SONIC YOUTH Sonic Nurse (Enhanced Version) (Geffen) cd 15.98
Okay it's going to be difficult, but we're going to try our best to avoid making medical puns. Have Sonic Youth fallen into a total stasis? Sure seems so. When you realize they're now nearing their quarter century mark, it's hard to fault them. Really their newest could be seen as the album on which the band found their comfort zone. Mature, mellow and without much of an edge. Forget all those press comparisons you might've read that this is like Wolf Eyes meets Fleetwood Mac. That's just bullshit ad-copy. For one thing, there isn't a hint of Wolf Eyes (besides Thurston Moore's inaudible personal fondness for them), and the only place with even a glimmer of the 'Mac is in "I Love You Golden Blue" where they blatantly snag the keyboard line from "Dreams". No, Sonic Nurse finds them being less the innovative trailblazers and more the elder statesmen with nothing to prove. They seem to no longer feel the need to issue new sonic challenges to the young punks, falling back instead on ideas they've explored quite a bit in the past (the recent past mind you). All of the Kim Gordon woozily sung songs follow the same pattern of the traditional SY song structure, dissolving into their tried'n'true noisy swell of guitar feedback. The melodic jangle of the last few albums is even more evident in the strummy pop and sing songy arrangements. So all you SY fans that simply want "more Sonic Youth", look no further. Very dreamy and pleasant and familiar. Those looking for something new might need to look elsewhere.
MPEG Stream: "Dripping Dream"
MPEG Stream: "I Love You Golden Blue"

SONIC YOUTH The Destroyed Room: B-Sides And Rarities (Geffen) cd 15.98
A totally fantastic collection of Sonic Youth b-sides and rarities spanning the years 1994-2003 with the bulk of the material coming from the Jim O'Rourke years of 2001-3. This is Sonic Youth at their most expansive. Except for three tracks, this is an all-instrumental Sonic Youth. Sprawling guitars, layers of sound, building tension, dreamy passages, all the elements that have made Sonic Youth one of the best bands of the last quarter century. In many ways this recalls some of their more experimental works released on their SYR imprint, while managing to still be very listenable and rewarding. It ends with an even longer version of their epic beauty "The Diamond Sea" which for many of us is the perfect snapshot of everything great about Sonic Youth. Once again, showing that their music is as relevant and timeless as ever!
MPEG Stream: "Fire Engine Dream"
MPEG Stream: "Fauxhemians"

SONIC YOUTH The Destroyed Room: B-Sides And Rarities (Goofin') 2lp 14.98
Now available on vinyl!!
A totally fantastic collection of Sonic Youth b-sides and rarities spanning the years 1994-2003 with the bulk of the material coming from the Jim O'Rourke years of 2001-3. This is Sonic Youth at their most expansive. Except for three tracks, this is an all-instrumental Sonic Youth. Sprawling guitars, layers of sound, building tension, dreamy passages, all the elements that have made Sonic Youth one of the best bands of the last quarter century. In many ways this recalls some of their more experimental works released on their SYR imprint, while managing to still be very listenable and rewarding. It ends with an even longer version of their epic beauty "The Diamond Sea" which for many of us is the perfect snapshot of everything great about Sonic Youth. Once again, showing that their music is as relevant and timeless as ever!
MPEG Stream: "Fire Engine Dream"
MPEG Stream: "Fauxhemians"

SONIC YOUTH The Eternal (Matador) cd 13.98
The Eternal is pretty much a perfect title for a Sonic Youth album. There is something so eternal about their presence in our cultural landscape that it's kind of impossible to think about living in a world without them. Since their last album, the rather great Rather Ripped, their contract with Geffen finally expired which thus finds this new album on indie Matador, but truth be told Sonic Youth were the rare band who really seemed to be able to make any kind of record they wanted while on a major anyway, and just used their own SYR imprint as the outlet for their more experimental and improv based leanings.
The Eternal is very similar in scope and feel to their last few outings, but even a bit more rocking and immediate. Almost sounds like they took the blueprints for Sonic Nurse and Rather Ripped and just pushed a big 'turbo' button. The true stars of the album are Lee Ranaldo and Kim Gordon, whose songs are the ones we find ourselves getting truly attached to. We really wish Ranaldo would make a song based solo album one of these days, as his contributions to Sonic Youth, especially in the more recent years, feel so urgent and insightful. We do wish The Eternal allowed itself to get a little more sprawled out and dreamy but still, as we listen to this album more and more the music and songs and sounds keep sinking deeper and deeper into our psyches, no surprise as one of the trademarks of Sonic Youth's legacy is how they make records that really do reveal themselves with repeated listens.
While people seem to always be so nostalgic when they think of Sonic Youth, it's important to remember that this is still very a much a band who is in the present and continuing to make great and moving music.
MPEG Stream: "Malibu Gas Station"
MPEG Stream: "Anti-Orgasm"
MPEG Stream: "Walkin Blue"

SONIC YOUTH The Eternal (Matador) 2lp 32.00
The Eternal is pretty much a perfect title for a Sonic Youth album. There is something so eternal about their presence in our cultural landscape that it's kind of impossible to think about living in a world without them. Since their last album, the rather great Rather Ripped, their contract with Geffen finally expired which thus finds this new album on indie Matador, but truth be told Sonic Youth were the rare band who really seemed to be able to make any kind of record they wanted while on a major anyway, and just used their own SYR imprint as the outlet for their more experimental and improv based leanings.
The Eternal is very similar in scope and feel to their last few outings, but even a bit more rocking and immediate. Almost sounds like they took the blueprints for Sonic Nurse and Rather Ripped and just pushed a big 'turbo' button. The true stars of the album are Lee Ranaldo and Kim Gordon, whose songs are the ones we find ourselves getting truly attached to. We really wish Ranaldo would make a song based solo album one of these days, as his contributions to Sonic Youth, especially in the more recent years, feel so urgent and insightful. We do wish The Eternal allowed itself to get a little more sprawled out and dreamy but still, as we listen to this album more and more the music and songs and sounds keep sinking deeper and deeper into our psyches, no surprise as one of the trademarks of Sonic Youth's legacy is how they make records that really do reveal themselves with repeated listens.
While people seem to always be so nostalgic when they think of Sonic Youth, it's important to remember that this is still very a much a band who is in the present and continuing to make great and moving music.
MPEG Stream: "Malibu Gas Station"
MPEG Stream: "Anti-Orgasm"
MPEG Stream: "Walkin Blue"

