures. After several minutes of this squishy introduction, Shoemaker sets forth a parabolic arc of dense gray drones whose frosty demeanor matches the source material. Eerie blasts of pierced electric tones mark the track's crescendo, after which Shoemaker authors a steady retreat in density back towards the dripping and crackle. Fans of William Basinski, Chris Watson, and BJ Nilsen should definitely take note of this excellent recording!
MPEG Stream: "Mutable Depths"

SHOEMAKER, MATT Soundtrack For Dislocation (Elevator Bath) cd 12.98
Undeniably, this is a Matt Shoemaker recording. This Pacific Northwesterner has long been a favorite dronologist here at Aquarius with his ominous recordings spawned from electro-acoustic feedback systems, humid field recordings, tonebent mood engineering slanted toward audio hallucinations, dense guitar swarms, and elongated, zoner synth passages that give John Elliott a run for his money. Soundtrack For Dislocation is a self-evident title for Shoemaker, given how his work fractures temporal / psychogeographical planes, teleporting the listener from one opiated mirage to another. His process is just as interesting as the sounds that he produces, as he drives and controls feedback through a system of slinkies that act like something of a hybrid between a stereo spring reverb unit and an omnidirectional microphone, with Russian synths, VCO filters, and noise-aggregators positioned at various points on the feedback loop track. We had once thought that the pre-digital Merzbow recordings had developed into something of an organism that thrived on electricity, had an intelligence that dictated the course of the noise, and begrudgingly entertained a relationship with Masami Akita. Shoemaker's electro-acoustic contraptions seem to be approaching this Frankensteinian, electric organism on par with Merzbow's, although the architects of both projects have very different designs.
Hence, this is not a torrent of distortion, but a vertiginous path of drone, hiss, blur, shadow, grit, and decay. Placid atmospheres shimmer at times with all of the cinematic grandeur of Stars Of The Lid, only to dissolve, mutate, and crumble into hallucinatory slippages where flecks of environmental sounds breaking through, twisting once again into a metallic resonance on par with the most haunting of Nurse With Wound constructions. Thrumming tones pulse into skittering vibrations that build to rupturing crescendos that snap into near-silent voids of disquieting rumble. All of this comes together in another magnificent album from Mr. Shoemaker. Highly recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Arrival"
MPEG Stream: "Fuse Error Phantom"
MPEG Stream: "Circulation Within The Elemental Drift"

SHOEMAKER, MATT Spots In The Sun (The Helen Scarsdale Agency) cd 14.98
Have a glance back at our most verbose descriptions about anything from the avant-garde fringes of music making, and you'll most likely find a common metaphor of specific locations, or rather the memories that the author attributes to that space -- good, bad, holy, abject, transcendent, etc. Upon listening to Spots In The Sun, we find ourselves returning to the well-trod linguistic device of comparing sound to the detached memories of place; however, Shoemaker's exploration of psychogeographic sound never grounds itself upon a specific location -- like a crumbling hospital, reclaimed World War II bunkers, or even his own favored locations of the jungles of Indonesia. Rather, Shoemaker drops the listener into a sunbleached environment, where heat, humidity, jetlag, fatigue, and general environmental claustrophobia prevent any of the specifics to make themselves known. While Shoemaker's landscapes are openly hostile toward the listener, these swarming masses of sound are incredibly alluring, drawing us in even though we may know better than to enter these openly toxic spaces. Shoemaker is always teasing us with small hints as to where we might be, with screeching birds, temple bells, and the patter of rain; but before we can begin to triangulate a position, Shoemaker rips us from our locale with a ruptured crescendo and drops us somewhere else. It is through the drone that Shoemaker achieves all of this and more, his swarming monochrome morphs from complex vibrations into radioluminescent clouds. Spots In The Sun is an exquisite manifestation of abstracted field recordings pushed to the point of grotesque minimalism, and is indeed some of the finest that we've heard (comparable to the likes of BJ Nilsen, Machinefabriek, Loren Chasse, Philip Jeck's Surf, and mnortham).
MPEG Stream: "1. ..."
MPEG Stream: "3. ..."
MPEG Stream: "4. ..."

