[ aquarius records catalogue — C ]

Showing results 1401 through 1450 of 2775.

CLEANERS FROM VENUSMidnight Cleaners(Captured Tracks)lp$ 16.98

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY.

CLEANERS FROM VENUSMy Back Wages(Captured Tracks)lp$ 16.98

CLEANERS FROM VENUSNumber Thirteen(Captured Tracks)lp$ 16.98

CLEANERS FROM VENUSOn Any Normal Monday(Captured Tracks)lp$ 16.98

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY.

CLEANERS FROM VENUSUnder Wartime Conditions(Burger Records)cassette$ 5.98

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY.

CLEANERS FROM VENUSVol. 1(Captured Tracks)3cd$ 33.00

Originally released as a deluxe 5lp boxset for this year's Record Store Day, this amazing collection, gathering up the first three albums from this seminal eighties indie pop outfit, is now also available as a triple cd set (and as individual lps, which we'll list/review soon), and reveals once again, to a whole new audience hopefully, what an amazing and influential band Cleaners From Venus really were. Bandleader Martin Newell, who was bitter after some bad record label experiences with his previous band, became obsessed with doing everything himself (a real DIY band for sure), which meant recording records on a 4 track in his bedroom, dubbing the tapes himself, and releasing those tapes in super limited editions, of course distributed by Newell himself, which probably has a lot do with why these guys didn't get more attention than they did. But masterful pop music like this with such incredible songwriting was bound to work its way to the surface, and this stuff did manage to make its way into the ears of obsessive pop nerds, and quickly attained a cultlike status, and for good reason. Listening to this stuff now, it's easy to hear what a huge influence these guys had, and that their lo-fi pop was years ahead of groups like Ariel Pink, who would trawl the same sonic territory, albeit a bit more ironically. Jangly outsider pop, with strange homebrewed production weirdness, bizarre edits, twisted little intros and outros, brief snippets of conversations, sudden fade outs, that inexplicably fade right back in, the programmed drums, gorgeous vocal harmonies, hooks galore, definitely a product of the early '80s, with a different production and a less skewed take on pop, it's not hard to imagine this stuff on the radio or on MTV alongside groups like the Style Council or Human League or any of the other bands popular at the time, but Newell's Cleaners had it's own twisted take on the sound of the time, channeling Elvis Costello, XTC and the rest, but transforming that commercial pop sound into something much more personal and urgent, and without any restrictions, or any hopes of mainstream popularity, Newell never shied away from trying anything, no matter how weird it may have seemed, and the results definitely speak for themselves. The first record, 1981's Blow Away Your Troubles, is the rawest of the bunch, and might still be our favorite, it's definitely the weirdest, with even this meticulously assembled reissue replete with those weird edits and damaged tape dropouts, all of which merely adds to the mood and mystery of the music. The second record, 1982's On Any Normal Monday, might be objectively the best record though, for a home recorded album, it sound incredible, still rife with all sorts of weirdness, whether that meant dubbed out snares, or strange spoken word segments, thick sinewy basslines or xylophone melodies, the sound is lush, and so fully realized, and the songs, catchy and meticulously crafted, in different circumstances, another instance where some of these songs definitely could have been hits. The final record in the set, Midnight Cleaners, also from 1982, found the band's sound shifting once again, the vibe a bit more new wavey, the recording still polished, but but a bit more raw than On Any Normal Monday, still warped and weird, and reminding us a LOT of Guided By Voices, who seemed to fancy themselves a sort of imaginary Cleaners From Venus, a lost unsung genius pop band, GBV would after all manufacture a sort of faux Britishness that definitely approaches the Cleaners dreamy eighties pop sound, especially on Midnight Cleaners. Some of the songs here had us seriously thinking GBV might owe these guys some heartfelt thanks, if not actual royalties. We had been subsisting for years on a worn out mix tape of Cleaners tracks, so it's thrilling to have all these songs in one place, many of which we're only hearing now for the first time, and we have been gleefully immersing ourselves in The Cleaners From Venus' twisted pop world, and we're hoping that the designation that this is in fact volume one, means that volume two is on the way...