SONIC YOUTH (ETC.) Demon Lover (Original Soundtrack) (Virgin France) cd 19.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We here at Aquarius have not been boycotting the French. I myself have been making an effort to drink nothing but Evian and Champagne while eating baguettes covered in brie and reading Foucault and Sartre while watching Gerard Depardieu films and singing Frere Jacques. Another good way to support the French is by listening to this here imported soundtrack to the newest Olivier Assayas film (he's best known for Irma Vep, an inquiry into the state of contemporary French cinema starring Maggie Cheung and Nouvelle-Vague veteran Jean-Pierre Leaud) which consists primarily of original music by Sonic Youth. Sonic Youth are obviously French sympathizers, as they have played with subversive gallic chanteuse Brigitte Fontaine and covered Plastic Bertrand's "Ca Plane Pour Moi." Didn't much care for either the last Sonic Youth album proper or the recent "In The Fishtank" improv collaboration with I.C.P. and the Ex, but this is nice. Treading a path somewhere in between their song-oriented albums and noisier improvisations, not unlike the SYR record with Jim O'Rourke, Invito Al Cielo, or the little feedbacky instrumental moments in between singing on their poppier songs taken and stretched out into languorous, occasionally dark full length instrumentals (Kim Gordon does lend vocals to the first track). Some of the prettiest Sonic Youth instrumentals I've heard for sure, very mellow and pleasant, even post-rocky but with a gentle, layered touch. The more abstract, "difficult" pieces come together in waves of soothing, textural drone accented by softly clattering percussion. The addition of very slick (and very marketable, I guess) songs by Goldfrapp, Death In Vegas, Dub Squad, and Soulfly at the very end serve to break down the mood established by SY's subtle (but, comparatively, raw) washes of sound-- I'd recommend tuning out after track 8.
RealAudio clip: "Teknikal Illprovisation"
RealAudio clip: "Move Away"

SONIC YOUTH + I.C.P. + THE EX In the Fish Tank (Konkurrent) cd 11.98
Pretty bad free jazz(-y) material that never quite gets going (and when it does get going, it's still bad). Improv is great when it's done well (Nels Cline, Matthew Shipp, Evan Parker, the Brotzmanns) but this is heavy handed noodling that seems, um, pointless, especially when you consider that all parties involved (including Dutch percussionist Han Bennink, American avant percussionist and AQ-regular William Winant, etc) have made much, much better recordings in the past. Recorded in one day as part of Konkurrent Studio's In the Fishtank series. It must also be mentioned that we were all a bit disappointed that "I.C.P." did not refer to Insane Clown Posse. Eh. Buyer beware. Listen to the clip.
RealAudio clip: "VIII"

SONIC YOUTH + I.C.P. + THE EX In the Fish Tank (Konkurrent) lp 8.98
Pretty bad free jazz(-y) material that never quite gets going (and when it does get going, it's still bad). Improv is great when it's done well (Nels Cline, Matthew Shipp, Evan Parker, the Brotzmanns) but this is heavy handed noodling that seems, um, pointless, especially when you consider that all parties involved (including Dutch percussionist Han Bennink, American avant percussionist and AQ-regular William Winant, etc) have made much, much better recordings in the past. Recorded in one day as part of Konkurrent Studio's In the Fishtank series. It must also be mentioned that we were all a bit disappointed that "I.C.P." did not refer to Insane Clown Posse. Eh. Buyer beware. Listen to the clip.

SONIC YOUTH / BECK Pay No Mind / Green Light (Record Store Day) (Matador) 7" 5.50
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SONIC YOUTH / ERASE ERRATA Buddy Series Vol. 1 (Narnack) 7" 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Here it is! The wait is over. Sonic Youth and their buddies Erase Errata. New songs from both bands. We have no idea what the fuck is up though with the price or why a domestic 7" should ever be more than $4 or $5 bucks. But not much we can do about it. They cost us a fortune. Maybe it's the poster. It -is- full color. Or the xeroxed insert. It -is- on blue paper. Whatever. We only have a handful and won't be able to get more. Buy it now or buy it later on Ebay for even more.

SONIC YOUTH / JIM O'ROURKE Invito Al Cielo (SYR) 12" 8.98
Third EP in the self-released series. This is another instrumental work that is more similar to the second stretched out EP than the melodic first. Bonus: all text in Esperanto.

SONIC YOUTH / MATS GUSTAFSSON / OG MERZBOW Andre Sider AF Sonic Youth (SYR8) (SYR) cd 10.98
Recorded live at the 2005 Roskilde Festival in Denmark, this latest installment of the self-released SYR series chronicles the monolithic collaboration between Sonic Youth, Japanoise master Merzbow, and Swedish saxophonist Mats Gustafsson. Even Jim O'Rourke re-joins the band for this hour long improv sesh that results in a smoldering heap of damaged free jazz. These dudes really had to bring out the big guns here, considering they were opening up for Black Sabbath (!!!) on this particular night of the festival, not an easy task. On one level, this record sort of shows that improvising isn't exactly what Sonic Youth does best, although there is a charm in the clumsy nature of the collaboration that ends up being really cool and unpredictable. Merzbow and Gustafsson really shine here, conjuring a sea of noisy textures that are harsh and cataclysmic but never over the top or indulgent. "Andre Sider Af Sonic Youth" is the perfect addition to the SYR series and a must-have for any fan of free noise sorcery.
MPEG Stream: "Andre Sider Af Sonic Youth Excerpt 1"
MPEG Stream: "Andre Sider Af Sonic Youth Excerpt 2"

SONIC YOUTH WITH TIM BARNES Koncertas Stan Brakhage Prisiminimui (SYR) cd 13.98
Number six in their SYR series. This time Sonic Youth show their support and love of avant-garde cinema as this was from a live show they played at The Anthology Film Archives Center for a celebration of the life and legacy of Stan Brakhage. Joined by percussionist Tim Barnes (Tower Recordings, P.G. Six, Nagisa Ni Te, Dean Roberts, Essex Green, Silver Jews, Jukeboxer, etc.) these are three long "heady jams" as the band calls it. You can hear and feel the influence of the NYC avant-film scene on these jams and can imagine them being a perfect accompaniment to the flickering projection of light and color. The packaging includes a nice poster from the concert and the cover image is a beautiful still of a young, mustachioed Stan Brakhage taken from a Jones Megas film from the 60's. NYC avant-cinema given the soundtrack it deserves.
MPEG Stream: "Heady Jam 1"
MPEG Stream: "Heady Jam 3"

SONIC YOUTH/JIM O'ROURKE Invito Al Cielo (SYR) cdep 8.98
Third EP in the self-released series. This is another instrumental work that is more similar to the second stretched out EP than the melodic first. Bonus: all text in Esperanto.

