HAPPY HOLIDAYS from your friends at Lakeshore Record Exchange!

Subway - Subway II

SUBWAY - SUBWAY II

Subway is an instrumental project comprised of two guys (Alan James and Michael Kirkman) and an impressive array of vintage synths. Good stuff here!

Check out my favorite track here:


Get your own copy here.

Going to the dogs...

2010 DELUXE WALL CALENDARS

If you love dogs like we do, this calendar is pretty hard to resist.

I mean, c’mon - can you say no to THIS FACE?:













All proceeds from sales of these calendars will go to our friends at Smilin’ Pitbull Rescue in Buffalo, NY. Available right now in the store, or by mail order here.

Stir the Blood

THE BRAVERY - STIR THE BLOOD

As described by the Bravery’s main man, Sam Endicott:

“We finished touring last summer and immediately returned to the world of writing and recording. There was a new sense of vigor and excitement. We'd never felt more excited to be making music. I wrote songs frantically, all the time. I would go out and come home in the morning with my pockets full of napkins that I'd written lyrics on. The songs were darker, stranger. I have often written about rage and violence, but I never put these things into the music before, like it was something I preferred to pretend didn't exist. But more and more it was bubbling to the surface. I came home one day to find that my long-time girlfriend had attempted to kill herself. The ambulance came and she lived, though she was confined to a mental hospital for a while. This had a profound effect on me. It left me very angry. The songs got darker, some of them even violent (like "Hatefuck" and "Jack-O'-Lantern Man," for example.) Other songs became incredibly intimate, more than I'd been able to write in the past ("I Am Your Skin" is a good example.)

We began working with John Hill. He and I had been friends for a few years, and we would make beats and shit on the side. We had always talked about working together on the next Bravery record and eventually it came true; he and I co-produced the album. The band moved into an abandoned church in the woods of Woodstock, NY. We lived there for a while and just recorded as much as we possibly could. Tracks upon tracks upon tracks; songs became buried under mountains of sonic randomness. Everything under the sun. John brought new textures to the sound, effecting keyboards and guitars and new ways that we'd never thought of. The music became dreamier, more ambient.

Then we returned home and began the "remix" portion of our recording. We dug and dug through the mountains of sound, found the Easter eggs, cut them up, rearranged, manipulated. There are some tracks where no one knows who recorded them. For example, the main Wurlitzer riff in "Sugar Pill"- no one remembers doing that. I just found it in the tracks one day. Songs began to immerge. It felt like getting back to our roots, in a sense. Working in a very haphazard, homemade way. Electronic, but in the basement. There was a great sense of energy, like the first album. But like the second album there is a wider range of style. (For example, slow songs like "Sugar Pill" and "She's So Bendable." "Bendable" was written by Mike [bassist] by the way, and features him on lead vocal.)

During this period we all started to branch out creatively, as well. John Hill and I wrote the song "She Wolf" with Shakira, which became a big international hit. We wrote several other songs for her upcoming album as well, and worked on songs for a number of other artists (none of which have come out yet, so I'm hesitant to name names as of now.) Mike started like ten other bands, all of which he writes and sings for. It ranges from super lo-fi garage to rockabilly to R&B to Hawaiian music. He started a record label, Merrifield Records. Also, he became really involved in film, and made the video for our song "Hatefuck." It's pretty disturbing. I too caught the film bug, having directed the video for "Believe" from our second album. I've started writing for film, and have begun acting in some cameo roles. John Conway built a studio in the Central Coast Wine Country of California, and he and Michael (guitarist) moved there for a while to write and record Michael's solo album. His sound is like a modernized version of the Zombies or the Kinks. Michael and Mike have started a clothing line, making high-end suits.

There is a real sense of renewed energy, of creativity flowing like never before. So we named the album Stir the Blood, a line from the song "Jack-O'-Lantern Man;" it's an expression which means to awake passions, get the blood moving. Also, the name reflects the dark, even violent undercurrent to many of the songs. We used artwork by Polly Morgan, who creates art out of taxidermy animals. A nice return to the bird theme from the first record. The album was mixed by Michael Brauer (My Morning Jacket, Doves, a million other things).”

Check out "Song For Jacob" here:


Get your own copy of "Stir the Blood" here.

