Yessir! The end is nigh… so we thought we’d reveal what made our musical year worthwhile. In these internet-fueled times, tastes are so disparate & splintered, it’s always remarkable to see titles pop up on more than one list… it kind of galvanizes an album’s value amidst all the chatter.
So yeah, have a gander. We’ll post on our Facebook as well, please feel free to leave comments or your own lists!
Listen here...
Pretty excited for RSD Black Friday tomorrow! We’re sure most of you remember how amazing Record Store Day was this past April – this Black Friday will be a nice addendum to that & a great way to officially start holiday shopping. Few points of note below…
This contest is great… you win an AUTOGRAPHED TEST PRESSING (!) of the Black Keys’ new album El Camino PLUS a pair of free tickets to see the Black keys the next time they hit Vancouver. To enter, simply pre-order the Black Keys’ new album El Camino (released on December 6).
Here is a list of all the titles that we know we’ll receive. We will not receive every RSD title, but this is a healthy chunk for sure. NOTE: the titles with “**” next to them have not yet arrived, but will show.
Ryan Adams “Do I Wait”/“Darkness” 7” vinyl 3000 US **
Back-Wash Rhythm Band, The Golden Breed Band 12” vinyl 1200 US, 800 international
Beatles, The The Singles Box Set 7” vinyl box
Black Keys, “Lonely Boy” 12“vinyl **
Boris, New Album LP/CD **
Brendan Benson Upstairs at United, Vol 1 12” vinyl
Byrds, “The Times They Are A Changin’” 7” vinyl 1200 US, 1000 International **
Byrds, “Eight Miles High” 7” vinyl 1200 US, 1000 International **
Chris Cornell Songbook Double LP 2000 US **
Dr. Dog “Warrior Man” 7” single
Dream Theater Metropolis PT2: Scenes from a Memory 12” vinyl 3000 US
Miles Davis, Miles Davis Quartet 10” vinyl 1800 US, 1200 international
Justin Townes Earle “Slippin’ & Slidin’” 7” vinyl 1000 US
Grateful Dead, The Live Europe ’72, Vol 2 4 LP vinyl 3000 US, 28 **
Iron & Wine Morning Becomes Eclectic 12” vinyl 3000 US
Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings Soul Time! CD 20,000 US
Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings Soul Time! 12” vinyl 5000 US
Kings Of Leon The Early Vinyl 4 LP Vinyl box set 3250 US; 1200 international
Mr. Gasser & the Weirdos Hot Rod Hootenanny 12” vinyl 1200 US, 800 international
Mr. Gasser & the Weirdos Hot Rod Hootenanny CD 1200 US, 800 international
Mr. Gasser & the Weirdos Rods N Ratfinks 12” vinyl 1200 US, 800 international
Mr. Gasser & the Weirdos Rods N Ratfinks CD 1200 US, 800 international
Mr. Gasser & the Weirdos Surfink! 12” vinyl 1200 US, 800 international
Mr. Gasser & the Weirdos Surfink! CD 1200 US, 800 international
Nirvana Nevermind—The Singles 10” vinyl set 5000 US **
Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Kiss My Amps Live 12” vinyl 5000 US
Red Hot Chili Peppers Blood Suger Sex Magik double 12” vinyl 5170 US **
Rolling Stones, No Spare Parts 7” **
Soundgarden Live on I-5—Before The Doors Soundcheck EP 10” vinyl 4000 US
Pete Townshend The Quadrophenia Demos Volume 1 10” vinyl 4000 US
Type O Negative Type O Negative Vinyl Box Set 12” vinyl set 1000 US
Various Artists Wheedle’s Groove: Seattle’s Finest in Funk & Soul 1965- 79 7” box set 2000 US
Wilco Speak Into The Rose 10” vinyl
Yardbirds “Ha Ha Said The Clown” 7” vinyl 1600 US, 1200 international
Yardbirds “Ten Little Indians” 7” vinyl 1600 US, 1200 international
(Dunham) CD & LP
The canon of soul music is filled with stories of struggle & perseverance, but few match Charles Bradley’s tale of triumph over the everyman grind of urban America. Raised in Brooklyn, Bradley has wandered the US for much of his 64 years, falling between performing as a soul singer & peddling his wares as a trained chef. Despite a life filled with near-misses at a music career, a late-in-life relocation back to Brooklyn found Bradley on stage, occasionally performing his James Brown-inspired routine as Black Velvet.