SHOEMAKER, MATT Spots In The Sun (Limited Edition) ( The Helen Scarsdale Agency) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The music found within Matt Shoemaker's Spots In the Sun certainly makes for one of our favorite records in recent memory, unfortunately this ultra limited version is already out of print and will most likely not be around for long (but fear not, the regular version will follow soon after).
Shoemaker's exquisite manifestations of abstracted field recordings pushed to the point of grotesque minimalism is some of the finest that we've heard (comparable to the likes of BJ Nilsen, Machinefabriek, Loren Chasse, Philip Jeck's Surf, and mnortham), but what makes this "special edition" so unique is the packaging. You may remember many moons ago that The Helen Scarsdale Agency issued an edition of the BJ Nilsen & Stilluppsteypa release with a copper foil cover mounted within a jewel case as the artwork. Well, Matt Shoemaker's Spots in the Sun sports similarly dazzling packaging, a corroded sheet of brass upon which the album text has been silkscreened, only to be slightly distressed in order to give it a beautiful worried quality. How limited is this edition? Fifty, of which we only got less than a dozen. So act fast, or bide your time until the regular version comes out in a month or so...
MPEG Stream: "1. ..."
MPEG Stream: "3. ..."
MPEG Stream: "4. ..."

SHOEMAKER, MATT Tropical Amnesia One (Ferns) cd 15.98
In the handful of exceptional records from concrete/drone composer Matt Shoemaker, the field recording has been central to his work. Take the aggregate tumblings of minerals from Groundless or the woozy humidity from Spots In The Sun, Shoemaker's use of the field recording in his pieces is miles apart from the pastoral use of bird songs or a gentle rainstorm to offer something 'natural' for an electronic ambient record. No, Shoemaker amplifies the more threatening aspects of nature with insects emitting nightmarish chorales, beetles aggressively scurrying towards hapless prey, and the air of a landscape so heavy and pungent with decay as to be impossible to breathe. For Shoemaker, the world may be nasty, brutish, and short; but he's discovering a weird beauty way out there amidst the grotesqueries of the world.
On the last two records from Shoemaker, a greater emphasis on synthesized psychedelia shot through his tense drone constructs; so with Tropical Amnesia One, Shoemaker has built an album that's just field recordings, without much of the atypical filtering, gizmos, and effects that turn Shoemaker's studio into a scientific laboratory. All of these recordings came from a two week residency Shoemaker spent deep in the Amazon forest, where silence was never afforded amidst the constant buzz of insects, torrential cloudbursts, and burbling streams all teeming with life. Watery sounds introduce the first 20 minutes to this album with all sorts of sodden creaks, slurping movements, and mud-sucking events amassed together. It's as if the vantage point to Shoemaker's sounds were just below the surface of a stagnant body of water next to a muddy embankment, crawling with leeches, skin-breaching worms, and any other parasitic creature that might come to mind. Shoemaker then shifts his attention for the remaining 44 minutes upward to the tops of the trees, where the insects have conspired to broadcast an ominous nocturnal hiss worthy of horror film sound design. A few insects and birds puncture the swarming noise, making the environment seem a lot less threatening than Shoemaker has contextualized it to be. A powerful, sublime recording, and what looks like to the be first in a series of recordings from the Amazon.
MPEG Stream: "Tropical Amnesia One [excerpt 1]"
MPEG Stream: "Tropical Amnesia One [excerpt 2]"
MPEG Stream: "Tropical Amnesia One [excerpt 3]"