SONIC, ROB Telicatessen (Definitive Jux) cd 15.98

SONMI451 Star Atlas (Time Released Sound) cd-r + antique star chart + star finder wheel 40.00
If anyone ever needed a reminder why mp3's will never compare to actual physical releases, they really need look no further than the handful of small labels who more than putting out records, are essentially creating art objects, releases where the extravagant and luxurious packaging are as much a part of the release as the music itself, a gorgeous fusion of art and sound, see elsewhere on this week's list for a handful of new tape releases from the Auris Apothecary, who blow our minds with every new batch of releases, as does Time Released Sound, a local label whose pricey creations are worth every penny, and could just as easily sit in a gallery as on your record shelf at home. Just feast your eyes and ears on this, the latest from Time Released Sound, another fantastically hand assembled release, this one from the oddly named Sonmi451, whose crystalline celestial shimmer is perfectly represented by the star/space themed artwork, but more on that in a moment.
Sonmi451 is Bernard Zwijzen, a Belgian soundscaper who blends field recordings, electronics and acoustic instruments into a dreamy glitchy starscape of sound, pulsing skittery rhythms beneath dreamlike shimmers and tinkling bell like tones, mournful strings wrapped around sprawls of softly percolating electronics, looped and collaged, blurred and smeared into soft focus stretches of ethereal / ephemeral ambience, the sounds definitely evoking the starry sky, it's so easy to drift away and find yourself laying in thick grass, away from the lights of the city, watching the start twinkle glimmer, the black blanket of the nightsky painted blue by the glow of millions of stars, utterly gorgeous, hushed, delicate and dreamlike, the songs here seem to be made for sonic stargazers, for those lost late nights and lazy early mornings, transmissions from beyond the stars, sent from mysterious blinking beacons, drifting weightless in the cosmos, emitting these sweetly subtle sonic missives, sounds both muted and minimal, transformative and transcendental. So nice!
LIMITED TO 100 COPIES! Each one hand numbered, we only have 15 OF THOSE COPIES, and that's all we'll ever be able to get. And as mentioned above, the packaging is sublime, the cds are thermal printed with a full color image of the night sky, the discs housed in a folded sleeve made from an antique star chart, all housed inside a vellum sleeve, printed and stamped and this time adorned with tiny glow in the dark stars, that hover above the deep blue night sky star field visible through the vellum. Also inside are a 5" star finder wheel, as well as various inserts, printed on antique book pages, so incredible!
MPEG Stream: "Alpha Centauri"
MPEG Stream: "Beta Crucis"

SONNA Kept Luminescence ( Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd single 4.98
A lovely cd single from the Baltimore-based post rock quartet Sonna. Two songs (one of which, "Kept Luminescence", is one of my fave songs of theirs) that were previously released in limited vinyl 7" format on the UK Static Caravan label. Think double interweaving guitars, as delicate and precise and emotional as Felt (remember them? what a great band), with really smart, delicate drumming and just enough bass to anchor the sound and prevent it from getting wispy. Funny, I never noticed the Felt sound similarity before, but it's a good comparison. Nice!
RealAudio clip: "Kept Luminescence"

SONNA Kept Luminescence / Mirameko (Static Caravan) 7" 5.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Sonna are a Baltimore-based quartet of four of the cutest boys you ever did see. What, you need to know more than that? Okay, they play a charming instrumental postrock blend of emotive bass, masterful drumming, and entrancingly pretty interweaving dual lead guitars. Drummer Jim Redd used to be in metalcore band Coalesce but Sonna sounds NOTHING like that. Recommended! (And not just because they're so darling.) UK import single limited to 500 copies.

SONNA Smile And The World Smiles With You (Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 14.98
This is sadly the final album from the wonderful instrumental quartet from Baltimore. Sonna play the most complex quiet music we've heard in a long time. The drums and shimmering cymbals are forefront in the mix and are so tight, delicate, and careful. The two lead guitars quietly weave in and out of each other making melodies even more sweetly pretty by way of the resulting harmonies. The guitars sound frail but the combination of the two makes them strong as spider silk. And there are real dynamics here, carefully thought out shades of color and mood. A post rock band that delivers. Recommended. In fact, this is the first Sonna album that Allan has even admitted to liking!
RealAudio clip: "Frone Taj"

SONNA The Eventual Bow (Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd ep 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
This rare EP from the Baltimore-based quartet Sonna is a gem, and we're pleased to be the only store to carry it. The disc was originally issued as part of the subscription-only Travels in Constants series of EPs from bands such as Low, Mogwai, Bonny Billy, etc. The single piece that comprises this EP has got all the post-rock basics: it's instrumental, 20 minutes long, made on rock instruments but isn't a traditional rock song, starts out delicately quiet, adds layer after layer, culminates in a simmering climax, then finally winds down for 2 minutes of barely-there textural lock-groove-sounding atmospherics. Sure, we've all heard bands reprise that formula, there's too many to name, but come on, how many do it well, how many do it to perfection? Sonna's winning combination of emotive bass, masterful drumming, and entrancingly pretty interweaving dual lead guitars make them prime candidates for "the last post rock band you'll ever need to hear." And boy are those last 4 minutes just sublime. Listen to all three soundclips to get an idea of the subtle progression of the piece. Highly recommended.
RealAudio clip: "The Eventual Bow (part 1)"
RealAudio clip: "The Eventual Bow (part 2)"
RealAudio clip: "The Eventual Bow (part 3)"