Flashmob

VITALIC - FLASHMOB

It took Vitalic's Pascal Arbez-Nicolas over four years to follow up “OK Cowboy,” but it was totally worth the wait.

Check out the track "Still" here:


Get your own copy of "Flashmob" here.

Boys Noize - Power

“Power” is the second album from German producer and DJ Alexander Ridha as Boys Noize, and follows on from the success of his 2007 debut, “Oi Oi Oi.”

Taking inspiration from electro and techno, Ridha delivers a great collection of tracks. The singles 'Jeffer' and 'Starter' are also included. At times, reminds me of Kraftwerk.

Check out the first track, "Gax," here:


Get your own "Power" here.

The Apple And The Tooth

BIBIO - THE APPLE AND THE TOOTH

Acclaimed producer and instrumentalist BIBIO (aka Stephen Wilkinson) follows the album “Ambivalence Avenue” with “The Apple and The Tooth,” a companion piece comprised of four new Bibio tracks and eight remixes from names as diverse as Clark and Wax Stag (aka Rob Lee of Friendly Fires).


Check out the track "Dwrcan (Eskmo Remix)" here:


Get your own copy here.

Exploding Head

A PLACE TO BURY STRANGERS - EXPLODING HEAD

A Place To Bury Strangers is a Brooklyn-based trio consisting of Oliver Ackermann, Jay Space, and Jono Mofo. “Exploding Head,” their second album and their Mute Records debut, is a crashing, smashing, gorgeous wall of noise. Dark shoegaze at tits finest!


Check out the first single, "In Your Heart," here:


Get your own copy of "Exploding Head" here.

Ashes Grammar

A SUNNY DAY IN GLASGOW - ASHES GRAMMAR

A Sunny Day In Glasgow is back with the follow-up to 2007’s “Scribble Mural Comic Journal.” The band, fronted by identical twin sisters Lauren and Robin Daniels and masterminded by their brother Ben, is actually from Philadelphia (where I have heard it is always sunny). The new album is a 22 track monster, full of blissful shoegazey noise. My first listen was on a stereo that had its treble turned all the way up (thanks, Dan), and I’m pretty sure I might have brain damage now.

Check out my favorite track, "Shy," here:


Get your own copy of "Ashes Grammar" here.

Valium in the sunshine...

MAPS - TURNING THE MIND

Finally! A new Maps album!!
The long-awaited, much anticipated follow-up to “We Can Create” (shortlisted for the 2007 Mercury Prize) has arrived!
James Chapman explains, "’Turning The Mind’ is essentially an album which explores themes related to the human mind and the way certain stimuli, particularly chemical, can affect the mind in different ways."

Check out the track "Valium in the Sunshine" here:


Get your own copy of "Turning the Mind" here.

A-ha!

A-HA - FOOT OF THE MOUNTAIN

“Foot Of The Mountain” is A-ha’s ninth studio album since the band formed a whopping 25 years ago. The Norwegian trio continues to make engaging, catchy pop music, and “Foot Of The Mountain” marks a return to the classic pop sound that made them one of the biggest acts in the world.

Check out the title track here:


Get your copy of "Foot Of The Mountain" here.

Love 2

AIR - LOVE 2

Jean-Benoit Dunckel and Nicolas Godin, better known as Air, have returned. Teaming up with drummer Joey Waronker, the French duo have released their fifth album. Their first self-produced effort, “Love 2” is a return to the classic Air sound that was somewhat lacking on “Pocket Symphony.”

Check out my favorite track here:


Get your own copy of "Love 2" here.

This Is for the Whites in Your Eyes

"When listening to Denmark’s Choir of Young Believers, it’s hard not to imagine an army of white-clad singers with arms outstretched, their voices raised in holy polyphony—in fact, the Danish group is the brainchild of one 26-year-old Jannis Noya Makrigiannis. For years, Jannis moved in the underground circles of the Copenhagen indie scene. After the breakup of his old band in 2006, he moved to the Greek island of Samos and began developing his own solo material. Jannis returned to Copenhagen and, gathering musicians and friends around him, formed Choir of Young Believers, an orchestral-pop project marked by magisterial melodies, dark lyrical concerns, and a healthy dose of cathedral-grade reverb."