CLEANERS FROM VENUSVol. 2(Captured Tracks)4cd$ 45.00

The first volume, collecting the early, long out of print works of this seminal eighties indie pop combo, was originally released in the beginning of 2012, as a five lp box set for Record Store Day. The box quickly went out of print, but the triple cd version surfaced soon after and immediately, and ever since, became what might be the most regularly listened to record in the shop. Those three Cleaners From Venus albums, 1981's Blow Away Your Troubles, 1982's On Any Normal Monday and Midnight Cleaners, also from 1982, are in heavy rotation, pretty much everyone at aQ, customers too we're guessing, know those albums by heart, backwards and forwards, and the crazy thing is, somehow, we're still not sick of them. And we can tell you right now, when we first heard about this Cleaners From Venus reissue campaign, the only thing more exciting than the impending release of those first three albums, was that it was just volume one, which meant to us, even way back then, that there was a second volume coming. And finally, here it is! And it's not surprisingly, just as good as the first set, sonically, songwriting, everything, perfectly taking up right where the first volume left off, a sprawling collections of homebrewed outsider indie pop, fuzzy, jangly, catchy, quirky, lo-fi, this collection spanning the years 1983-1985 for the three proper albums included, but this time around there's a bonus disc of early Cleaners jams, and some Pre-Cleaners tracks as well, going all the way back to 1967!! Wow. Before we get to the records themselves, we figured we oughta give everyone a refresher on the band itself, its history and influence, and we probably can't say it any better than we already did in our review of Volume 1: Bandleader Martin Newell, who was bitter after some bad record label experiences with his previous band, became obsessed with doing everything himself (a real DIY band for sure), which meant recording records on a 4 track in his bedroom, dubbing the tapes himself, and releasing those tapes in super limited editions, of course distributed by Newell himself, which probably has a lot do with why these guys didn't get more attention than they did. But masterful pop music like this with such incredible songwriting was bound to work its way to the surface, and this stuff did manage to make its way into the ears of obsessive pop nerds, and quickly attained a cultlike status, and for good reason. Listening to this stuff now, it's easy to hear what a huge influence these guys had, and that their lo-fi pop was years ahead of groups like Ariel Pink, who would trawl the same sonic territory, albeit a bit more ironically. Jangly outsider pop, with strange homebrewed production weirdness, bizarre edits, twisted little intros and outros, brief snippets of conversations, sudden fade outs, that inexplicably fade right back in, the programmed drums, gorgeous vocal harmonies, hooks galore, definitely a product of the early '80s, with a different production and a less skewed take on pop, it's not hard to imagine this stuff on the radio or on MTV alongside groups like the Style Council or Human League or any of the other bands popular at the time, but Newell's Cleaners had it's own twisted take on the sound of the time, channeling Elvis Costello, XTC and the rest, but transforming that commercial pop sound into something much more personal and urgent, and without any restrictions, or any hopes of mainstream popularity, Newell never shied away from trying anything, no matter how weird it may have seemed, and the results definitely speak for themselves. There might not be too much point in going through these records one by one, or track by track, all three of the albums proper fall so close chronologically to the first set, that it's easy to imagine these having been bundled with the first volume for a massive seven disc set, and thus, sonically, many of these tracks sound like they could have been plucked from any of those records on the first set, which then got us wondering if the dates of the records might not even necessarily correlate with the songs' creations. As in perhaps Newell, like most obsessive home recorders, just amassed a huge collection of songs, recording day and night, stacks of tapes all over the house, recording more and more and more, only then later, gathering up songs and assembling them into 'albums', which really seems much more likely, especially listening to some of the tracks here on the second volume. We'd focus on some of the gems here, but there are literally SO many. That are SO catchy. But if you doubt, check out the first sound sample below, right out of the gate, we're in lo-fi jangle pop bliss, "Renee (Who's Driving Your Car)" is so catchy, the recording so warm and fuzzy, the vocals all echoey, hooks galore, lo-fi, but still lush and psychedelic and so perfectly poppy. And that track basically sets things in motion, with song after song of crazy catchy jangle, fuzzy new wave-y poppiness, and home brewed bedroom folk. Not to mention plenty of damaged and demented mad scientist WTF fractured pop weirdness, all perfectly balanced, careening madly from one to the other, some lush bit of balladry, leading into a bizarre tape experiment leading into some super rocking classic sounding power pop leading into some woozy new wave and on and on it goes. We can't help but be reminded of Guided By Voices, besides sharing a similar aesthetic, being heavily beholden to classic British pop, having a penchant for serious WTF pop moments, but yet being capable of conjuring up impossibly catchy hooks, both groups have a huge amount of songs, and often recycle melodies, so much so that you can hear one song, and be convinced you've heard it before, but only because it shares certain elements with another song you're heard a million times. But that shared DNA does not dilute the power or originality of these songs at all, just the opposite, if anything it links them all together, into a strangely insular soundworld that is all Newells', a world in which Cleaners From Venus could do no wrong,s and could do anything they wanted. Which is exactly what they did. So goddamn great. And destined to become, like Volume 1, another of the most played records in the store! At least until volume THREE!!! Comes packaged in a ten panel fold out digipak style sleeve, with a huge booklet, tons of liner notes, rare photos, and really great and amusing notes about the tracks on the fourth disc of early archival material!

CLEANING WOMENAelita - The Queen Of Mars( BV2 Productions)cd$ 17.98

The return of the Finland's premiere troupe of music making, crossdressers, who perform all gussied up, you know in makeup, housecoats, stockings and everything, and whose instruments of choice are modified and mic'ed up clothes racks and every day household appliances. That's right, it's the Cleaning Women, whose first record was a runaway hit here at AQ a few months back, so we're super psyched to be listing the even better follow up "Aelita - The Queen Of Mars", a record inspired, according to the liner notes, by the Russian film "Aelita" directed by Jakov Protazanov in 1924. And some of it definitely sounds like it... Sonically similar to their debut, bit somehow more varied and fully realized, "Aelita" is a dizzying schizophrenic travelogue through a million different musical personalities. the opener is a brooding Arabesque soundscape, all soaring strings and playful percussion, Eastern guitars and strange fuzz guitars. Then all of a sudden, the second track kicks in, a dark brooding bass heavy groove, with whispered vocals, and lo and behold the Cleaning Woman sound a little like Tool, albeit with some strange homemade percussion, but just like a Tool track it builds to a super heavy chorus and then slips back into a moody groove. Hot on the heels of that track is a sort of croony Spaghetti Western style number peppered with gypsy strings and angular guitar. Later on they bust out some super heavy mathy shit that sounds like it could be NoMeansNo or Victim's Family. But for the Cleaning Women, it's all about rhythms, so every track is rife with all sort of rhythms. Some tracks are defined by the rhythm, some are nothing but the rhythms, others incorporate the rhythms subtlely into the bigger picture. But no matter how they do it, each track is a delight. Dizzying and confusional, wild and weird as fuck. The best tracks are the ones where everything drops out and the band go completely nuts on their various rhythmic devices, which must be amazing to see live, it's like the Blue Man Group crossed with Stomp, only if they were transvestites, and were meaner, and less blue, and WAY more punk, armed with fuzz guitars and a stage full of washing machines and dishwashers. Needless to say, SO recommended!

CLEANING WOMENPulsator(BV2)cd$ 15.98

INSANE FINNISH MUSIC ALERT!!! Yeah sure, Circle can get pretty darn weird, and Aavikko are completely nuts, and of course Keukhot definitely exists in some seriously damaged alternate universe, and that whole forest folk scene, Avarus, Uton, Anaksimandros, Tivol, and all the rest, very very strange indeed. But then there's the Cleaning Women. A power trio of crossdressing Finns, makeup, housecoats, stockings, the whole bit, you know, CLEANING WOMEN, who play an arsenal of customized clotheshorses, drying racks, and household appliances. Woah. That would almost be enough right there, but thankfully these sort-of-ladies have the chops to back it up. But how to describe what this sounds like is a whole 'nother problem. The core sound is the insane processed percussion produced from wildly beating on the mic'ed cleaning implements. Funky and chaotic. Like some sort of gamelan gone haywire. Complex rhythm and polyrhythms all over the place, the beats changing pitch sometimes mid beat. Totally wild. Definitely some nods to the manic energy of Aavikko. But then add in some super distorted fuzz bass, some squelchy analog synths, some crunchy garage rock guitar here and there, and then some truly strange very dramatic crooned vocals, in Finnish of course, sounding like some mix of Circle's Mika Ratto and the vocalist from Midnight Oil, weaving theatrically in and out of the dense tribal rhythmscapes. And while the record hews pretty close to a maniacal rhythms / fuzzy riffage combo, the songs and sounds are pretty dang varied, from groovey blown out percussive dirges, to fuzzy metallic sambas, weird tribal chants, to weird blurpy Beefheartian jams, to killer electro analog grooves. And the opening track "Ricewestern" might just be the catchiest transvestite tribal kitchensink psychedelic fuzz jam ever!!