SHOEMAKER, MATT Warung Elusion (Trente Oiseaux) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
It has been many years since Metamkine has released anything through their highly esteemed Cinema Pour L'Oreille series of electro-acoustic / musique concrete masterpieces; but if they did, one sound artist who should stand shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Eliane Radigue, Luc Ferrari, Jean-Francois Laporte, and Jim O'Rourke would be Matt Shoemaker. If anything, Shoemaker's work has such an intensely cinematic quality as the edits of his sound design snap to and fro in dramatic fashion with static periods for magnetic drone, uneasy field recording, and agitated objects; and this cinematic undercurrent to his work alone would make him a strong candidate. But concepts are only really as good as their execution; and few have the panache of Matt Shoemaker. We recently posted a review of his third album Spots In The Sun, and we had been so taken by the quality of that record that we uncovered some copies of his second record Warung Elusion, which had been released back in 2001 on Bernhard Gunter's Trente Oiseux label. This is an album of sheer sonic abstraction whose sun-bleached, disquieting dreaminess parallels many of those 'lost-memory' albums that we have lauded so many time in the past (e.g. Phillip Jeck, Jasper TX, Tim Hecker, etc.). Yet, Shoemaker is not one to sentimentalize such sounds, rather he presents these flickering sound, erratic crackles, and deconstructed ambience as a reminder of human failings in the memory process. Here, meditation might drift into a lulling stupor in need of hard smack against the ear. It's a blow that Shoemaker is more than willing to impart upon his audience. Highly recommended!
MPEG Stream: "I"
MPEG Stream: "III"

SHOEMAKER, MATT Wayward Set (Human Faculties) cd-r 9.99
Fantastic drones found here! Seattle's Matt Shoemaker has been quietly making some of the best dronemusik over the past decade with little to no aplomb whatsoever. He hybridizes field recordings, modular synthesis, speaker / feedback constructions, psychedelic colorations, and minimalist stasis into forms which grow, twist, and evolve throughout his work. The last album we heard from Shoemaker was his far more tripped out, post-Kosmische zoner album Erosion Of The Analogous Eye; but this live set recorded at the Good Shepherd Chapel in Seattle harkens more to his earlier albums Spots In The Sun and Warung Elusion, which manipulated field recordings into disquieting, grotesque (in his own words) passages of cinematic sound design. Upon introducing an undulating web of sustained tones woven into complex harmonic phrases, dissonant bellows, and lulling hypnosis, Shoemaker gradually introduces a revolving set of field recordings into his mix. At first the tussle and rumble of leaves, mulch, and sticks in the forest give way to a percolating chorus of frogs, probably originating from the Brazilian rain forests given Shoemaker's excursion into the forest through a residency guided by Francisco Lopez. He then embarks upon a slow descension of his magnetic drones into ominous clouds of static and ghostly reflections of grey noise, arching these sounds through harrowing turns as if he were piloting an airplane through that aforementioned rainforest trying not to crash into a cliff obscured by clouds. This is eerie, hallucinatory music for sure, and this release is strictly limited to 100 copies. Highly recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Wayward Set (excerpt 1)"
MPEG Stream: "Wayward Set (excerpt 2)"

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

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

SHOGUN KUNITOKI Vinonaamakasio (Fonal) picture disc lp 23.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Now in stock on vinyl... and it's a beautiful picture disc to boot!
It's been over three years since we made Shogun Kunitoki's debut our Record Of The Week, which was just about the same time we fell deeply in love with this Finnish group's unique approach to songcraft, most noticeably using analog electronics to create dizzying and melodic songs that ensorcell and enthrall as they burst with color and dynamic flair.
This follow up picks right up where that amazing debut left off. So full of urgency and melody. Taking cues from minimalists like Reich and Glass and infusing a catchy intensity, reminiscent of M83's Dead Cities Read Seas & Lost Ghosts. There is a bombastic overload that grabs a hold of your imagination and lets it run wild amidst its bold and immaculately crafted popscapes. Songs that demand, command and pleasure all of your sensations. Shogun Kunitoki are able to make organs, ring modulators, and oscillators sound both classic and futuristic. Imagine a huge church with a high ceiling and stained glass windows, jammed with massive and ornate organs, while members of Broadcast, Stereolab and Black Moth Super Rainbow rock out on a grandiose Rick Wakeman like setup blasting out sounds that bring joy and ecstasy to all in the congregation.
Shogun Kunitoki are one of those rare bands that you can really get anyone into. Prog freaks, electro heads, pop lovers, psych fanatics, 20th century composer aficionados, experimental music fans, there's something for just about everyone in the dense and dizzying sounds that they create. Simply stunning!
MPEG Stream: "Holvikirkko"
MPEG Stream: "Mulberg"
MPEG Stream: "Svileto"