SONNA These Windows Are Pistons (Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 7.98
Sonna are a Baltimore-based quartet of four of the cutest boys you ever did see. What, you need to know more than that? Okay, they play a charming instrumental postrock blend of emotive bass, masterful drumming, and entrancingly pretty interweaving dual lead guitars. Beautifully meandering post-rock from this Baltimore ensemble who weaves a delicate sound of languid Pajo-esque guitar plucks, almost jazzy basslines, and lovely atmospheres. Drummer Jim Redd used to be in metalcore band Coalesce but Sonna sounds NOTHING like that. Recommended! (And not just because they're so darling.)
RealAudio clip: "These Windows Are Pistons"
RealAudio clip: "3"

SONNA We Sing Loud Sing Soft Tonight ( Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 13.98
Just when you thought every "instrumental post rock" band should be buried alive in a hole never to be heard from again, here comes the Baltimore-based quartet Sonna with their first full length album that breathes so much fresh air into the genre we're feeling rejuvenated and happy. Sonna play the most complex quiet music we've heard in a long time. The drums and shimmering cymbals are forefront in the mix and are so tight, delicate, and careful. The two lead guitars weave in and out of each other making melodies even more sweetly pretty by way of the resulting harmonies. And there are real dynamics here, carefully thought out shades of color and mood that put to shame those lesser bands who think that soft-LOUD-soft are enough to make us think they're deep. Crisply recorded by Steve Albini. Highly recommended. Get this and their epic one-song EP The Eventual Bow, and you're set.
RealAudio clip: "The Opener"
RealAudio clip: "Sleep On It"
RealAudio clip: "Real Quiet"

SONNA We Sing Loud Sing Soft Tonight (Temporary Residence Ltd.) lp 9.98
Vinyl version of this previously-listed album just in!
Just when you thought every "instrumental post rock" band should be buried alive in a hole never to be heard from again, here comes the Baltimore-based quartet Sonna with their first full length album that breathes so much fresh air into the genre we're feeling rejuvenated and happy. Sonna play the most complex quiet music we've heard in a long time. The drums and shimmering cymbals are forefront in the mix and are so tight, delicate, and careful. The two lead guitars weave in and out of each other making melodies even more sweetly pretty by way of the resulting harmonies. And there are real dynamics here, carefully thought out shades of color and mood that put to shame those lesser bands who think that soft-LOUD-soft are enough to make us think they're deep. Crisply recorded by Steve Albini. Highly recommended. Get this and their epic one-song EP The Eventual Bow, and you're set.
RealAudio clip: "The Opener"
RealAudio clip: "Sleep On It"
RealAudio clip: "Real Quiet"

SONNY & THE SANDWITCHES Throw My Ashes From This Pier When I Die (Empty Cellar) 7" 5.98
A 4 song stomp through Sonny Smith's various musical alter-egos and genre-hopping style. In collaboration with local SF gals The Sandwitches, Sonny composed these 4 songs for his 100 records projects last year where he wrote and recorded 100 songs under the guise of different bands and singers and asked local artists to design the covers. Each of the 4 artist covers for the songs are represented here in full color (including our very own Scott Hewicker, who painted the titular cover!), as well as a comic book and coupon for digital download. Embracing themes of drowning, death and redemption, these tracks showcase Smith's dark folk, blues and country sides, mythologizing a real-life near-death experience into a moral epic of salvation and grace.

SONNY & THE SUNSETS The Hypnotist (Future Stress) 7" 7.50
Sonny Smith is one of those tireless local songwriters and musicians that afters years of dedicated self-promotion is finally getting his due. This year alone saw the culmination of his ambitious project, 100 Records, where he recorded 200 songs in multiple genres (reggae, soul, country, punk, power-pop, etc.) for singles by fictitious bands with record cover art provided by 100 local artists. When it showed at Gallery 16 in the Spring, the opening was a packed house of local luminaries cheering Sonny on as his band performed a raucous set of the best songs he made. We quickly sold out of his latest band's debut, Tomorrow Is Alright, but we managed to get this 4 song 7" to tide us over between pressings of that lp.
Sounding like Jonathan Richman recording an ep for the Woodsist label, the songs here are on the lo-fi folky side, sometimes with girl group back-up singers, a bit of jangle-pop, or some retro cool balladry. His lyrics discernible without his voice being too in the front of the mix like some of Jonathan Richman's work can be. All in all a very nice capsule of what Smith is exploring at the moment. The first few we had of these sold out in an instant, and it took us awhile to get more. The batch we have now is on yellow and blue swirl vinyl, but after these are gone, we'll probably only be able to get black vinyl so act fast!

SONNY & THE SUNSETS Tomorrow Is Alright (Fat Possum) cd 13.98
Now available on cd! And also repressed on vinyl!
Some awesomely sunshine-y jangle pop from right here in SF, Sonny & The Sunsets, fronted by local luminary Sonny Smith, who for his debut was joined by a who's who of local rockers, including Kelly Stoltz, John Dwyer of Thee Oh Sees, Shayde Sartin of the Fresh & Onlys, Flying Canyon and Kelly Stoltz's band and Tim Cohen (Fresh & Onlys, 3 Leafs, Amocoma!). The label compares S&TS to Jonathan Richman, Michael Hurley, Velvet Underground, the Holy Modal Rounders, which definitely all apply, but there's plenty of Beach Boys going on too.
From brooding moody lope, to shimmery doo wop flecked surf rock to stripped down classic power pop, to fifties style balladry, to twangy back porch folk the songs are simple and heartfelt, sometimes intimate and hushed, other times subtly silly, even a bit more rocking now and again, but always catchy, melodic and cool.
MPEG Stream: "Too Young To Burn"
MPEG Stream: "Death Cream"
MPEG Stream: "Strange Love"

SONNY & THE SUNSETS Tomorrow Is Alright (Soft Abuse ) lp 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Some awesomely sunshine-y jangle pop from right here in SF, Sonny & The Sunsets, fronted by local luminary Sonny Smith, who for his debut was joined by a who's who of local rockers, including Kelly Stoltz, John Dwyer of Thee Oh Sees, Shayde Sartin of the Fresh & Onlys, Flying Canyon and Kelly Stoltz's band and Tim Cohen (Fresh & Onlys, 3 Leafs, Amocoma!). The label compares S&TS to Jonathan Richman, Michael Hurley, Velvet Underground, the Holy Modal Rounders, which definitely all apply, but there's plenty of Beach Boys going on too.
From brooding moody lope, to shimmery doo wop flecked surf rock to stripped down classic power pop, to fifties style balladry, to twangy back porch folk the songs are simple and heartfelt, sometimes intimate and hushed, other times subtly silly, even a bit more rocking now and again, but always catchy, melodic and cool.
MPEG Stream: "Too Young To Burn"
MPEG Stream: "Death Cream"
MPEG Stream: "Strange Love"