CLEANING WOMENU(Cobra)cd$ 17.98

We're a sucker for pretty much anything Finnish. The weirder the better. So when we discovered Cleaning Women, a trio of Finns, who dressed up like ladies, housecoats, stockings, the whole nine yards, and who performed on an assemblage of customized kitchen appliances and household items, stoves, ironing boards. drying racks, clothes horses, we were sold before we even heard a note. Luckily they had the music to back up their eccentric presentation, a strange chaos of wild percussion, blown out fuzz bass, and crooned vocals. Their second record was a soundtrack of sorts, and ended up being way more varied and schizophrenic than their debut, and once again, for record number three, the simply titled U, they've shifted gears again, and really hit their stride. Where as before, it seemed like the music was secondary to the concept, here, the music is dark and brooding and hypnotic, poppy and melodic, minimal and mesmerizing, they even seemed to have ditched the drag, if the band photo is any indication, they're still glamorous, and odd looking, but in a sort of Euro vampire glam rock way. But the music. Wow. Everything we loved about the first two records distilled and compressed into something magical. The opening track is like a super minimal junkyard Circle, with its endlessly repeating main riff, the clanky percussion, the woozy seasick rhythm, there's even a creepy interlude partway through, with tolling bells, booming metallic rumbles and mysterious reverbed whistles, before the band launch back into it, this time adding vocals, the Circle comparison becoming even more apt, like an industrial Circle covering Morricone or something? However you slice it, it's amazing. The second track almost sounds like an analog Kraftwerk, with it's blooping bassline, and motorik melody, mix in a little twangy guitar, swirling synths, super cinematic and dramatic. The third track is a pop gem, with it's dreamy vocal melody, and softly propulsive rhythm, and pizzicato strings, it almost reminds us of Uz Jsme Doma, but way more mellow and shimmery. "The Miners' Song" sounds like a warped Pink Floyd outtake, until the main riff kicks in, fuzzy and fierce and downright heavy, and suddenly we're back in hypnorock territory, but with a distinctly playful pop edge. The second half of the record is more of the same, from super minimal bowed string dronescapes, rife with surfy twang and delicate shimmer, to strange otherworldly cabaret pop, with xylophone like percussion, and cool Eastern melodies, to clattery math pop workouts that sound like some mad mix of Nomeansno and Sparks, to the eight minute closer "Scythians", which again veers into Circle territory, spidery looped melodies over simple motorik rhythms, reverbed and softly woozy, before shifting gears, introducing chanted vocals and slipping into a super dramatic slow build, culminating in a cool hauntingly harmonized choral outro. Absolutely WAY recommended.

CLEANSESuccumb / The Prince(Hospital)lp$ 16.98

CLEAR BLUE SKYs/t(Akarma)cd$ 16.98

More obscure '70s stoner stuff here. Clear Blue Sky made but one LP, this 1970 Vertigo label release now reissued in one of those miniature-gatefold-LP-styled cd jackets by Akarma. It's heavy, psychedelic, blues-based rock in the classic British power trio format. Boisterous, wild, trippy jamming from three eager eighteen-year-olds, bolstered by weird prog elements (odd changes, some flute) and studio trickery, such as the glitchy bit that occurs early in part II of "Journey To The Inside Of The Sun". They do a track entitled "Sweet Leaf" but it bears no relation to Black Sabbath's song of the same name, aside from the inspiration we'd suppose -- tea, right? Fans of early Sabbath (whose record label they shared) still may well dig this, though it's rather more like the not-so-doomy, less-metallic likes of Budgie, Blue Cheer and Cream (though not quite yet in that league). And, as with so many of our favorite records, this boasts Roger Dean cover art featuring a castle and flying dragons, that looks a bit like he did it when he was 12 years old but is actually pretty great.

CLEAR HORIZONs/t(Kranky)cd$ 14.98

Simply put, Flying Saucer Attack kicked ass. This was especially true for their first couple of albums and their almost endless amount of singles. FSA's oversaturated guitars and breathy Nick Drake-ish vocals made the band sound like the unkempt little brother of far more polished shoegazer bands like My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, and Ride. Where as the distortion, delay, and reverb of the shoegazer sound was smooth and blissed-out, the FSA sound was jagged, unruly, and primitive. Yet, the line-up which paired David Pearce and Rachel Brook with a handful of Bristolian post-rockers, was eventually reduced to just Pearce, after Brook departed to found Movietone. With Pearce alone at the helm, he often threatened to terminate the project, but would still occasionally produce another record. Although it did seem that 2000's Mirror would in fact be the final FSA record, and that Pearce would never record again. Fortunately, such speculation proved to be premature, as Pearce began a trans-Atlantic collaboration with Jessica Bailliff, resulting in the Clear Horizon project. Alternating on vocal duty, Pearce and Bailiff have crafted a sleepy set of songs, principally played on acoustic guitar, but accentuated by the smoldering layers of Pearce's hazy feedback and luminous effects. Clear Horizon is a very welcome return for Pearce, and there is already talk of the two working together again, maybe actually recording together in the same studio next time.

CLEAR LIGHTs/t(Collector's Choice Music)cd$ 14.98

In our current cd age, a lot of "great lost '60s psych" records have gotten reissued, and a lot of the time, they can't live up to the hype. But this is definitely one of those long-awaited reissues that deserves the billing... Clear Light were a long-haired, hippy-fashioned LA group named after a type of LSD (and a Tibetan religious concept), playing psych-pop rock kinda in the vein of fellow LA denizens Love, The Byrds, Iron Butterfly, and The Doors (or SF's Jefferson Airplane). This cd makes available once again Clear Light's one and only album released in late 1967, complete with bonus track and liner notes by Ugly Things editor Mike Stax. Key Clear Light characteristics: awesome fuzz guitars, the presence of not one but TWO drummers, and the dramatic vocal delivery of singer (and ex-actor) Cliff DeYoung, at his best on the bands more theatrical songs, sounding like "Hamlet on acid" according to Stax. All these elements were used to great effect in Clear Light's compositions (mostly by guitarist and ex-Army parachutist Bob Seal), which can get rather dark, heavy, and disturbing while remaining within the template of California pop psych sixties rock n' roll. Groovy.

CLEAR PEOPLEClarity(Manhand)cd-r$ 8.98

Like all Sunburned Hand Of The Man releases, this is another fleeting glimpse into the mad, sonic abstract sound world of these psych rock ne'er do wells. And like all SHOTM releases, we grabbed as many of these as we could from the band when they were drifting through, probably never to get more. And we got about 15 copies which is all they had left, so if you want one of these, act fast and be prepared to be disappointed. Not a SHOTM record proper, this is some sort of Sunburned offshoot, featuring mainman John Moloney and a few other folks, using mostly voices and electronics, a bit or percussive clatter and some grinding guitar fuzz, to cobble together a bizarre growling, grumbling, squeaking, skronking, belching, squeaking, swirling soundscape of abstract vocalizations, mysterious buzz, kitchen sink clang, and instrument buzz and whir. Pretty far out even by already damaged SHOTM standards. Packaged in that instantly recognizable brown cardstock sleeve with color artwork affixed to the front, and two inserts, one xeroxed and one a little transparency. And again, we only got about 15 of these, probably never to get more so don't dawdle!!

