R.A.D Vinyl

Retribution Gospel Choir - 3 (Chaperone Records)

buy it here: 

https://chaperonerecords.com/products-page/

Retribution Gospel Choir is the unleashed fury of pent up emotions from Alan Sparhawk front man of the famously slow paced group Low. 2/3 of Low are here swapping out drummer and vocalist Mimi Parker for Eric Pollard a hard hitting rock drummer. Gone are the sedated subtle melodies, say hello to the full on psychedelic guitar onslaught for two side long trips down the rabbit hole. Now this is the third RGC lp, the first hashed through the Low catalog with some renewed energy and featured a few originals. The second went for catchy 70’s style radio friendly rock anthems. An ep of songs that came dangerously close to arena rock almost derailed the band critically and probably with some fans. Thankfully “3” finds RGC with a new label Chaperone Records who have done a killer job with silk screened jackets for the lp and also giving them the freedom to let their freak flag fly so to speak. “Can’t Walk Out” is a balls to the wall guitar feedback escapade channeling the dark recesses of Alan Sparhawk’s amazing chops. This guys got tone guitar players only dream of. Sparhawk lets loose while Pollard relentlessly bashes the drums and Garrington keeps the steady groove going. Vocals are basically an after thought. ” Seven” features superb guest guitar work by Nels Cline well known for his time with Wilco. Lyrically “Seven” is a bit more substantial and the pace is a bit more languid but for the most part it is another guitar feast. Clearly Retribution Gospel Choir are exercising some demons, whether they are trying to clear the slate to start fresh or they are just expanding into new territory remains to be seen. Either way “3” feels like a cleansing rebirth for Retribution Gospel Choir.

Tony Carey- Explorer & Yellow Power reissues (Medical Records)

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http://medical-records.org/index.html

Tony Carey has had quite the illustrious career as a keyboardist from 75-77 for the British hard rockers Rainbow featuring Ritchie Blackmore and Ronnie James Dio. Carey is not British he is a California native and met the Rainbow fellas in a studio where Blackmore asked him to audition and got the job and eventually a few years down the road after disagreements with Blackmore he parted ways to go solo. Carey had a hand full of hits in the early 80’s and found some success with starting the prog style Planet P. Now for me these are all groups I have avoided like the plague all of my life and have been completely clueless to the existence of Tony Carey. This is where Medical Records comes in and finds jewels hidden with the mundane. Somehow Carey managed to put together a few albums in the early 80’s that veer away from conventional rock or from any label politicking. From the sounds of the interview with Carey in the liner notes he was just screwing around learning his way around the studio and these records are just a blip on his radar that really hold no significant meaning to him, he is glad people like them and that’s about as far is it goes for him. Basically “Explorer” and “Yellow Power” from 1982 are mostly an anomaly in a fairly straightforward career. Medical Records has chosen to package them together as “Explorer” is said to be basically demos for “Yellow Power.” That being said the albums stand magnificently on their own “Explorer” being a raw stripped back instrumental album while “Yellow Power” is a very full sounding produced record. Every kind of genre tag has been dropped on these records from proto-techno to Italo disco and back again but I just prefer the genre of damn good. If you like Kraftwerk or Yellow Magic Orchestra but have never gone beyond that Tony Carey will take you on some next level type trips and if you never ventured past say Devo start with “Yellow Power” and make your way to the minimalism of “Explorer.” The packaging is once again incredible with a gatefold and colored wax limited to 1000 copies hand numbered. I’m equally impressed in the restraint from making “Yellow Power” on yellow wax instead it is pressed into a beautiful baby blue. One thing you can take to the bank with Medical Records is they always sell out fast as they put out only the finest of hidden gems so jump on this fast and make sure to check out Medical Records back catalog now available digitally.

http://medicalrecords.bandcamp.com/

New Releases from Resurrection Records & Free Sampler Link

buy them here: 

http://www.getresurrected.com/

Outer Minds-Behind the Mirror LP

Outer Minds are a group from the Midwest hailing from Chicago and bringing a very dark vibe to a set of excellent garage psych bangers. FUzz….A warm blanket of fuzz envelopes pop songs with catchy hooks for the guitars and vocals. Organs drone, guitars jangle and tambourines are alive and well in a very authentic psychedelic fashion. Outer Minds would be at home on the vintage Nuggets comps and fans of the Velvet Underground’s dark edginess or more modern groups like the Black Angels or Wooden Shijps would surely find this lp worth their time and money.