Bradley’s raw soul & energized vocals began to draw quite the devoted following & caught the attention of Gabriel Roth of Daptone Records. After losing his brother to a horrible murder at the hands of his own nephew, Bradley reconvened & with the help of Thomas Brenneck, began weaving his tales of hardship & heartbreak into some classic soul originals. The result is No Time For Dreaming, a powerful, gritty album packed with raw emotion & the familiar sounds of life’s trials & tribulations. The music here is provided by The Menahan Street Band, who do a brilliant job of framing Bradley’s classic vocals with stone cold grooves & sincere soul balladry. Easily one of 2011’s most endearing stories, it also happens to be one of the year’s best records. It goes without saying that fans of Sharon Jones should pay full attention.
CHARLES BRADLEY PLAYS LIVE AT CLUB 9ONE9 ON SEPT. 3!!!
Tickets on sale now!
WE WILL BE OPENING AT 10am!
April 17 is officially Record Store Day! Last year was a great success with a bunch of exclusive & cool releases on RSD & this year promises to be even crazier.
For details on RSD & cool artist quotes/interviews, wander over the RSD site …
Along with sweet exclusives & a crazy amount of new releases in general, there are a few nifty things we’ll be adding on to make Saturday radder than the raddest radness, such as…
Listen here...
(Universal) CD
Badu’s 4th World War was an amazing funk/hop/soul fusion record that expertly tapped the production talents of Sa-Ra Creative Partners, Madlib & The Roots. Madlib is on board here, but Badu herself steers the way for the most part, leading a killer cast of live players for a record that acts as a lush, organic counterpart to 4th World War‘s digi-soul beatscapes. One of the few remaining relevant holdovers from the neo-soul boom of the late 90’s, Badu is in fine form on Ankh – socio-politics, matters of the heart & mind, spitritual journeies; Badu is a bold female artist unafraid to tackle some meaty topics, with a grace & vision that is typically lacking in most post-soul. Marvin Gaye, Isaac Hayes, Sharon Jones, Funkadelic, Stevie Wonder – Badu is like all of these proprietors of soul rolled up into one beautifully charged female, but with that extra-terrestrial yearning that keeps her quirky & unique; Ankh bears Badu’s amazing voice & some of her best tunes to date.
CD (Stones Throw)
29 year old Michigan native Mayer Hawthorne aka Drew Cohen has been honing his chops throughout California, settling in L.A. as DJ Haircut over the last few years. His sample-heavy style of funky soul production caught the ear of Peanut Butter Wolf, who commissioned an album from the fresh face. A Strange Arrangement draws heavily from those that Cohen admires; Smokey Robinson, Curtis Mayfield & most notably, Stevie Wonder. The uplifting, half-light-hearted vibes of these artists are felt throughout, with deft attention to the vintage funk/soul sound that has been popularized recently by artists like Sharon Jones & the like, although Mayer Hawthorne is a more pop & soft-soul than hard-hitting funk. Fresh.
(Heads Up) CD & 2LP
This behemoth of a jazz trio decides to again make a drastic break-screeching turnaround – on For All I Care they add vocalist Wendy Lewis. Continuing on their path of unmatched virtuosity, the playing here is insanely on point. The covers are still here — “Lithium” by Nirvana & Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb” are, well, demolished in horrifically awesome ways — and so are the proggy intricacies (“Semi-Simple Variation”). As always, no overdubs or edits here, these dudes still cling to that seemingly vanishing vestige: they can play the shit out of their instruments.
Playing Alix Goolden Hall in March!!!
Listen here...
(Vice) CD & 2LP
The mysterious King Khan, a native Montrealer, leads this wild pack (they’re a 10-piece!) of psychedelic garage dogs. This is as authentic as it gets for modern garage revival – a healthy mess of R&B is littered all over The Shrines’ racket of jangly guitars & blaring horns. Here, VICE capitalizes on a brilliant (but historically hard to obtain) back catalog & compiles the good stuff into one wholesome meal. For fans of Black Lips, The Sonics & quality 60’s-influenced racket in general. Please listen. You will likey.
Listen here...
(Motown) CD & LP
Quirky? Sure, but over the years, Erykah Badu has managed to avoid straying from her path of integrity & focus on music. On New Amerykah, Badu enlists A-List production to backdrop her brilliant ideas; Sa Ra, ?uestlove & 9th Wonder are on point (especially on the heartfelt ode to J Dilla “Telephone”), but it’s “The Healer/Hip Hop” that makes you wish that Madlib would give up Quasimoto’s godforsaken ghost & just focus on working with bonafied artists like Badu (and Doom of course). Badu turns in some great beats herself (check Tribe Called Quest Midnight Marauders-era vibe of “The Cell”…) for a great synthesis of her individual voice & oooweeoo steez with warm, rhythmically rich hip-hop production.
Listen here...