CLEAREDBreaking Day(Immune)lp$ 22.00

Breaking Day is record number two from Cleared, the duo of Steven Hess (Locrian, Haptic) and Michael Vallera, and much like their self titled debut (reviewed elsewhere on the aQ site), this record finds the duo weaving longform landscapes of rhythm and sound, texture and noise, drawing influence from abstract ambient electronica as much as lo-fi floor-core noise. In fact, in many ways, Breaking Day feels like a continuation of that first record, touching on many of the same elements, but here having honed those elements into something spectacular. Born of live performances in the studio, employing both live drums and sampled percussion, as well as atmospheric guitar work and all manner of droned out soundscaping, Cleared create gorgeous expanses of minimal krautdrone noise-dub, that weds rhythmic mesmer to lush layered minimalism, churning hypnorock throb to gauzy softly caustic ambience. Opening track "Rogues" is pretty much all we've been listening to lately, a slow building sprawl of chiming soft focus shimmer, peppered with squalls of white noise, and wreathed in washed out sine wave tones, the bursts of static building a barely there rhythm, that gradually solidifies into a Necks style jazzy skitter, the sounds growing more and more dense and intense, and when the rhythm proper comes in, it's epic, a simple stuttery pulse, but it changes the whole tone of the piece, giving it some serious heft and momentum, mix in some dubbed out snares, add layer after layer of hiss and hum, and it's total psych-jazz-kraut-noise bliss. Ten minutes is way too short. This could have been the whole record, had they stretched it out to 40 minutes and it STILL would have been Record Of The Week. The group explore similar territory on the rest of the record, but in smaller chunks, "Sighted" is a churning expanse of tinkling melodies, wavery low end thrum, and buzzing static, blurred into some seriously mesmerizing (and subtly propulsive) ambience, the title track veers into a sort of This Heat beholden post rock / post punk, all big chiming brittle guitars, woozy rhythmic churn and gloomy atmosphere. "No Path To Claim" revisits the vibe of the opener, creating a sort of soft noise raga, laced with chimes and bells, the churning low end miasma lush and textured, the track's propulsion more implied than explicit, finishing off with a haunting swirl of psychedelic guitar drift and woozy low end pulsations. "Quartz" lays down a gorgeously dense stretch of grinding minimal dronemusic, thick and viscous, but weirdly warm and hypnotic, underpinned by soft shimmery chordal swells, and the record finally finishes off with "The Harvest", the most abstract of the bunch, and one which sounds strangely like another one of this week's Records Of The Week, the bowed reindeer antler music of Hornorkesteret, with its creaking and rumbling, dark swirls of rumble and drone, distant keening melodies, what sounds like field recordings of clatter and shuffle, hints of some creaking ship abound, it's haunting, atmospheric and very evocative of some ancient mysterious ritual. Fantastic stuff!

CLEAREDDrown(Immune)lp$ 17.98

CLEAREDs/t(Immune)lp$ 16.98

We've been consistently impressed with past Immune releases including Expo 70's latest Where Does Your Mind Go? and Steven R. Smith's Cities. So it's no surprise this debut release from Chicago duo Cleared is another noteworthy addition to the Immune catalog. Cold, bleak and utterly gorgeous long tone music from Steven Hess, a member of On, Haptic and Ural Umbo, and Michael Vallera, a solo artist who has released numerous recordings on Complacency Records and Catholic Tapes, to name a few. Champions of the blurred, electronic soundscape, the duo patiently craft five carefully composed pieces that recall the melodic density of Wolfgang Voigt's GAS in cahoots with the percussive, noise-dub antics of the late Yellow Swans. Sweeping washes of white noise, field recordings slowed down and filtered through an opaque haze, veils of distant synth tones reflecting white light and cold tones into the night air. Chiming bells and glistening echoes offer a gentle lull into an utterly grey world. Cleared certainly deliver the dense, gleaming walls of droney, melodic wash that we can't get enough of, but there is a fragile quality to this self-titled debut, an attention to melodic detail. This focus on detail, in combination with a keen rhythmic sensibility filtered through an industrial lens, results in what we'll call spectral dub. A disoriented pairing of urban decay against fog-shrouded landscapes, visions of grey, snow covered roads and ghost inhabited warehouses, abandoned suburbia under a moonless sky. While most of the album's percussive elements remain masked in distortion, reverb and filth, "False Mornings" reveals the only shinning glimpse of an apparent drum kit. Rolling toms, splashing cymbals, hypnotic repetition and creepy synth-craft guide the slow-paced procession into the bleak caves of the 'Occult-kraut' underworld. Limited to an edition of 500 lps on top quality white vinyl, don't miss out on this ghostly gem. �

CLEARLAKEAmber(Domino)cd$ 14.98

CLEMENCO, ISHANAfterlight(Noma Gallery)10"$ 25.00

San Francisco based visual artist and composer, Ishan Clemenco, in conjunction with a show at NOMA Gallery has released this special edition 10" on dandelion-yellow color vinyl. Consisting of two pieces, the first, "Afterlight (for Henning Christiansen)" is a 7-minute fragment of a longer work for found pianos. Taken from recordings of pianos found in old churches, music rooms and theatres and atmospherically clustered in soft-focus overlapping arrangements, the cloudlike acoustical effects of layered random pianos creates a gentle building upon of harmonic overtones in an almost raga-like structure that is really quite beautiful. The B-side, "Untitled (Typewriter), is dedicated to Samuel Beckett and is like the title implies, a work based on the rhythms made on an Hermes "baby" typewriter. Recorded during a residency at The Headlands Center For The Arts, the rhythms of the the taps, spaces and returns (ding!) of the old analog typewriter, based on karnatic musical structures bounce against the former military bunker walls in beautiful reverberations. So nice! Limited to 50 copies, this is a bit on the expensive side, but it is basically a limited edition artwork and they won't be around long. Beautifully packaged with an essay by artist Dean Smith.