The Shrills-Melt Down LP

The Shrills like their labelmates Outer Minds take from the garage and psych bands of the past but with the Shrills everything is turned to eleven…Distorted vocals and amped up tempos give “Meltdown” a pure shot of adrenaline leaning the album more towards the punk rock and garage rock genres but living in an unrecognizable land of insanity. The Shrills are on the verge of coming unhinged at any moment with reverbed out screams that sound straight out of the asylum appearing at random. Feedback and hissing guitars with a mind of their own and drums smashing with wild abandon are the life blood of an album that at moments sounds like its recorded in a cave. Then for a second a straight doo-wop vibe will appear. Bizarre, brilliant, entertaining and original…Psychotic, wild and just plain fun. If Garage punk is your thing——-Get THis..

Also Check out the crazy winter sampler Free tracks from some amazing bands:

http://resurrectionrecords.bandcamp.com/album/get-resurrected-winter-2013-sampler

Nocht the Only Ghouls (Vwyrd Wurd)

buy it here: 

http://www.vwyrdwurd.com/

Nocht the Only Ghouls is the first record released off of the record label Vwyrd Wurd and according to the label as it stands there are less than 10 copies of this red vinyl beauty left. So should you let those 10 copies disappear without a second thought of it…No, snap this up while you still can. The primitive folk stylings of John Fahey get blended with lo-fi bedroom psych and a dash of droning Eno ambience. Nocht the Only Ghouls s/t record is chalk full of atmosphere as static buzzes and crackling tape loops blend with analog synths. Deep caves of reverb push the sounds to the background as plucked notes of the guitar drift through the mix creating a contemplative setting. Each track fades in and out like a fleeting moment or a fading memory leaving a haunting outline in its place. Nocht the Only Ghouls is a gorgeous record that deserves many late night spins.

Martin Lopez Y Sus Estrellas- Cocinando (Masstropicas)

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http://lightintheattic.net/releases/769-cocinando

One of the side effects of the growing vinyl market is that many labels are eschewing releasing new music and instead turning their focus to reissuing long lost records. Everything from small private press to far reaching foreign sounds are getting new life in their grooves. Some labels like Numero Group and SoundWay Records have large catalogs and garner a lot of attention from media and fans alike. Masstropicas is more of a hidden gem of a label that simply uses a blog for a website and distributes their titles through another incredible reissue label Light in the Attic. Masstropicas has focused their energies on releasing Peruvian music that only some of the most dedicated crate diggers have laid ears on in 30+ years. “Cocinando” by Martin Lopez Y Sus Estrellas becomes the eleventh release on Masstropicas with a limited one time pressing of 500 copies on black vinyl with rare photos and liner notes by Martin Lopez himself. This means for a limited time you don’t have to have deep pockets or be a globetrotting record junkie to snag a copy of this forgotten masterpiece. The title track “Cocinando” kicks things off proper with the grooving rhythm of the bongos and some Martin Denny exotica style whistling jungle sounds before the swirl of the organ creates an almost circus like atmosphere of glee. Make no mistake this is a record you put on to party and dance. The rhythms are intoxicating, the horns enticing and the guitar work is pure fun. “Cocinando” is solid gold from start to finish and will take you on an incredible journey to the heart of Peru circa 1969-1971 when this album was first put to tape. This album is not to be missed.

Fist City- It’s 1983 Grow Up! (Black Tent Press)

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http://blacktentpress.com/item/22/FIST-CITY-Its-1983-GROW-UP-LP-CD

Black Tent Press made a good call when they pressed up 500 copies of “It’s 1983 Grow Up!” by Canadian punkers Fist City. Twelve jet fueled, short and to the point pop songs clouded in a lo-fi basement show sheen is the outcome. Catchy hooks for days with the best coming from “The Creeps” with the simple but effective “you give me the creeps” becoming instantly infectious. The signature punk rock snarling guitar and riotous drumming stay burning throughout the album, If you are a fan of classic groups like the Ramones and Sex Pistols or even newcomers No age you will find something to love about Fist City. The deranged psych surf stylings of “Endless Bummer” and the fist pumping “Never Bored” are just a few of the highlights that make for and endlessly spin worthy lp. 