Check out my favorite track here:


Get your own here.

Back to the 80s

LADYHAWKE - LADYHAWKE (SPECIAL EDITION)

Ladyhawke (AKA New Zealand girl Pip Brown) was raised in the 80's with a musical family and grew up listening to the likes of Stevie Nicks, Deep Purple and Joan Jett. Beginning as the drummer in a school band, Pip plays four different instruments on her debut album. She moved to Sydney a few years back and then moved to London in 2007 where she wrote and recorded the album. Pip wrote, arranged and played on all the songs on the album working alongside several guest producers. The newly available special edition includes two bonus tracks and three acoustic tracks.

Check out my favorite track, "Professional Suicide," here:


Take your own time machine back to the 80s here.

They're back back!

GUS GUS - 24/7

Gus Gus have released their seventh studio album, their first for the Kompakt label. Consisting of 6 songs spanning over 50 minutes, “24/7” is a minimal techno-house tour de force.

Check out my favorite track, "On The Job," here:


Get your Gus Gus "24/7" here.

Ambivalence Avenue

BIBIO - AMBIVALENCE AVENUE

Bibio’s Stephen Wilkinson creates a beautiful blend of organic and synthetic sounds on his Warp Records debut, “Ambivalence Avenue.”

Check out one of my favorite tracks here:


Get your own copy of "Ambivalence Avenue" here.

Datarock - Red

The Norwegian duo DATAROCK is back with “RED,” the follow-up to their acclaimed 2007 debut, “DATAROCK DATAROCK.”

The 80’s worshipping continues, with a song comprised entirely of Talking Heads lyrics (“True Stories”), and a song about Molly Ringwald (“Molly”).

Check out my favorite track, "Not Me," here:


Get your own copy of "Red" here.

A Dense Swarm Of Ancient Stars

I MONSTER - A DENSE SWARM OF ANCIENT STARS
Jarrod Gosling and Dean Honer met in the record section of the Sheffield City Library in the early 1990s. They would later become I Monster, specializing in psychedelic, electronic-tinged pop confections that are often based around samples from easy listening records and other unlikely sources. Their new release is “A Dense Swarm Of Ancient Stars.”

Check out my favorite track, "A Pod Is Waiting," here:


Get your own copy of "A Dense Swarm Of Ancient Stars" here.

I'm In Love With A German Record Label

KOMPAKT - TOTAL 10

Cologne, Germany based Kompakt records celebrates its tenth year in business with the double-CD release "Total 10." Specializing in microhouse and minimal techno, Kompakt has been described by music critic Simon Reynolds as the "label that's contributed more than any other to Germany's dominance of electronic dance music this decade."

Check out my favorite track here:


Get your own copy of Kompakt's "Total 10" collection here.

The Bachelor

PATRICK WOLF - THE BACHELOR
“The Bachelor” is the fourth studio release from Patrick Wolf. Originally titled The Battle, Wolf enlists the help of noise terrorist Alec Empire, actress Tilda Swinton as well as Eliza Carthy and Matthew Herbert to create a magical and individual album. An intelligent, versatile and textured record, this demonstrates why Wolf is lauded as one of the last great British musical hopes.

Check out the single, "Vulture," here:


Get your own copy of "The Bachelor" here.

Don't hate the auto-tune

DISCOVERY - LP

Discovery is a nifty pop / electronic collaboration between Rostam Batmanglij of Vampire Weekend and Wes Miles of Ra Ra Riot. LP features guest vocals from Ezra Koening of Vampire Weekend and Angel Deradoorian of Dirty Projectors.

Check out my favorite track, "Osaka Loop Line," here:


Get your own copy of "LP" here.

The Octopus Project

Austin, TX's The Octopus Project have released the follow-up to their acclaimed "Hello, Avalanche." "Golden Beds" is an EP, and includes 5 cheerful tunes and 7 videos. Described by Rolling Stone as "like Stereolab with happy feet."

Check out the track "Wet Gold" here:


Get your own copy of "Golden Beds" here.