CLEMENT, CORALIEBye Bye Beaute(Nettwerk)cd$ 16.98

Oooh, my pretty! Bye Bye Beaute is the debut album from Ms Coralie Clement, and yes, it does certainly beg to be renamed "Bonjour Beaute" 'cuz chances are you're gonna wanna get to know her music better (rather than bid it au revoir). Her voice enchants with a soft, airy sophistication, but some songs have a bit of a kicky sashay to them too. Providing the occasional contrasting energetic drive to her whispery bliss are a buzzing electric guitar strum, some '70s soft rock horns and a YeYe girl stompin' beat -- all composed and produced by her own brother Benjamin Biolay. Very much in the tradition of lovely French chanteuses such as Francoiz Breut, Jane Birkin, and Francoise Hardy. Plus there's even a very Gainsbourg-esque duet with Daniel Lorca (of Nada Surf!!).

CLEMENTI, ALDOPunctum Contra Punctum(Die Schachtel)cd$ 27.00

More '70s Italian avant-garde composition nicely reissued by the Die Schachtel label.

CLERICRegressions(Web Of Mimicry)cd$ 13.98

For the longest time, the Web Of Mimicry label seemed to exist mostly for all things Secret Chiefs 3 related, all post Mr Bungle avant rock, but they've also done heavy stuff like Asva, and the recent Good For Cows record, which totally defied expectations, we were imagining some sort of genre splicing freakout, but instead we were treated to a disc of seriously sludgey avant doom heaviness, granted there's SC3 connections in those bands too. But now there's this, the latest full length from these Philadelphia metalheads, whose Web Of Mimicry debuts is seriously one of the heaviest records we've heard in ages. Massive sprawling metallic epics that channel the machinelike chug of Meshuggah, through all sort of dark ambient soundtrack atmospherics, brooding slow building post rock, and crushing ultradoom. The first track alone, is 20 minutes of all over the map metallic crush, from the churning chug of the first few mintues, before working through dense math metal tribalism, a soaring vocal driven post rock slow build, replete with psychedelic solos, some lurching start stop doom that is quickly transformed into more impossibly mathy grind and chug, only to explode into a sort of slow motion industrial doom plod, all soaring distorted guitars and caveman crush, fucking totally epic and insanely heavy. There's six proper songs, all long and epic and convoluted and complex, separated by brief interludes, birds chirping, droning buzz, super distorted howling screams, hushed rumbles, but hell, they're the only breather you'll get, the proper tracks are relentless, leaping deftly from crushing Neurosis style pummel, to wild tangled Dillinger Escape Plan style frenzied hyperblasts, to random bits of haunting piano, slow motion doom plod, to weirdly melodic clean singing, to hiss drenched buzz, but always back to that churning chug, until the final track, a super weird assemblage of stuttery static, processed field recordings, damaged effects, a patina of crackle and hiss, all of whioch fades out leaving just super spare, solo piano. Killer stuff. No idea how we never heard of these guys before, or why they're not all over Terrorizer and Decibel, but we'd be surprised if that didn't change real soon.

CLETRO, EDDIEFlying Saucer Boogie(Bear Family)cd$ 17.98

Who can resist such a title???

CLIENTELEAriadne EP(Acuarela)cd ep$ 11.98

This new Clientele EP drifts effortlessly into shore on gently shimmering guitars, then lingers for eight soothing minutes on a misty organ drone track aptly named "The Sea Inside A Shell". Sooo pretty. A hushed piano number follows, and then the EP's lone vocal song closes out the proceedings on a more familiar Clientele note. Each of the five soft'n'dreamy songs was inspired by Surrealist Giorgio de Chirico's Ariadne paintings.

CLIENTELEHaunted Melody(Merge)7"$ 3.98

Soft, swirling and as fleeting as a snowflake! These two new songs sound just like the title of the B-side "Breathing Soft And Low". Quiet and uncluttered, but with a soothing presence. This is a much too brief slice of these Londoners' captivating twilight pop. Yet, please note: their new full length isn't due until late spring, so this might be just the thing for all of you Clientele fans needing a little something to tide you over. Nice.

CLIENTELESuburban Light(Merge)cd$ 14.98

Clientele, a London area trio, play dreamy, lo fi, Brit pop that is reminicent of The Zombies, Nick Drake, The Go Betweens, and The Byrds. Suburban Light has an atmospheric '60s quality throughout but the songs vary enough from each other to keep ones interest.

CLIENTELE, THEBonfires on the Heath(Merge)cd$ 14.98

No better time then the onset of autumn to get all warm and fuzzy with a new Clientele record. They have proven to be masters of creating the kind of rich, textured pop that just soothes so right and feels like the musical version of that perfect sweater you just never want to take off. Bonfires On The Heath finds the UK band in top form with a set of songs that flow so perfectly, as they create the kind of soft glowing sonics that are just nearly impossible to resist. Much of the strength of the Clientele is how incredibly warm their records sound, this is a band that could run a workshop on the craft of how use the studio to imbue music with an impossibly deep and burnished warmth. Able to capture both the sound of classic FM radio as well as the lush and dreamy quality of bands like Felt, Galaxie 500, Mojave 3 and the like. Makes perfect sense that they hit the road with Beach House on their last tour, what a dreamy pairing that was! Such a perfect sound to share with that special someone you dig a lot as you spend lazy afternoons together and wander through warm autumnal afternoons with no specific destination. Perfect for whiling way the days, walking hand in hand, or cuddling beneath blankets, by the fire, as the air grows cold outside. So dreamy and divine.

CLIENTELE, THEGod Save The Clientele(Merge)cd$ 13.98

Well, what do you know? We were expecting some ultra soothing and wistful pop with downy male vocals from the new Sea & Cake album, but instead got it from the new Clientele! This ever level headed UK pop band keep things even more even tempered that usual on their third full length. As God Save The Clientele plays, we watch the needles on our imaginary volume and dynamics meters almost imperceptibly rock gently back'n'forth, and we follow suit. Understatedly charming.

CLIENTELE, THEStrange Geometry(Merge)cd$ 13.98

Go ahead slip this new Clientele album right in next to your Big Star and Go-Betweens albums. Strange Geometry fits like a glove, don't it? These Londoners continue merrily along on their gentle retro pop path, and that's a very good thing for them to do. Check out the mistily wistful "My Own Face Inside The Trees". Geez, band leader Alasdair Maclean has such a charming voice and great taste in art to boot... the cover features one of surrealist Paul Delvaux's train paintings from 1963! Darkly beautiful just like the music.

CLIENTELE, THEThe Violet Hour(Merge)cd$ 14.98

Right from the get-go, The Clientele's debut full length is a dizzyingly swirly trip. Hard to believe this is their first album proper! The Violet Hour is the follow-up to their excellent collection of singles, Suburban Light, which was released a couple of years ago. The highly affected drowsy vocals and woozy reverbed guitars both courtesy of Alasdair MacLean, Mark Keen's fluttering piano and James Hornsey's languid bass all keep things wonderfully reeling and quite reminiscent of '60s psychedelic pop. Often very Donovan-esque. The only thing to keep you grounded is Keen's steady tick-tock drumming. Simply put, The Violet Hour is a gorgeous listen -- a baker's dozen of softly glistening and understated songs to warm our chilly San Francisco summer eves. Oh and this cd includes bonus treats in the form of two videos! Recommended.

