na: DOOM, Flin Flon, Mono
So much for a quiet first-day-back from Austin! The site is loaded with amazing new releases today — a full run-down after the jump!
DOOM, Born Like This: Today’s #1 big deal new arrival. DOOM is back! His first outing under the Doom moniker since MMM…Food? (which I, for one, did not love), Born Like This is an incredible return to form. Dark, spooky, apocalyptic and vicious, vicious, vicious. A must. And while you’re getting your DOOM on, be sure to check out Hua Hsu’s fantastic Guide to the DOOMography, which runs through all the essential DOOM releases we have on eMusic.
Condo Fucks, Fuckbook: The Condo Fucks are Yo La Tengo, and Fuckbook is an album of covers. Ragged and fun!
Flin Flon, Et Cetera: New from Mark Robinson & co., includes some remixes and new tracks.
Kristeen Young, Music for Strippers, Hookers & the Odd On-Looker: This should very much be my jam, but I’m not quite there yet. Bombastic, theatrical, dramatic, etc. Like Tori Amos fronting Dresden Dolls, or Sisters of Mercy writing a Broadway musical.
Mono, Hymn to the Immortal Wind: Eerie, atmospheric, dreamy, gloomy, pretty and imposing. Fans of being unsettled will love.
A.R. Rahman, iRahman, 15 Essential Tracks: A lot of people really liked Slumdog Millionaire. A.R. Rahman composed the music, but his legend looms large (and rightly so!), so he can suffer the indignity of having provided the (terrific) music for an unbelievably hackneyed, hyper-stylized, emotionally empty and all-around poorly-assembled Best Picture winner. The tracks on this compilation are beautiful, and well worth your time. Unlike a certain motion picture I know. Who Wants to be a Shrillionaire sez I. Anyway. This comp is awesome. And, tangentially, Alex suggested this album should instead be called Top Rahman.
Dan Deacon, Bromst: New Dan Deacon! Michaelangelo Matos sez:
On Bromst, even the willful shifts have a kind of naturalistic grace. “Surprise Stefani” starts with a 1:42 of low-level feedback-as-drone before a sample choir rolls onto the scene, humming in third-generation Beach Boys homage; from there, Deacon flits between lean Krautrock propulsion (turns out the drone evokes “Hallogallo” by Neu!) and a panoply of chiming instruments playing an incredibly pretty melody touched by the steady-state pulsations of Glass or Reich.
Shawn Lee, Soul in the Hole: Also known as “Joe Eats Crow.” I did not like Shawn Lee much before — I thought he was schticky and obnoxious — but man, this record. Man. Dead-on R&B, perfectly produced and lovingly sung. Do me a favor: just try “Too Tired to Sleep.” Do it.
Piero Umiliani, Le Isole Dell Amore: Piero Umiliani is an Italian composer with quite a few notable film soundtracks to his name. This is one of them. The song he is best known for? “Mah Na Mah Na“. If you have not heard that song in a while, listen to it now. I just forced everyone in editorial to listen to it. They love me now. And by “love,” I mean “want to kill.”
Staff Benda Bilili, Tres Fort: It’s unfortunate that all the publicity behind this band is that its members are physically challenged. It seems kind of cheap and exploitative. The fact is that this music is thrilling — really spectacular afropop with R&B highlights. Will appeal to fans of King Sunny Ade, Amadou & Mariam and some of the more melodic stuff on Congotronics 2.
Swan Lake, Enemy Mine: Indiepop supergroup featuring Dan Bejar, Spencer from Wolf Parade and Corey from Frog Eyes. Kyle Anderson sez:
Each participant wrote three of the album’s nine songs, and their individual sensibilities shine through while still allowing for some collective chemistry. Krug’s “Paper Lace” is a folksy acoustic roll that features below-the-surface etchings of guitar feedback and organ hums — as though Krug is trying to keep Bejar’s Destroyer-evil from overtaking the tune. Bejar returns the favor on his “Heartswarm,” which opens with the line “Do my eyes deceive me, or is it truly Springtime in Paris for that piece of shit?” and is everything great about Destroyer (the darkness, the fuzz, the cynicism) with a healthy dose of melancholy from his bandmates.
The Vines, Melodia: Somehow surviving all the ROCKISBACK! nonsense from a few years ago, the Vines soldier on. I was initially dismissive, but I know a lot of people who rep for this band. So what do I know? Kyle Anderson sez:
Now free from a major label, the Vines’ Melodia reverts back to the balance struck on their debut: psych-infused space rock with a bit of buzzsaw hardcore thrown in for good measure. When it hits, it hits hard, as on the punchy drop-D throwback “Get Out” and the jackhammering “Scream.” Not all of the ballads on Melodia work, though “She Is Gone” is a deeply affecting strum-and-cry. “Manger” has a Zeppelin-biting verse that dives out of the way for the sake of a soaring chorus that channels Parklife-era Blur.
The 1990s, Kicks: Indie pop galore! And good indie pop at that. Keith Harris sez:
Not only is “Everybody Please Relax” (“I’ll be a Scientologist by June!”) a fantasy Hollywood excursion in the tradition of Art Brut’s “Moving to L.A.,” but “Giddy Up” makes a hook out of Bartleby’s archetypal slacker koan “I prefer not to” — hell, their mates in Franz Ferdinand seem overachievers by comparison.