2009 Mercury Prize Shortlist announced

...and the nominees are:

* Bat For Lashes – Two Suns
* Florence and the Machine – Lungs
* Friendly Fires – Friendly Fires
* Glasvegas – Glasvegas
* Kasabian – West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum
* La Roux – La Roux
* Led Bib – Sensible Shoes
* Lisa Hannigan – Sea Sew
* Speech Debelle – Speech Therapy
* Sweet Billy Pilgrim – Twice Born Men
* The Horrors – Primary Colours
* The Invisible – The Invisible

The Mercury Prize is an annual award for the best album from the United Kingdom or Ireland. The Mercury Prize has a reputation for being awarded to outside chances rather than the favorites. Last year's prize went to Elbow, despite almost certainty that Burial would be named the winner. My vote for 2009 - The Horrors!

New Mew!

MEW - NO MORE STORIES EP

The “No More Stories” EP is a sneak preview of Mew’s upcoming album of the same name. It contains two album tracks, and three non-album tracks. The “No More Stories” album wll be released by Columbia Records on August 25th.

Check out my favorite track, "Introducing Palace Players," here:


Get your own copy of the "No More Stories" EP here.

Fantasy Black Channel

LATE OF THE PIER – FANTASY BLACK CHANNEL

I actually think it’s a GOOD thing when a reviewer’s first words are, “My first reaction is, what on earth is this?” Garnering many such reviews from befuddled critics who just don’t get it, Late of the Pier is an intoxicating blend of glam, psychedelia, new wave, dancepunk, metal and experimental synth-pop. One of my favorite albums of the past year – I love it.

Check out the track "The Enemy Are the Future" here:


Get your own copy of "Fantasy Black Channel" here.

Beacons of Ancestorship

TORTOISE – BEACONS OF ANCESTORSHIP

After a five year absence, Tortoise returns with their sixth studio album. "Beacons of Ancestorship" includes elements of techno, punk, electro, lo-fi noise, cut up beats, and heavily processed synths.

Check out my favorite track, "Monument Six One Thousand," here:


Get your own copy of "Beacons of Ancestorship" here.

The Very Best Of Neil Diamond

SUPER FURRY ANIMALS – DARK DAYS/LIGHT YEARS

Welsh psychedelic pop legends Super Furry Animals have just released their ninth album, 'Dark Days/Light Years.” Though previous albums have seen the band experiment with extra instrumentation, this release is full of songs based more on poppy hooks than layered composition. Franz Ferdinand guitarist Nick McCarthy provides guest vocals – in German! – for the Kraftwerk-esque track “Inaugural Trams.”

Check out my favorite track, "The Very Best Of Neil Diamond," here:


Get your own copy of "Dark Days/Light Years" here.

Begone Dull Care

JUNIOR BOYS – BEGONE DULL CARE

The Junior Boys’ third album takes its name from a film collaboration between Norman McLaren and Oscar Peterson. Like their previous efforts, “Begone Dull Care” is subtle, sleek electronica – quite listenable, and thoroughly enjoyable.

Check out the track "Parallel Lines" here:


Get your own copy here.

Werewolf!

EELS - HOMBRE LOBO

It's been four years since Mark Oliver Everett’s Eels released “Blinking Lights and Other Revelations,” and now they're finally ready to come back.
On June 2, Vagrant released the new Eels album, “Hombre Lobo.” The band recorded the 12-song collection in frontman Mark Oliver Everett's studio.

Check out my favorite track, "Fresh Blood," here:


Get your own "Hombre Lobo" here.

Primary Colours

THE HORRORS – PRIMARY COLOURS

Primary Colours is The Horrors’ first album for XL. Produced by Geoff Barrow (Portishead) and Chris Cunningham (Aphex Twin, Bjork), Primary Colours is reminiscent of Echo & the Bunnymen, Jesus and Mary Chain, the Chameleons, Joy Division, and lots of other great stuff that I like!

Check out the track "Three Decades" here:


Get your own copy of "Primary Colours" here.

They're baaaaack!

MISS KITTIN AND THE HACKER - TWO

Miss Kittin (Caroline Herve) and the Hacker (Michel Amato) met in Grenoble in the early 90s. Their first collaborative album, FIRST ALBUM, helped to spawn the electro-pop movement. The duo has now reunited for the aptly named TWO on Kittin's own label, Nobody’s Bizzness.