CLIFFORD THORNTON NEW ART ENSEMBLEFreedom & Unity(Atavistic / Unheard Music)cd$ 14.98

CLIFFSIDESSpirit In The Mountain Temple(Hooker Vision)cassette$ 8.98

Cliffsides is the solo work of Ryan McGill, a Georgia native currently residing Brooklyn who is half of the kosmische synth project Afterlife. Where Afterlife tightly wound itself around the post Manuel Gottsching / Klaus Schulze ethos that led into so many of those great Emeralds related projects, McGill's solo work is all sleepwalking sprawl and narcotic mist. Bubbling abstractions, big sweeping oscillations, and lazer-shot synth tones work through the variable curtains of delay and echo effects that McGill pours over all of the synthesized sounds. Vast empty spaces with distant vocal and guitar signals cascade through those delay patterns creating a 'floating in outerspace' vibe from the onset, only to glide into a very choice step sequence of Schnitzler-esque melodicism. By the second side, McGill offers forth some midnight electronica / sci-fi worship channelling Tangerine Dream's Zeit only to turn that into a very dark set of ambient passages, complete with ritualized chanting and industrially grim sawtooth synth lines. There's lots to cover on this tape, as McGill sprawls and drones for over 80 minutes here. Nice that somebody is using the long form medium of the cassette to its fullest potential! Limited to 100 copies; and like most everything on Hooker Vision, this will not last long.

CLIMAX GOLDEN TWINS5 Cents A Piece(Abduction)lp$ 21.00

Maybe it's a good thing that the Climax Golden Twins don't put out a lot of records. That way, when one of their damaged recordings of post-everything psychedelia marred with hallucinatory sound collages does come our way, we can savor it all the more. Along comes 5 Cents A Piece, and we couldn't be happier. Yup, this is a fucking great record. Is it their best? Maybe. But it most certainly ranks as one of the musical triumphs of 2007. In many ways, the Twins have operated on parallel tracks to their geographical / spiritual brothers from the Sun City Girls, with the Twins mining more from the underbelly of Americana than the esoterica of South-East Asian pop. But Messrs Taylor and Millis are not without an appetite for such eccentricities, as Robert Millis continues to be an occasional contributor to the always exceptional Sublime Frequencies series. That said, the Twins are no longer a duo as they had been for so many years; here, on 5 Cents A Piece they've added the talents of percussionist Dave Abramson to their lineup. His quick turns from cosmo-rock hammerfist to free-jazz tumble down the stairs to plinkering vaudevillian backbeats make for the perfect foil to the twin guitar splatter of Taylor and Millis. As much as Abramson's presence is noticed on 5 Cents A Piece, the auditory dementia of Taylor and Millis steers the album (if it can be called 'steering,' that is). At times, they throw themselves into cacophonic skronk in a battle between finger tendon and guitar string as to which will snap first; then, they will slide easily into the ghostly folk melodies that paralleled their Highly Bred and Sweetly Tempered album from 2004. Elsewhere, a blast of West Coast hesher rock erupts amidst a headspinning, subterranean echo, with the Twins giving Comets on Fire a run for their money. Limited to 500 copies and bound to be out of print in a matter of minutes, what more do you want to know? You need this!

CLIMAX GOLDEN TWINSDream Cut Short In The Mysterious Clouds(Meme)cd$ 18.98

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY. Climax Golden Twins specialize in the avant-garde pastiche, in which the band cuts up deep drone hypnosis, Raster-esque sinewave manipulation, and improv rock fragments. Much like the early 80s mail art projects of Bladder Flast or P16.D4.

CLIMAX GOLDEN TWINSEerie Fragrance(Etude)lp$ 15.98

The Climax Golden Twins have always had their hands in as many cookie jars as they could; and all of the records are true adventures in sound that could include fucked-up collages of old 78s, thudding art-rock that has earned them opening spots for Sonic Youth, blissful ambience for narcoleptic art-installations, clattering urban gamelan presentations, and plenty more. Eerie Fragrance hits all of these marks and then some, having originally been released as a cassette back in 1995. The original title to the cassette was Eyeless Formation, but has been redubbed as Eerie Fragrance for the vinyl reissue. There's also a couple of extra tracks which didn't appear on the original cassette which had appeared on compilations from around the same time period. The album quickly revolves through a collage of improvised bursts that accelerates up to an unsettled loop of a woman possibly in the midst of a breakup repeating her pleas over a turgid thrumb of static and rumbling drone which spills out of a series of peculiar squeaks and squiggles. As such, these moments have more in common with Nurse With Wound than their geographical and spiritual neighbors in the Sun City Girls; but is certainly well within the scope of CGT's esoteric collages. Noirish loops and raucous crowd noise tumble out of the beginning of the flipside, with guitar plucks that sound more like rubber bands snapping in the distant. Artifacts of tape noise and crusty debris inhabit a set of overlapping loops topped with gnarled scrapes on the guitar. Crunches of leaves and thick industrial field recordings give way to seasick wooden creakings, laughing gulls, and bellowing foghorns. As disconnected as all of these elements appear after the fact, they all work rather effortlessly in the context of this recording. Really great!

CLIMAX GOLDEN TWINSHighly Bred and Sweetly Tempered(North East Indie)cd$ 14.98

Newest release from this mysterious Northwestern band of ambient dronesters and another quite fine piece of work. Always unpredictable, and always sonically shifting, this time around, CGT have embarked on a more music based route and less a purely soundbased one. The main intruments here are sweetly reverbed piano and acoustic guitar, gently strummed and delicately finger picked. All settled in dense beds of lush ambience, whispery drones, found sounds, hazy Latin Playboys-esque guitar leads, displaced snippets of conversation, shimmering clouds of whir and hum, and even occasional brushed drumming. A very minimal, melancholic space-y post rock vibe. Fans of Godspeed, Calexico, Dirty Three and all sorts of drone-y dreamy indie drift will be in heaven!