SONNY AND THE SUNSETS Hit After Hit (Fat Possum) cd 13.98
A few weeks ago, The New York Times had an article about San Francisco's burgeoning garage rock scene with a big focus on John Dwyer of Thee Oh Sees, Tim Cohen of The Fresh and Onlys, and Sonny Smith of Sonny and the Sunsets. Sonny Smith is more of the wild card of the three, zig zagging into country, rock-a-billy and early rock styles, but wherever he goes, the man can sure write a mean hook. Hit after Hit is another great selection of songs that wouldn't sound out of place in an early 1960's jukebox. With great girl group harmonies (provided by The Sandwitches) and lo-fi and catchy freakbeat rhythms, Sonny and The Sunsets, like their more queer counterparts, Hunx and His Punx and Shannon and The Clams, are mining those great old sounds for brand new ears.
MPEG Stream: "She Plays Yo Yo With My Mind"
MPEG Stream: "The Bad Energy From LA is Killing Me"
MPEG Stream: "Teen Age Thugs"
MPEG Stream: "Acres of Lust"

SONNY AND THE SUNSETS Hit After Hit (Fat Possum) lp 14.98
A few weeks ago, The New York Times had an article about San Francisco's burgeoning garage rock scene with a big focus on John Dwyer of Thee Oh Sees, Tim Cohen of The Fresh and Onlys, and Sonny Smith of Sonny and the Sunsets. Sonny Smith is more of the wild card of the three, zig zagging into country, rock-a-billy and early rock styles, but wherever he goes, the man can sure write a mean hook. Hit after Hit is another great selection of songs that wouldn't sound out of place in an early 1960's jukebox. With great girl group harmonies (provided by The Sandwitches) and lo-fi and catchy freakbeat rhythms, Sonny and The Sunsets, like their more queer counterparts, Hunx and His Punx and Shannon and The Clams, are mining those great old sounds for brand new ears.
MPEG Stream: "She Plays Yo Yo With My Mind"
MPEG Stream: "The Bad Energy From LA is Killing Me"
MPEG Stream: "Teen Age Thugs"
MPEG Stream: "Acres of Lust"

SONODA, SATOSHI Everything Lies Beyond The Burning Summer Grasses: Early Works Of Satoshi Sonoda 1977->1978 Memories Of Yashushi Ozawa (PSF) cd 17.98
Like the Onna above, here's another release from Japan's PSF label that we've been meaning to highlight for a while (they put out too much good stuff!). Finally we have enough of 'em in stock to list (for months we've been selling these steadily just by playing it in the store, actually). As the evocative/informative subtitle indicates, this is an archival collection of recordings by one Satoshi Sonoda... who he? A guitarist and composer in the realm of post-progressive rock, and new music avant-garde, part of the late '70s Japanese university scene, with connections to both psychedelic drone minimalists East Bionic Symphonia and noisepunks Gaseneta.
From the subtitle, you'll also note that this release is dedicated to the late bassist Yasushi Ozawa, best known perhaps as a member of Keiji Haino's Fushitsusha. He apparently had quite an impact on Sonoda both artistically and personally. The seven tracks here find Sonoda performing with several different lineups/projects/units, several of which feature the presence of Ozawa. The first three tracks are all credited as Sonoda compositions, though they seem just as likely to be group improvisations, and are variously designated as by Free Music Space ("1") or Free Music Revolt ("rehearsal" and "session"). The very first piece, eleven minutes long, reminds us a lot of the oldest Onna stuff, dreamy and spacey, freaky and folky, a combo of raw wandering psychedelic jamming with majestic melancholic vocal balladry. Beautiful. The second track is even longer, over 24 minutes, and encompasses enthusiastic violin string scrape, somnolently nodding grooves, and free form freakout action. Very cool, as is the shorter but similar (sans violin) track 3. Next, tracks 4-6 are by a band called ANARkISS, performing live, and are more punky, with angular raucous jagged guitar, as well as some shakuhachi and sax and what they call "scratch noise"... one of the songs is a Kan Mikami cover, "Piss-Soaked Lake", which figures. The disc then finishes up with the sounds of Free Music Space 6, a large ensemble improv blow-out entitled, "Bound, Opened".
The cd booklet contains super personal and detailed liner notes in tiny, tiny type from Sonoda himself, with his recollections of the era, discussion of various personalities including of course Ozawa, and track-by-track commentary on the material included herein. Interesting as that all is, you definitely don't need to know what's in the liner notes, or even what we've mentioned in this review, in terms of historical context or whatever, to enjoy the sounds on this disc. Like we said, just playing it in the store got people plenty intrigued. The unique vibrations from far away and long ago documented here still resonate and compel.
MPEG Stream: FREE MUSIC SPACE 1 "Dusk, Darkness, Then Dawn"
MPEG Stream: FREE MUSIC REVOLT (REHEARSAL) "Poly-Performance"
MPEG Stream: ANARKISS "Piss-Soaked Lake"

SONOPTIC Chore Overload (Warpodisc) cd 13.98
Sonoptic is the SF duo of Chuck Marcus and Alison Faith Levy fashioning loosely structured dronescapes for guitar, tape loops, and analogue synths, which falls not far from the New Zealand murky aesthetic axis of early Dean Roberts, RST, or even Gate. Pretty good stuff!

SONORA PINE Sonora Pine (1/4 Stick) cd 13.98
Members of June of 44, Rodan, Retsin, Rachel's...

SONORA PINE Sonora Pine (1/4 Stick) lp 8.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Members of June of 44, Rodan, Retsin, Rachel's...

SONOVAC Raw (Output) cd 17.98
Sorta like a more electronically haywire Stereo-Total or maybe the bratty kid sister of the Flying Lizards (circa "Top Ten"). If Chicks on Speed weren't such a mess, perhaps this is what they would sound like. Quirky, weird and fun.