Check out the album opener here:


Get your own "Two" here.

Balkan Beat Box Remixed

BALKAN BEAT BOX – NU MADE (REMIXES)

Balkan Beat Box is steeped with an intense lifetime of research into their own non-Western roots as well as other cultures. A quasi-circus event, they perform with a core of 6 musicians, collaborating with artists from Bulgaria, Morocco, Spain, Israel, and Turkey who draw on a variety of styles from around the world. Their latest offering is a collection of remixes from their most recent album, “Nu Med.”
Check out my favorite track, "Adir Adirim," here:


Get your own copy of "Nu Made" here.

Early Works For Me If It Works For You 2

DNTEL – EARLY WORKS FOR ME IF IT WORKS FOR YOU II

Dntel is a solo electronic project from Jimmy Tamborello, who is probably better known as half of The Postal Service. “Early Works For Me if It Works For You II” is a three CD set compiling the first two DNTEL releases on Phthalo (remastered), as well as a third disc of unreleased material, composed slightly before the third Dntel album, “Life is Full of Possibilities,” was released on Plug Research.

Check out my favorite track, "In Which Our Hero Begins His Long and Arduous Quest":


Get your own here.

Sounds of the Universe

DEPECHE MODE - SOUNDS OF THE UNIVERSE

In 1987, I purchased my first album – Depeche Mode’s “Music for the Masses.” I listened to it non-stop, until the tape was warped from my constant rewinding (side two was much shorter than side one, meaning you had to rewind to get back to the beginning of side one after the album was over).

Twenty-two years later, I am still a fan. “Sounds of the Universe,” Depeche Mode’s twelfth studio album, is one of their finest, combining elements of their later sound (“Ultra” era) with the classic synth heavy sound of early DM (“Some Great Reward” era).

Check out my favorite track, "Fragile Tension," here:


Get your own "Sounds of the Universe" here.

Fantasies

METRIC – FANTASIES

Metric’s fourth album, “Fantasies,” is their finest to date. Each song is its own little individual gem, but the whole thing fits together perfectly too. This is a great pop album - “Fantasies” is glossy and slick – and poised to become the perfect soundtrack to my summer.

Check out one of my favorite tracks, "Sick Muse," here:


Get your own "Fantasies" here.

The Human Lea- er, Juan MacLean

THE JUAN MACLEAN – THE FUTURE WILL COME

John MacLean got his start as the guitarist for Six Finger Satellite. He later met James Murphy (founder of the DFA label) and released a solo album (“Less Than Human”) as The Juan MacLean. The follow-up, “The Future Will Come,” deftly combines the cool electro-disco sound that DFA is famous for, and male/female vocals (from MacLean and “mystery woman” Nancy Whang) that are reminiscent of Human League.

Check out the track "The Simple Life" here:


Get your own copy of "The Future Will Come" here.

Happy Easter!

It's Blitz!

YEAH YEAH YEAHS – IT’S BLITZ!

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs just got a whole lot more interesting (to me, anyway). This time around, Nick Zinner added his vintage Arp to the mix. That added element gives the Yeah Yeah Yeahs a more new wave, disco electro sound - exacly what I’ve always thought Karen O’s voice was perfectly suited for.

Check out my favorite track, "Zero," here:


Get your own copy of "It's Blitz" here.

Bromst

DAN DEACON – BROMST
Unlike the completely electronic "Spiderman Of The Rings," Dan Deacon’s latest release, "Bromst," is a mixture of acoustic and mechanical instruments, samples, and electronics. The intricate and complex parts are woven together into a rich, dense, noise pop that has become Deacon's signature sound.

Check out the track "Snookered" here:


Get your own copy of "Bromst" here.

Roy K. Sopp, Jr.

ROYKSOPP - JUNIOR

First, a pronunciation lesson: it’s ROYK-SOPP, not ROY-SKOPP. Okay then, now that that’s all cleared up...
“Junior” is Royksopp's most accomplished release yet, an inspired and ambitious musical endeavor full of pure pop hooks and dancefloor slammers. Royksopp enlisted the help of lots of superstar guest vocalists including Robyn, Lykke Li, Karim Dreijer of The Knife, and fellow Norwegian Annell Drecker (who appeared on Royksopp's debut, “Melody A.M.”).