CLIMAX GOLDEN TWINSImperial Household Orchestra(Scratch Records)cd$ 14.98

Another brilliant, corroded, and demented facet of the Climax Golden Twins is found on the reissue of their 1996 debut full-length cd. From the release of this album, it became clear that the Sun City Girls were no longer the only game in town, when it came to fucked-up deconstructions of noise-rock propulsion with South East Asian overtones and painterly freeform improvisations. In a lot of ways, this album is a slightly more focused version of the Sun City Girls' 330,003 Crossdressers From Beyond The Rig Veda, sans the Bollywood punk tunes blurted out by Alan Bishop. Yeah, it's that good! The principle Twins (maestros Robert Millis and Jeffery Taylor) invited eight musicians to join them and producer Scott Colburn for a series of studio driven improvisations, which were in turn sculpted into this "epic masterpiece," as Colburn later quipped and to which we can certainly agree. The urban gamelan infused improvisations meander through rhythmic tinklings upon metal bells and vibraphones, which provide a queasy Martin Denny air of tropical sicknesses abundant in every buzz, rasp, and clang of the ensemble's polyphonous scatter. As much as these elements do recall the equally skittering moments of the Sun City Girls, the Climax Golden Twins growl with the best of the post-hardcore noiseniks on Blast First (e.g. Sonic Youth, Big Black, A.C. Temple, Head of David, etc.) with some volatile, Mack-truck riffage scraping across lumbering backbeats with ample amounts of amplifier mangling distortion. Fucking great, we say!

CLIMAX GOLDEN TWINSLovely(Anomalous)cd$ 13.98

Of the three or four records that I've heard from The Climax Golden Twins, this idiosyncratic Seattle trio of sound experimentalists seem to re-invent themselves with each record, offering fractured field recordings, cannibalized ethno-rock (a la Sun City Girls), surgically creepy soundtracks (as in their 'Session 9' score), and now a sleepytime album of ambient pleasantries in "Lovely." According to the Twins, this album was recorded "sometime ago and then forgotten," only to resurface in a number of different forms, first as a sound accompaniment to some artwork at a Seattle gallery, then as a CD-R on Gravelvoice, who packaged the album with a pillow, and now with a more pragmatic package thanks to Anomalous Records. Like Robert Rich's Sleep Concerts, "Lovely" intends to lull its listeners to sleep; but fortunately, the Climax Golden Twins do not saturate their work with new age sentimentalism or factory pre-set synth sounds. While their methods are not entirely clear, it appears that the Climax Golden Twins use drone guitars, long stringed instruments, and tons of effects boxes looped back upon themselves to create a sweeping atmosphere not far from the Aeolian String Ensemble or Nurse With Wound's "Soliloquy For Lilith."

CLIMAX GOLDEN TWINSs/t(Conspiracy)lp$ 29.00

Our pals at Conspiracy Records, a label/distro based in Belgium, who in the past have brought us records by Boris, Jesu, Shora and more, are this year celebrating their 10 year anniversary. A decade of amazing music. From a bedroom based punk rock label, to one of Europe's most important and influential labels and distros, all we can say is HURRAY! And HUZZAH! It's always so exciting, when a bunch of folks get together to spread the word about great music, great WEIRD music, and survive, even thrive. Such is the case with Conspiracy. And as if that weren't already enough, just knowing that some great people were selling some amazing music, those sweeties at Conspiracy have decided to share the love with us. And you. To celebrate their 10th anniversary, they've decided to do a super limited subscription series, 12 records over 12 months, each limited to somewhere between 200-500 copies, ONLY available to series subscribers. EXCEPT, they've decided to let AQ have 20 copies of each, we're the only store with copies of these subscriber only lps, and for a brief moment, we can offer them to you, our loyal AQ customers. Needless to say we are thrilled, as the series lineup reads like a who's who of AQ faves, as well as including a handful of lesser knowns. All pressed on super thick vinyl, and packaged in killer hand screened original art sleeves. But be warned, we only got 20 of each, and we will run out fast and we will not be able to get more. When we do run out, there is a chance you can still get one from Conspiracy direct, but what that means is act fast and prepare to leave empty handed. We knew the Climax Golden Twins were a strange lot. Their records were totally unpredictable, lovely and dreamlike one moment, damaged and demented the next. This just may be the strangest one yet. Two sides, both drastically different, each side has a mysterious etching in the runoff groove, one side says "Vintage Pulchritude", the other says "Ambient Caveman", which should have been our first clue! The first side is a woozy assemblage of sounds, seemingly drawn from old films, bits of dialogue, snippets of music, all bizarre when taken out of context and butted up against another random bit of speech or sound. But the various snippets are deftly woven into a dreamlike surreal whole, wrapped in crystalline clouds of record crackle, tape hiss, sine waves and various other random ambient influences. Really gorgeous to listen to, but truly haunting and bizarre. The second side starts on much more familiar CGT territory, with gentle lilting folks, melancholy melodies, left to drift through soundscapes of fuzz and hiss, distant muted percussion, thumps and shuffles, a sort of abstract freak folk that sort of just hovers and drifts. But then all of a sudden, the band launches into a fully rocked out jam, that sounds more like math metal than anything. Hard to say if it was played or sampled, but it quickly dissipates into more abstract dreaminess. But they're not done fucking with us yet. The record closes with another wild jam, this time it's a old school echoey Stoogesy garage rock stomp, raw and propulsive, super distorted and ultra rocking. Cool stuff. Definitely hard to pin down, and we always seem to be knocked for a loop, but that's exactly why we love these guys so much. Gorgeous hand screened cover and nice thick vinyl. These two will be gone before you know it...

CLIMAX GOLDEN TWINSs/t (Locations)(Fire Breathing Turtle)cd$ 13.98

This is a record that shouldn't be around; yet, against the odds, we have a handful of these discs in stock for the moment. The Climax Golden Twins refer to this eponymous CD as Locations although we can't find any reference to that title on the all white, embossed folding cardstock. In recent years, Robert Millis of the Twins has produced some of the finer contributions to the Sublime Frequencies series of obscure ethnomusicology, including the Phi Ta Khon DVD and the Harmika Yab Yum compilation from Tibet. And, had this 1998 collage of field recordings and shortwave radio transmissions been released in this day and age, it surely would have warranted a Sublime Frequencies release, as it fits so closely within their agenda. Yet, it remains a Climax Golden Twins production, and given CGT's radically eclectic aesthetic sensibility (Victrola 78 collages, cannibalized psychedelia, horror soundtracks, long-form dronemusik, etc.), why not call this a Climax Golden Twins record? So what we have here is an interwoven collage from unspecified locations, with some of the locales being more obvious than others. The temple gongs and bells getting banged about with jubilant indeterminance are from South-East Asia (probably being Javanese Gamelan), the deeply reverential incantations set against clouds of crickets could be from any Muslim temple in Asia, and only an etymologist could pinpoint where in the world those cicadas could be residing. Altogether, a mighty fine collage of phonography before such a term was coined.