SONS & DAUGHTERS This Gift (Domino) cd 14.98
Sons & Daughters take it in a new direction for This Gift. No longer drenched in the molasses blues folk dourness we'd come to expect from former Arab Strapper David Gow. Sounds like the present in question was a healthy dose of mood liftin' and energy pumpin' vitamins... or maybe this is simply what happens when Gow's partner in crime Adele Bethel takes center stage! The results are sleek gal-fronted modern rock with hooks far more akin to bands such as Metric, Elastica, Veruca Salt than their Scottish pop brethren. While we dig their newfound punchy drive, suckers for melancholia that we are, we can't help but miss a bit of the murder balladry!
MPEG Stream: "Gilt Complex"
MPEG Stream: "Rebel Ghost"

SONS AND DAUGHTERS Love The Cup (Ba Da Bing!) cd 14.98
Glasgow, Scotland has produced many an indie folk-pop darling over the past many years, quite a number of them somehow connected to Arab Strap (in bandmembership and/or friendship). Sons And Daughters is no exception. Arab Strap's David Gow and Adele Bethel make a slight shift in musical focus for this new project. Leaning less on the trademark Arab Strap whiskey drenched introspective melancholia and more so on wider reaching age-old somberness, Sons And Daughters play a brooding, rough-hewn brand of bluesy folk with a little rootsy twang surfacing here and there. Each of the seven songs keeps to the slow and smoldering tempo that often approaches murder ballad status. A handful of low notes are strummed and plucked out on guitar while a primitive beat is pounded out on a drumkit that features the barest of essentials (we'd guess a snare drum, a kick drum and a highhat). Sort of the Scottish counterpart to the Fiery Furnaces.
MPEG Stream: "Fight"
MPEG Stream: "Broken Bones"

SONS AND DAUGHTERS The Repulsion Box (Domino) cd 13.98
While Glasgow Scotland has certainly birthed a plethora of soft twee pop bands, the city also has a darker, more festering side as is exemplified in the musical clan known as Sons And Daughters (who happen to include David Gow and Adele Bethel of Arab Strap). Their fiery urgency brings to mind a less inebriated Pogues (yeah, we know they're Irish) or a more murderous Clinic (yeah, we know they're British). You can almost spot the glint of a rough-hewn shiv in the folds of their thread bare cloaks. You'd best be keeping an eye on these folks! At times, they seem downright unstable. The Repulsion Box lures the listener back down the gloomy dank alleyway that the band frequented on their previous EP Love The Cup. If you dig music that keeps the unsettling flow of bile and vitriol at a constant boiling point, Sons And Daughters is definitely for you. Great!
MPEG Stream: "Medicine"
MPEG Stream: "Monsters"

SONS OF OTIS Exiled (Small Stone) cd 13.98
Reliable sorts these Canadians are, aren't they? The Sons Of Otis are back, and fans (like us!) of their monolithic stoner rock / blues / doom will not be disappointed. It's all here on their fifth full-length album. Lumbering fuzzed out riffs, check. Spacey electronic atmospheres, check. Glacial pace, check. Psychedelic soloing, check. Heavier than thou jamming, check. Feedback, check. Gravelly, effects-laden, echoey vocals, check. Drugs, check (we're pretty sure!). They even continue their tradition of including super stoned sounding cover versions of classic tracks by their old school influences, this time 'round giving the Sons Of Otis treatment to two faves: Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Cry For The Bad Man" (here titled "Bad Man") and Motorhead's "Iron Horse"! In both cases it's like the original has been dipped in tar, dosed with drugs, and slowed down to 16rpm, especially "Iron Horse" which segues into a billowing dense ambient drone definitely not derived from the original Motorhead composition, the whole track lasting over 18 minutes!
The Otis originals here will (slowly) kick yr ass too. "Haters" starts things off with a scowl, and they don't lighten up much... later on "Tales Of Otis" enters into almost Khanate-like ultra-doom territory, and it's hard to tell if Sons Of Otis are trying to take off into outer space or burrow deep into the earth. Definitely (as always) for fans of UFOmammut, Electric Wizard, Boris... and for folks who'd like to know what it would sound like if Monster Magnet mated with the Melvins.
It's hard to know what else to say, either you're a fan of this and every other Sons Of Otis album, or you need to take more drugs.
MPEG Stream: "Lost Soul"
MPEG Stream: "Bad Man"

SONS OF OTIS Songs for Worship (The Music Cartel) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Massive, spacey, druggy stoner rock -- for a visual analogy, imagine the big black alien monolith from 2001 if it was actually a giant space-bong. This Canadian band follows up their Man's Ruin releases ("Templeball" being one of the heavier highlights of the Man's Ruin catalog) with this new disc on TMC, where they fit in perfectly with another weed-worshiping, doomy TMC act, the mighty (stoned) Electric Wizard! Indeed, if Monster Magnet and Electric Wizard got really wasted (not unlikely) and jammed together with everything running through all possible effects, cranked way up, it might sound like this... Although the ancient stone statue on this album's cover makes it look like a Ruins disc, their music couldn't be further from that band's brand of hyperactive mayhem -- no hundred-riff medleys here! No, it's slow and low all the way. They interpret Hendrix' "In From The Storm", keeping up their tradition of paying respects to past masters ("Templeball" featured Saint Vitus and Mountain covers). Again: massive.
RealAudio clip: "Losin' It"
RealAudio clip: "In From The Storm"

SONS OF OTIS Spacejumbofudge (Man's Ruin) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SONS OF OTIS Templeball (Man's Ruin) cd 11.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
From the barren tundra to the north (Toronto), comes the Sons Of Otis (formerly just Otis); lumbering heaviosity shackled to stoned and droned spaciness. Think the Melvins, Black Sabbath, Hawkwind. Take just the spaced out jams from Monster Magnet songs, stretch them out even further, add even more fuzz and echo, and voila. And, they cover both Mountain and Saint Vitus!!