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

SHORTEE The Dreamer (Bomb Hip Hop) cd 16.98
We haven't had a chance to review this yet but here is Bomb Hip Hop's opinion:
Don't sleep on this one. Shortee's debut solo release is the first ever female turntablist/DJ/producer full length album, making it a first of its kind! Prepare to be shocked, this girls got skills and she's not only hanging in there with the boys - she's kicking it with a fresh style like no other. Listen to this album and you're guaranteed to hear an assortment of funky beats with fat bass kicks, jazzy bass lines, pianos, trumpets, flutes, soulful scratches, tons of percussion and so much more... In addition to Shortee's DJ production skills, she has been a drummer/percussionist for 17 years.
Shortee takes her musicians experience and evenly balances it with her advanced DJ skills to create an extremely musical album with a variety of hooks, chorus, bridges and beats that are constantly changing up along with a creative story line, making you want to listen to it again and again. Each song symbolizes a dream and each dream is different - ranging in hip-hop, dub, drum 'n' bass, go-go and swing... Shortee has toured the world performing with her partner DJ Faust as part of the dynamic duo of Faust & Shortee along with other acts such as Prince Paul, Afrika Bambaataa, Shortkut, Babu and 1998 DMC Champion Craze."

SHORTER, ALAN Tes Esat (America) cd 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
WOW. And do we mean WOW!! Fifteen classic free jazz records from the late sixties / early seventies, long out of print, finally getting the ULTRA deluxe reissue treatment. Incredibly limited, these will probably be out of print before you know it.
Comes in a gorgeous diecut fullcover three panel sleeve, with new artwork, as well as a huge booklet with the original album sleeve notes, new liner notes in french and english as well as a bunch of cool photos. So nice!

SHORTKUT (CUT CHEMIST VS. SHORTKUT) Live at the Future Primitive Soundsession cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Excellent! SO GOOD it's hard to believe this happened in one 70-minute live set. Cut Chemist's crowd-pleasing dancefloor-aware set is perfectly complemented by judicious scratching courtesy The Invisible Skratch Picklz' Short Kut. That's right, they got 5 turntables spinning at once and it WORKS. It takes them about 15 minutes to find their stride but then it's all uphill; the crowd loved it so much you can hear them too (the needles picked up the roar!) Currently the best record of this rapidly-expanding genre. Locally grown.

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

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

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

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

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

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

SHRED, DJ TED Hip Hop Vs. It All! (Upper Playground) cd 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
In the burgeoning new field (heh, not really) of hip-hop-destroys-rock-music mixes, as typified by DJs Z-Trip and Jester, local DJ Ted Shred breaks out with a totally weird and hilarious cd. He'll throw on P. Diddy next to Night Ranger, Biggie Smalls vs. Peter Gabriel, UTFO vs Paul Simon. Yes, this disc is as gimmicky as Jester and Z-Trip, but it is also kickass and ballsy. Ted Shred's own twist on the formula is that he is constantly shifting the speed of the records. Whether he's a really bad beatmatcher trying lamely to sync up his mixes, or if he's a brilliant prankster who loves changing speeds, melodies, and pitches to surreal effect, we're not sure (imagine something like DJ Z-Trip meets DJ Screw). But hey, his phone number is on the disc, so you can ask him yourself... or get him to spin at your next party. Love it!
Oh, and Allan wants you to know: the track "Van Halen vs. Van Halen" illustrates the obvious similarities between deft turntable scratching and fleet-fingered guitar wanking, as well as demonstrating the superiority of the latter. Volume two coming soon! Highly recommended!
RealAudio clip: "Funkdoobiest VS Kansas"
RealAudio clip: "P. Diddy VS Night Ranger"
RealAudio clip: "Queen. We Will Rock You VS"
RealAudio clip: "Billy Squire VS Sunshine Adams"