A Smattering of new releases from Fin Records

buy them here: http://finrecords.com/store

Fin Records is always keeping busy with a full plate of new releases ready to grace your turntable. 3 7”s and one 12” all limited to 500 copies and packaged with the highest of quality with custom inner sleeves and clear wax. Gabriel Mintz is the clear standout of the group of releases. The single features the track Western days a subdued acoustic guitar lays a foundation for a droning ebow and mellow percussion. A bizarre heavily effected guitar make this song unique with some gorgeous vocals to boot. The B side Smunk though is the better of the two tracks with its buzzing electric guitar and tribal drums. The lo-fi haze and haunting doubled vocals create an alluring marvel. The Land of Pines offer up a single reminiscent of the pop punk days of yore. The upbeat dancer Dead Feathers had me nostalgic for Pretty Girls Make Graves even if Land of Pines lack a bit of the post-punk bite they make up for it in other ways. The flipside follow the leader swaps boy girl vocals and treads in REM pop rock land with an extended outro that launches them out into space.The Purrs rotting on the vine single is rock ala weezerish 90s pop with distorted guitars and snotty hooks. The flip again takes the cake on this 7” with the droning psychedelic blur “you, the medicine and me” that rips away the generic rock vibe of “Rotting on the Vine” and swarms the speakers with intense atmosphere. Alternating boy girl vocals cast a mind melting vibe that is intensified by some amazing hypnotic guitar work Spaceman 3 style.Gavin Guss is the lone full-length in the bunch from the former member of Nada Surf chalk full of infectious songwriting and singalong pop rock. The tracks are unpretentious and live in the same beautiful territory that the late great Elliot Smith did grace.

Saint Maybe- Things as they are (Fort Lowell)

buy it here: http://fortlowell.blogspot.com/

http://fortlowell.blogspot.com/

Saint Maybe is a Tucson based supergroup of supporting stars from acts as diverse as Patti Smith and Bob Dylan to Animal Collective and Bob Mould. All that time spent honing their craft with some of the top musicians around really pays dividends for Saint Maybe as they really know how to take a song through it’s paces. “Everything at Once (and more)” is an aptly named opener as it is an epic lift off point for the album as the whole kitchen sink is tossed in to the lengthy blues inflected psychedelic tinged rock song. “Houses for Ghosts” follows things up with a more upbeat alt-country vibe with an incredible warbly outro. Fort Lowell always does a fantastic job with packaging and this release is no exception limited to 500 copies on gray marbled vinyl that is stunning. Fort Lowell is generally a 45 label but has been dabbling in full-lengths with the amazing Luz de Vida comp benefiting victims of the Tucson tragedy. Saint Maybe is a rock work out starring some of the finest musicians around blurring the lines of alt-country and psychedelic blues reminding you of a day when you could still smoke in your dive bar as you watched your favorite band with your beer of choice in hand.

Myty Konkeror-I Miss the Future (Twin Lake Records)

buy it here: http://www.twinlakesrecords.com/mk-store/

Originally released in 2011 Myty Konkeror’s album I Miss the Future was received with acclaim and quickly sold out of the first run of lathe cut lps to wax heads all over the globe. To appease the masses Twin Lakes Records have issued a limited repress of 200 copies on white vinyl. It’s easy to see how the always fashionable WFMU gave airplay to tracks such as “Vasatare” and “Whitewash” with their psychedelic freakouts and feedback drenched shoegazer tendencies. I Miss the Future is adrenaline filled amps to eleven for a large majority of the record. Vocals are sparse, weaved throughout the hard hitting drums and the buzzing guitar workouts that are the true stars of the show. This is a record for those still clinging to My Bloody Valentine and for those who wished the Black Angels had a real drummer. 

The Awful Truth-Birthright

buy it here: http://theawfultruth.bandcamp.com/album/birthright

I admire bands out there living their musical dreams apart from the system of labels. Grinding it out by booking their own shows and scrounging up their own press for an album they paid for all themselves and pressed to wax. I like bands like this even more when they are good. The Awful Truth is that band writing and recording excellent songs that are heart-felt and honest. The wear your heart on your sleeve songwriting tactics are well worn territory that most bands fall drastically short of succeeding at but throughout the album “Birthright” the songs remain solid. They lyrics are smart and the melodies let you fall right into them. If you love the Red House Painters or Damian Jurado give a group that you may never have heard of like the Awful Truth a chance to win you over.