SONS OF OTIS X (Small Stone) cd 14.98
Worshippers of all that is heavy, get ready for the return of Canada's stoner ambassadors, the Sons Of Otis! Their new, fourth album, simply titled X (which I guess could be the Roman numeral ten, but would that make any sense?), is another dose of their, uh, stoned spacey blues-based psychedelic heavy drug-rawk... good stuff for fans of Monster Magnet, Hawkwind, Ufomammut, and the doomier likes of Electric Wizard and St. Vitus!
With heavily effected vocals (is the singer even in there somewhere we start to wonder?), Orange amps vibrating in the void, riffage reverberating raw and run-down, this is stoner rock at its darkest and most dazedly wandering, slow and plodding. Is there life in outer space? It's hard to tell from this record. Recorded by (of course) Billy Anderson, this album ends with a fourteen-minute opus that seems even longer, not that you'll want it to end, entitled "Liquid Jam". It is indeed. Not that there's any *short* songs on here at all. X also includes includes their superbly slo-mo, Funhouse-ish cover of "The Pusher" by Steppenwolf (previously on a picture disc 10" they did a few years ago, but this may be a new version though), further underlining, however needlessly, the band's heavy '60s psych/drug direction.
Yup, dunno who Otis is, but if these are his kids, he obviously failed to have that parental say no to drugs talk with 'em...
MPEG Stream: "Way I Feel"
MPEG Stream: "Help Me"

SONS OF THE SUN Heavenlamp (Fat Cat) 12" 8.98
Rik Shaw and Ledeuce have also performed as Rome (with a few releases for Thrill Jockey) and as the Deadly Dragon Sound System (a dub / turntablist crew from Chicago). Sons of the Sun manifest low key breaks with a noticable dubby quality and lots of noodly analogue synth melodies.

SONS OF TONATIUH s/t (Hydro-Phonic) cd 12.98
This is the debut full length from Atlanta sludge pop crust punks Sons Of Tonatiuh, who unfurl the sort of hook filled heaviness we can't ever seem to get enough of. The label compare these guys to Sourvein, Iron Monkey, Eyehategod and Weedeater, and yeah, that definitely fits these guys, the lurching downtuned sludge, the chugging churning riffage, the throat shredding vox, but what these guys also have is a serious knack for infusing their rib cage rattling stoner sludge with some serious pop, it's not always obvious, in fact it rarely is, but the band will flit from lumbering doom-ic creep, to relentless crust metal pound without blinking an eye, and then suddenly unfurl THEE catchiest riff you've ever heard, before pulverizing it a second later with an avalanche of crumbling, distorted crush. And that's really what makes this stuff so good, the 'poppy bits' are black hole heavy, to the point of disguising said poppiness from the casual listener, and the heavy parts are subtly poppy, but not so much as to distract from, the pounding and riffing, cuz, c'mon, this is first and foremost some seriously and supremely heavy doom/dirge/sludge, it's just that there's more going on than bash and crash, the thick tarpit riffage and caveman pound hiding plenty of melody and twisted songcraft, which is pretty rare in a band like this.
Recommended for fans of the above mentioned sludge outfits of course, but if you dig stuff like Torche, Floor, Capsule, and Tweak Bird, and are down for something a wee bit sludgier, this just might hit the spot...
MPEG Stream: "To The Throne"
MPEG Stream: "Den Of Thieves"
MPEG Stream: "Consumed"

SONS OF TONATIUH s/t (Hydro-Phonic) lp 12.98
This is the debut full length from Atlanta sludge pop crust punks Sons Of Tonatiuh, who unfurl the sort of hook filled heaviness we can't ever seem to get enough of. The label compare these guys to Sourvein, Iron Monkey, Eyehategod and Weedeater, and yeah, that definitely fits these guys, the lurching downtuned sludge, the chugging churning riffage, the throat shredding vox, but what these guys also have is a serious knack for infusing their rib cage rattling stoner sludge with some serious pop, it's not always obvious, in fact it rarely is, but the band will flit from lumbering doom-ic creep, to relentless crust metal pound without blinking an eye, and then suddenly unfurl THEE catchiest riff you've ever heard, before pulverizing it a second later with an avalanche of crumbling, distorted crush. And that's really what makes this stuff so good, the 'poppy bits' are black hole heavy, to the point of disguising said poppiness from the casual listener, and the heavy parts are subtly poppy, but not so much as to distract from, the pounding and riffing, cuz, c'mon, this is first and foremost some seriously and supremely heavy doom/dirge/sludge, it's just that there's more going on than bash and crash, the thick tarpit riffage and caveman pound hiding plenty of melody and twisted songcraft, which is pretty rare in a band like this.
Recommended for fans of the above mentioned sludge outfits of course, but if you dig stuff like Torche, Floor, Capsule, and Tweak Bird, and are down for something a wee bit sludgier, this just might hit the spot...
MPEG Stream: "To The Throne"
MPEG Stream: "Den Of Thieves"
MPEG Stream: "Consumed"

SOPHIA Deconstruction Of The World (Cyclic Law) cd 15.98

SORC'HENN Faro (Crucial Bliss) cd-r 5.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
Sorc'Henn's last disc, Harmonium Pieces & Dead Reveries, which was released on Faunsabbatha, the more 'metal' sub label of Ruralfaune, wasn't actually a metal record, more a dark dronescape, whirring expanses of Lustmordian Wolf Eyes style post industrial buzzing black shimmer.
This latest Sorc'henn disc, released on Crucial Bliss (another sub-label, this time of Crucial Blast) is even more removed from anything metal. And in many ways anything dark. At least the 21 minute opener, which plays out like an Argento soundtrack composed by Oval, all shimmering layers, and skipping cds, looped ambience, that glimmer and glistens, a bit of Philip Jeck, a little Tim Hecker, all fuzzy and crackly melodies locked into haunting loops, while over the top, a child's voice whispers, and in the background bits of bird song. Truly creepy, but simultaneously quite lovely, totally mesmerizing, would have been happy if this track was stretched out to fill the whole disc. Odds are you'll find yourself listening to it over and over, luxuriating in its haunting mystery, eyes closed, picturing some old crumbling estate, surrounded by dark forests, a child peeking from the heavy curtains in an upstairs window.
After that, the sound gets even more fuzzed out and crackly, a warm washed out hiss, speckled with bits of crackle and pop, a slowly unfurling minimal melody way off in the distance, the sound of thundering low end drifting by like black clouds, warm whirring organs, bits of electronic glitch, deep throbbing reverberating buzz, all leading up to the 27 minute long final track, a totally demented black musickal ritual, deep rumbles, growled Darth Vader like invokations, bits of industrial clatter, squalls of hiss, whirling streaks of effects, detuned guitars, woozy melodies, thick waves of crumbling buzz, slivers of feedback, creaking and groaning machinelike ambience, distorted chimes, disembodied vocals howling and moaning, a truly harrowing black and bleak soundscape, finishing off with a brief snippet of an old timey French piano ballad, adding even more mystery to the song's already eerie and mystical vibe.
Like all the Crucial Bliss releases, packaged in a cool 3 panel full color fold over sleeve.
MPEG Stream: "Dodsdansen, Life Of An Island Lad"
MPEG Stream: "Enez Varv Faaro"