AB & Daru, A.W.I.P: I’m loving what I’ve heard of this. Weird, funky production, Sly & the Family Stone-esque, a few songs featuring some nimble MC-ing. I can’t fully rep for the whole thing, but check out the samples — there is definitely some worthwhile material here.
Fridge, Early Output: Early work from Four Tet’s Keiran Hebden. Kinda weirder, a few more rock overtones, worth checking out for Four Tet fans.
P&P Records: WHOAH. Awesome funk/disco 12″s, perfect for burning off those last few downloads of the month. Everything I’ve sampled here sounds incredible.
The Love Band, “Mmm”: Nice, smooth, semi-electronic single. Alex commented “This sounds like it should be on Morr,” and I have to agree.
>. MMM…Food? (which I, for one, did not love)
Not even “Hoe Cakes”?
I would also like to point out that the UK got Röyksopp’s new album yesterday, and it is fantastic. It features guest vocals by Robyn, Lykke Li, Karin Dreijer (of The Knife) and Anneli Drecker. They will also be releasing a second album (Senior) later this year.
Here is the video for the first single off Jr.
http://royksopp.com/videos/happy-up-here
The parts when the fuzzy bass come in and later on with the staccato vocals make me go woozy. Plus real life Space Invaders with Taxi defenders? What’s not to like?
What jumped out to me.
The White Buffalo –melodious but grizzled country tinged folk, great deep, keening voice. I have his other stuff, but this is his first on eMu.
http://www.emusic.com/album/The-White-Buffalo-Hogtied-Revisited-MP3-Download/11411489.html
New Ian Tyson.
http://www.emusic.com/album/Ian-Tyson-Yellowhead-To-Yellowstone-and-other-Love-Stories-MP3-Download/11413033.html
Christian McBride and Angelique Kidjo single. Saw Christian a few weeks back playing bass with Chick Corea and John McLaughlin.
http://www.emusic.com/album/Christian-McBride-Afirika-with-Angelique-Kidjo-MP3-Download/11410282.html
New Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks
http://www.emusic.com/album/Dan-Hicks-And-The-Hot-Licks-Tangled-Tales-MP3-Download/11404349.html
African Rock, Various. No idea where they come from or what, but sounds good.
http://www.emusic.com/album/Various-Artists-P-P-Records-African-Rock-MP3-Download/11410073.html
Classic Protest Songs from Simthsonian/Folkways
http://www.emusic.com/album/Various-Artists-Smithsonian-Folkways-Classic-Protest-Songs-from-Smithsonian-Folkways-MP3-Download/11410690.html
Nice catches, Nanker!
UK also got the new Decemberists. Not gonna lie: I don’t like that band. But… new Decemberists!
Oh that African Rock is part of the P&P drop Joe already mentioned. Nom nom nom.
@porieux: You know, I should really go back to MMM…Food instead of just consistently dismissing it like I have been. I feel like that record is ready to be rediscovered. By me, specifically.
Man, I agree. Slumdog Millionaire SOUNDS wonderful, but as a movie it’s a chaotic shambles with a very sympathetic doe-eyed lead.
Can’t wait to check out Swan Lake and some others.
Long time reader, first time poster
The new Mono is mislabeled as Mono (Rather Interesting). I can’t wait to listen, especially after the description. Love it.
That DOOM hub is fantastic. Stupid question: Is he a vocalist or does he craft the tracks? I assume it’s one or the other, since he and Madlib seem to have different roles in everyone’s description of Madvilliany (one of the best albums of the decade, BTW).
New Job Duty has kept me from really looking at this list yet but. . . Mono is this the Mono of “Great Expectations” (the movie with Robert Deniro) or one of the millions of Monos out there that are not them ??? (the mono I want is this one http://www.last.fm/music/Mono/Formica Blues)
That Condo Fucks record is just ridiculously entertaining. Best banged-out-in-an-afternoon collection of covers ever?
re: the Mahna Mahna song
Cake has an excellent version of this song on emu:
http://www.emusic.com/album/Cake-b-sides-and-rarities-MP3-Download/11118752.html
@Daniel: He does both, though on the new record he mostly uses other people’s beats. But (I’m pretty sure, but someone correct me if I’m wrong) everything on Operation Doomsday was him, and all of the beats on the insanely comprehensive Special Herbs series are Doom originals.
Those P&P singles are cool! The L.J.Waiter track- try the instrumental – how weird and cool is that?
I’m sure this is being written up by somebody but we got a buttload of THE KINKS in:
http://www.emusic.com/artist/The-Kinks-MP3-Download/10561628.html
Nanker, that White Buffulo jumped at me as well. That introduction on the first track is just eerie and moving in the best possible way.
Sara, The Kinks stuff has been here for a long time, unless I’m missing something.
Doom needs to stop trying to ‘sing’ IMHO and work more on his flow. Still some good stuff on there though.
Okay I know we have always had some Kinks on the site, so I was wondering if maybe I just misread something somewhere in my new music alerts. I actually went and researched it and it appears that some of the KOCH label stuff was uploaded this month which is why it popped up as new for me. This included Muswell Hillbillies and Come Dancing with the Kinks.
Either way it made me aware that we have a buttload of the Kinks on emusic, which last time I checked had not been there. So happy day for me!
Yeah Muswell Hillbillies was here and it looks like now there are two of them. Regardless, yeah it’s great stuff! Enjoy.