SHRED, DJ TED Mix Tape #2 (Upper Playground) cd 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
In the burgeoning new field of hip-hop-destroys-rock-music mixes, as typified by DJs Z-Trip and Jester, local DJ Ted Shred breaks out with a second totally weird and hilarious cd. He'll throw on The Stanley Bros vs DJ Rectangle, Armenian music on top of Method Man, Q-Tip vs Blue Oyster Cult, Dr. Dre vs Bad Brains, Busta Rhymes vs Dio. Yes, it's as gimmicky as Jester and Z-Trip, but it is also kickass and ballsy. Ted Shred's own twist on the formula is that he is constantly shifting the speed of the records. Whether he's a really bad beatmatcher trying lamely to sync up his mixes, or if he's a brilliant prankster who loves changing speeds, melodies, and pitches to surreal effect, we're not sure -- and you'll certainly find yourself befuddled as well, but also looking forward to the next track! And, his phone number is on the disc, so you can ask him yourself... or get him to spin at your next party.
By the way we've got a few more copies of his debut cd too; this is the one that made into Art Forum and Tower Pulse magazine tops of the year 2001 lists!
RealAudio clip: "DJ Rectangle beats vs. The Stanley Brothers"
RealAudio clip: "Dr. Dre vs. Bad Brains"
RealAudio clip: "Aremnia vs. Bubba Sparx and Method Man"

SHRED, DJ TED Mix Tape Vol 3 (Sicmats) cd-r 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
The notorious DJ Ted Shred is back. SF's own local master of messed-up mash-up returns with a third volume (a cd-r this time) of his mix tape madness. Ted, if you haven't heard him, is an anything-goes DJ who likes to play hip hop not just next to but right on top of some classic rock...kinda like some of the stuff DJ Z-Trip does. But Ted's even more reckless, less concerned with careful beat-matching than with fitting square pegs into round holes for laffs...and he's got NO concern for 'musical correctness'. So, I guess this is a novelty record, but so much fun. Some examples: CCR vs. Da Beat Minerz, Don Henley vs. Puff Daddy, Whitesnake (and Toto!) vs. Nas, Johnny Cash vs. Arrested Development, Cory Hart vs. Run-DMC, Scorpions vs. Missy Elliott... and on and on. He also has a big collection of old children's records that get much play. You'll also hear the Lord Of The Rings theme, the Oompa Loompas, Dave Chappelle, Conan The Barbarian, and Def Leppard... Ted gets props for doing this stuff with live skillz rather that on a computer, like most of the 'mash-ups' that are all the rage these days. And he puts some thought into the segues, like answering Nancy Sinatra's "These Boots Are Made For Walking" (vs. Mos Def) with the Allman Brothers' "Rambling Man" (vs. Mix Master Mike). Good fun!
MPEG Stream: "Volume 10 vs. Peter Shilling (Major Tom)"
MPEG Stream: "Nancy Sinatra vs. Mos Def"

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

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

SHRINE Distorted Legends Pt. 1 (Drone) 7" 5.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
Another surprisingly noisy missive in the latest salve of 7"s from the always impressive Drone Records. This one comes from a one man outfit called Shrine, and as with all Drone discs is gorgeously packaged in a full color sleeve, pressed on thick black vinyl, with a printed cardstock insert printed with metallic ink, and as with the others, first edition, LIMITED TO 300 COPIES!!
The record begins all glimmering and glistening, a slowburn of keening feedback and grinding metallic shimmer, the sounds thick and corrosive an caustic, fuzzy, blurred and distorted, with what sounds like filed recordings underneath, dark and dense but still quite lovely. The flipside is the big surprise though, a creepy soundtracky drift, deep pulsing bass notes, and fuzzy Goblin like synths, all ominous and mysterious, plenty of whirring ambience beneath, but over the top those sweeping epic minor key melodies and those haunted house synth swells keep the mood foreboding and a little bit frightening. The track gets more and more intense and distorted as it goes, but never loses its grim chill.