SORC'HENN Harmonium Pieces & Dead Reveries (Faunasabbatha) cd-r 10.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
In a world full of tiny labels, it takes a lot to stand out, whether it's some amazing and mysterious sounds or super unique and hand made packaging. And if anything RuralFaune as shined in both respects, a crazy collection of some of the weirdest noisemakers in the world, and some seriously amazing, and in many cases, fragrant, packaging. Hand printed, painted, folded, pasted, held together with string or wire, often filled with branches or flowers, scraps of paper, seeds or bits of plant matter, many of them very strong smelling, all of them amazing.
Well, Bruno, the man behind RuralFaune, was really getting into heavy music, and decided that maybe RuralFaune was not the place for such musics, so he started FaunSabbatha, a new label dedicated to heavy, creepy, dark music, metal, metallic, or just plain evil. Four new releases, each one outrageously limited, gorgeously hand packaged, and gone before you know it.
Sorc'Henn are from France, and their particular brand of heaviness, as the title of their disc suggests is all about the harmonium, the piano, and lots and lots of drones. The opening track is a thick cloud of piano overtones, lots of sustain and reverb, a single funereal chord, struck over and over and over, the tones blending into each other, the overtones building up until it's some sort of doomy sonata. The second track, is a bleary buzzy blur, very Tim Hecker-ish or Oval-like, but with vocals that sound like the growls of some wild beast, a gurgling rumbling grrr. A bit like a pride of lions fronting Lustmord, very haunting and very very weird. But at the same time, strangely pretty.
The next two tracks are thick layered drones, the first dreamy and blissy, lots of soft melody and dreamlike drift, the second is a blurred black metal, buzzing riffage doused in effects and overloaded, until the riff melts into its surroundings with the overall effect being a throbbing pulsing blackened swell.
The awesomely titled "Where Does The Breath Of The Dead Pianist Come From ?" ironically enough features no piano at all (as far as we can tell), instead sprawling into some grinding Wolf Eyes-ian industrial plodscape, with plenty of dirge-y whir and distorted crunch. The second to last track "Grand-Harmonium Du Diable" is just that, a creepy lo-fi harmonium drift, the instrument wheezing demonically, haunting minor key melodies escaping like a demon's heavy breathing, an evilized version of the harmonium work of Gurdjieff or Nitsch.
Finally, the disc finishes with "Huelgoat And The Droning Stones", a 10+ minute underwater dirgescape assembled from swooping backwards notes, murky and warbly and hypnotic, that fades to silence, before returning as a minimal muddy grinding low end melody that unfurls until the very end...
SUPER LIMITED!! ONLY 66 COPIES!!!! In a spray painted cardboard sleeve, housed in a printed oversized paper jacket, all in a plastic sleeve with little bits of branches!
MPEG Stream: "Toulgoat"
MPEG Stream: "Took Their Rise In Funerals"

SORCERER s/t (Forged In Fire / Brainticket ) cd 12.98
Ok, well if the world really ends this weekend ("Judgment Day" Saturday May 21st y'know) then I think THIS is what we plan to be listening to, and loud, when the Christians get Rapturously sucked up to heaven leaving the rest of us to deal with God's wrath or whatever. Hella epic doom metal here folks, it'd make the perfect soundtrack to all that apocalypse... This cd is a remastered reissue of the two cult cassette demos done by this Swedish band back in the day (circa 1989 and 1992), almost 80 minutes of music in total. Majestic, massive, mystical, and as you might expect, manna to Candlemass fans, this band's closest comparison.
Includes the song "Queen In Black", typical of Sorcerer's grandiose, dramatic style, one that was covered by modern day Puerto Rican epic doom metal mavens Dantesco on a recent release reviewed here, you may recall. And speaking of covers, this disc contains one too, an impressive take on Rainbow's classic "Stargazer", with Sorcerer's vocalist ably acquitting himself in the Ronnie James Dio role.
This edition (nicer than the cd compilation done in 1995) includes new liner notes from long time Sorcerer fan John Perez, of equally epic doomsters Solitude Aeturnus (a big enough fan to have reissued this on his own label Brainticket!). Lyrics also included in the cd booklet, along with art from the original cassettes.
So if you dig old school, melodic metal with leaden riffage, squiggly guitar solos, the occasional tolling bell, and - most significantly perhaps - soaring, cathedral-spire-ascending vocals, a la Candlemass, Solitude Aeturnus, Dantesco, Savatage, Memory Garden, etc., then Sorcerer is a definite must-have. Too bad they broke up after making these two tapes (which sound fantastic, by the way, not at all like "demos"), no doubt on account of how this style wasn't terribly in vogue at the time... but apparently now they've reformed and have been playing some European festivals, so maybe there will be more to the Sorcerer discography sometime soon. Well, long as Saturday isn't really Judgment Day, that is!
MPEG Stream: "The Sorcerer"
MPEG Stream: "Northern Seas"
MPEG Stream: "Queen In Black"

SORCERER White Magic (Tirk) cd 16.98
Making a seamless transition from charming indie-rock boy in the bay area's great Call & Response to now dishing out some of the most infectious and delicious electronic jams we've heard in a long time, it won't be long until Daniel Judd (aka Sorcerer) is a name on the tips of the tongues of everyone who has been loving the recent resurgence of great dancey and disco inspired electronica. If folks like Lindstrom, Gui Borrato and Strategy have pleased your ears as much as they have ours we think this is a record you should check out for sure. We love how he's able to bring a smooth and suave feeling to what's often a clinical and robotic sound. It's almost how we imagine it would sound if Sam Prekop of The Sea & Cake made a daydream electronic dance record, as it has that same kind of endless breeze and carefree melody that he's perfected over the years. It's like sliding down milky mountain waterfalls into the freshest ocean filled with frothy waves and trays of the tastiest cocktails floating alongside always at arms reach for a delicious sip. Sorcerer have tapped into some delightfully fresh sounding electronic gold. So nice!
MPEG Stream: "Hawaiian Island"
MPEG Stream: "Surfing At Midnight"
MPEG Stream: "Slow Burning Hands"