Check out the track "Happy Up Here":


Get your own copy of "Junior" here.

Insurgentes

STEVEN WILSON – INSURGENTES

Steven Wilson's debut solo album, Insurgentes, was recorded over two years in studios in Mexico City, Japan, and Israel. Wilson is a member of several bands including Porcupine Tree, Blackfield, No-Man and Bass Communion, but explains that "when I began writing these songs, I quickly realized that they would be best suited to an album under my own name. It was an intuitive, almost unconscious writing process that resulted in a kind of `poetry of melancholy.’"

Check out my favorite track, "Harmony Korine," here:


Get your own copy of "Insurgentes" here.

Nightdrive With You

ANORAAK – NIGHTDRIVE WITH YOU
“Nightdrive With You” is the 2009 album from 80s-inspired French Electro act Anoraak. It’s cool electro-pop along the same lines as Hot Chip, M83, Cut Copy and Neon Neon.

Check out the track "N.ever E.nding R.omance D.isaster" here:


Get your own copy of "Nightdrive With You" here.

Epic Garden Music

SAD LOVERS AND GIANTS – EPIC GARDEN MUSIC

Sad Lovers and Giants originally formed in 1981 and produced a psychedelic post-punk sound typical of the times. Obvious comparisons would be the Chameleons, early Cure, and Simple Minds. This CD includes the early singles as well as the album itself, making it a perfect document of the band at this time, or a great introduction for the uninitiated.

Check out the track "Imagination" here:


Get your own copy of "Epic Garden Music" here.

Cranes

CRANES – CRANES
Cranes continue their transition from the guitar-based shoegaze sound of 1991’s “Wings Of Joy” to the current keyboard heavy ambient electronica of their ninth studio album, “Cranes.” Of course the constant throughout is the eerie sound of vocalist Alison Shaw.

Check out my favorite track, "High and Low," here:


Get your own copy of "Cranes" here.

Hush

ASOBI SEKSU – HUSH
Asobi Seksu’s “Hush” is their third album as a band, and their first for the Polyvinyl label. Now a duo, Yuki Chikudate and James Hanna retain their shoegaze aesthetic, though overall “Hush” offers a bit less distortion and reverb, and showcase a bit more of Chikudate’s ethereal, chorusy vocal talents.

Check out my favorite track, "Mehnomae," here:


Get your own copy of "Hush" here.

I'm A Slacker

OK, so SubPop's Dntel "Dumb Luck" remix contest deadline was about two years ago, and I just got around to doing mine. Obviously a little late for the fame and glory, but since it's done, here's the greenmachine remix for your listening pleasure:


Feel like making your own? Contest details and the link to download the vocal track are here.

It's Tangerine Dreamy

ZOMBI – SPIRIT ANIMAL
Steve Moore and Anthony Paterra are the Pittsburgh-based duo Zombi. They create epic, synth-laden progressive space rock. If it were 1975, they’d probably be touring with Genesis. Their new album, “Spirit Animal,” adds guitars to the mix. It’s prog-a-licious!

Check out my favorite track, "Spirit Animal," here:



Get your own "Spirit Animal" here.

Bubblegum Lemonade

BUBBLEGUM LEMONADE – DOUBLEPLUSGOOD
“Doubleplusgood” is the aptly titled full-length debut from one-man Scottish indie-pop project Bubblegum Lemonade. Featuring lots of 12-string Rickenbacker, the tunes feel strongly 60s influenced, but also incorporate elements of 80s and 90s jangly pop. With only two tracks edging over the three-minute mark, “Doubleplus” is irresistibly full of concise, well-crafted pop gems.

Check out my favorite track, "Last Time I Saw Andrew," here:

Get your own "Doubleplusgood" here.

Gutter Tactics

DALEK – GUTTER TACTICS
Newark, NJ’s Dalek creates some of the sludgiest, bleakest soundscapes I’ve ever heard. A perfect follow-up to 2007’s “Abandoned Language,” “Gutter Tactics” makes The Bug sound like children’s music.

Check out my favorite track, "Armed With Krylon," here:


Get your own copy of "Gutter Tactics" here.