CLINE, NELSChest(Little Brother)cd$ 14.98

THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

SORRY. Gorgeous guitar improv jazz meets Sonic Youthian noise from Nels' talented trio. Vinyl boasts an extra track.

CLINE, NELSCoward(Crytogramaphone)cd$ 16.98

We've always had much respect for Nels Cline, his guitar playing skills are undeniable for sure, but for SOME of us, it wasn't actually until this solo outing that we've been able to totally fall in love with a Nels Cline album. Coward is one of the most languid, eclectic, yet strangely and enchantingly fluid solo guitar albums we've heard in ages. While there have been no shortage of great solo guitar records lately, as good as many of them are they all tend to be quite narrow in scope. There are either the John Fahey/Takoma school followers whose records are filled with finger picked sweeping pastoral Appalachia from beginning to end, or the drone guitar records, many of which we love, but again don't show much of a range in scope or sound. It's definitely a credit to many of those artists that they stick to what they know and do it very well, but when you're Nels Cline, you know SO MUCH about the guitar and its infinite range of sonic possibilities, and Coward finds him exploring so many of those possibilities with brilliant results! Whether sprawling or rustic, melodic or deconstructed, he's found ways to create sounds and songs that are brimming with personality, mood and emotion. He's also not afraid to get all lush and beautiful, or dark and mysterious, this is most definitely a record that truly has something for almost any music lover. We hear a spirit and adventurous streak similar to records by greats like Baden Powell, we also hear more moody elements that have us thinking of Loren Connors, as well as fractured noisy moments that could be on a Tetuzi Akiyama record, but most of all a sense of true songwriting and melodic capability with the guitar, that recalls the gorgeous guitarscapes of Roy Montgomery. Nels Cline has proven that he's not only an extremely talented musician but also an artist with a rich imagination and soulful way with sound. Highly recommended!

CLINE, NELSDestroy All Nels Cline(Atavistic)cd$ 14.98

AQ-fave, LA-based guitarist Nels Cline returns with a "big band" effort. Not big band in the Benny Goodman or Count Basie sense, but in group larger than his usual trio or duo format, with up to five guitarists (including Nels) tangling strings, with his

CLINE, NELSThe Inkling(Cryptogramophone)cd$ 14.98

Nice, mellow new recording from AQ-fave avant-jazz guitarist Nels Cline. Featuring Mark Dresser on bass, Zeena Parkins on harp and electric harp and Billy Mintz on drums.

CLINE, NELS / DEVIN SARNOBuried On Bunker Hill(Ground Fault)cd$ 11.98

This new release from AQ fave avant-guitarist Mr. Nels Cline sees him teamed up with his old compatriot Devin Sarno, the avant-bassist who records solo under the name Crib. An exploration in ambient, instrumental, percussion-free postrock, Buried On Bunker Hill is labeled as being part of the Ground Fault label's Series I, which supposedly means "quiet" experimental music as opposed to loud and noisy experimental music (it's a three-tiered system, with Series III being the extreme end of sheer power electronics noise, and Series II somewhere in the middle). But hey, a lot of that has to do with where you set the volume knob on your stereo! So don't get the idea that these abstract, presumably improvised guitar/bass duets are in any way tame, though they are quite pretty, and yes, sometimes quiet, at which points you'll recall for a moment that Nels is supposed to be a jazz guitarist. But then the volume swells to room-filling heights... These four tracks (totalling 55 minutes) are gorgeous, detailed drone works, soothing but active and dynamic. If this is 'experimental music', the experiment in question was undoubtedly a success. Recommended.

CLINE, NELS SINGERSDraw Breath(Cryptogramaphone)cd$ 16.98

We are glad to report that Nels Cline hasn't let his high profile gig as guitarist for Wilco get in the way of his prolific output. Before he got the gig with Wilco, Cline was one of the most respected avant guitarists in the country. He continues to work within the improv, jazz and avant garde worlds demonstrating that for once that you in fact can have your cake and keep it true too. Draw Breath is classic Nels Cline showing both his introspective moody playing alongside his more charged and out-jazz leanings. His group on this outing is Scott Amendola on drums, percussion & electronics, Devin Hoff on contrabass and his Wilco cohort Glenn Kotche adds some percussion and glockenspiel on one track as well. Good stuff!

CLINE, NELS SINGERSInitiate(Cryptogramophone)2cd$ 16.98

Newest outing by the ultra talented "jazz" guitarist Nels Cline, who has played in many non-jazz acts like Evangelista and most famously Wilco. Two whole discs (one studio, one live) that go from the really subdued and pretty to totally skronkin' and rockin'. If you liked previous Nels Cline Singers outings you'll like this too - and by the way, for those new to 'em, no, there's no singing! Once again Cline is accompanied by drummer Scott Amendola and bassist Devin Hoff, and there's also plenty of guests including Greg Saunier, David Witham, Yuka Honda, and others. From mid '70s Miles-like fusion funk to Thurston Moore style noise guitar, these two discs would be good ones to "initiate" noobs into Cline's non-indie-rock stylings, as well as being satisfying for long time fans.

CLINE, NELS SINGERSInstrumentals(Cryptogramophone)cd$ 15.98

No, there's no singing, and these ARE instrumentals...'The Nels Cline Singers' is just Mr. Cline's clever name for what's really the new version of his fantastic Trio. Nels on electric guitar (of course, for he is the master of that instrument), plus bassist

CLINE, NELS SINGERSThe Giant Pin(Cryptogramophone)cd$ 16.98

Yay! Our pal Nels ("the world's most dangerous guitarist" sez the sticker on here, quoting Jazz Times) is back with another album from his current trio, The Nels Cline Singers, who besides guitar-danger-guy Nels, consist of bassist Devin Hoff and drummer Scott Amendola, who are also...umm...hazardous on their respective instruments. As far as avant-fusion out-guitar jazz rock whatever goes, these guys are pros. And, don't let the name fool you, this is all instrumental, the singing part is an ironic joke, eh? It's all about shut up and play your guitar (or bass, or drums, respectively). Yet all this firepower is put to the service of a greater good, or beauty we might say. Able to shift from happy bouncy jazz to flesh-ripping skronk without so much as a how d'you do, these eleven new tracks provide exactly what we expect (and love) from Cline and Co. Free jazz improv, Sonic Youthesque squall, post-rock dynamics, abstract textural experiments... And yes, it all comes together into something quite beautiful and exciting. It's been a while since I've seen 'em play (Nels seemingly always pops into the store to say hello AFTER he plays a show up here, instead of before, which means I've missed a few due to not being on the ball) and this new disc sure makes me eager to see 'em again!