I work stupid times now, so I’m starting my first ever New Releases thread with my post-work beer. Let’s hope it’s a good one. Which it will be, because the following are out:
Jake Xerxes Fussell - When I’m Called
Do you like acoustic mellowness? Then this guy hasn’t put a foot wrong in the past, and I doubt he’ll be starting now:
Remi Wolf - Big Ideas
More pop artists need to realise a) albums don’t need to be 60+ minutes, and b) ballads suck. My favourite pure pop artist of the last 10 years. Hope this keeps the high hit rate going.
Land of Talk - Applause Cheer Boo Hiss: The Definitive Edition
Excellent Canadian indie-rock mini-album gets the traditional 18th anniversary and 3 months deluxe treatment.
Everyone’s favourite Mazzy Star for horny sad boys dream-pop/shoegaze band with a terrible name is back after… uhh… five years? Some time, at any rate. Never actually heard their second album, might give this one a go.
“… less disembodied than its predecessor, more grounded, its tone ranging from the easy warmth of Tom Petty to the steady discernment of Aimee Mann , via a little Laurie Anderson .” (Uncut)
On Nyege Nyege Tapes. I’ve known about the genre ‘bubbling’ since approximately 5:30am this morning and I’m hooked.
From Bandcamp: Since the release of 2021’s ‘Bubbling Inside’ - a collection of Dutch wunderkind Guillermo Schuurman’s most vital early productions, plus a few recent additions - the DJ and producer has been touring incessantly, introducing the wider world to his feet-forward, hybrid style. Rooted in the Netherlands’ Afro-diasporic bubbling sound, it’s an effervescent cocktail of dancehall, electro, EDM and R&B that fizzed to the surface back in the late 1980s, dominating Den Haag’s vibrant club scene in the '90s and '00s… ‘Bubbling Forever’ is another unforgettable arsenal of acidic laser synths, Antillean tambu percussion and swirling vocal snippets, all anchored to an all-important dancehall swing - the backbone of the sound since its earliest days in Den Haag. Like its predecessor, the collection is a wide-reaching set of vintage cuts and twitchy new productions.
Third album from Clairo - this goes further into the 70s soft rock vibes of her last album. She’s ditched Jack Antonoff as producer in favour of Leon Michels of El Michels Affair.
SPEED - Only One Mode
Much hyped Australian modern hardcore band who did that one meme-y song with a flute breakdown. FFO: Drain (and all the other one word name hardcore bands around at the moment), memes
Not sure if it’s a standalone track or leading towards an album but there’s a great new Mica Levi track, their first solo (not band, not soundtrack) release in a while
West London’s Kessoncoda are the duo of drummer Tom Sunney and keyboardist Filip Sowa. Standing firm between acoustic tradition and electronica, they are founded on a unique blend of melodic ostinato-laced piano and unwavering drums…Filip and Tom take influence from rock, electronica, ambient, breakbeat and soundtracks for film and artists such as Squarepusher, Radiohead and Clark all hot-housed in their unique studio set-up, a shed at the bottom of Tom’s garden.
Hannah Schneider - DET
This is very lovely, just 22 and a half minutes long. Would like more.
“melancholic and cinematic alternative pop, skillfully crafted with a fascination with electronic sounds and ambient Nordic landscapes”
Brijean - Macro
Laid back sun-drenched dreaminess.
“the project of percussionist/singer-songwriter Brijean Murphy (the percussive heartbeat for live bands like Mitski, Poolside, and Toro y Moi) and multi-instrumentalist/producer Doug Stuart has moved with ingenuity, fusing psych-pop abstraction with dancefloor sensibilities.”
An overview of new age legend earliest works on Numero Group. It gathers selections from his 1978 debut Celestial Vibration and six additional studio sessions from the era.
Wait, hang on. Is this a sampler for the Segue To Infinity set that came out digitally last year? Looks like that is coming out as a 4xLP this year and this is promo for it. Very confusing from the label.