Gather round the warm and inviting glow of the newsletter, friends! Lots of great things on offer this week, starting with an always welcome new album from WILCO. 'Cousin' is the American folk band's 13th album, and the group has reached a homeostasis achievable by very few: with their brand of Americana ever intact, Wilco continually tweak the balance between experimentation and expectation. They sound like a band that's constantly listening to the world out there and interacting with new sounds, which perhaps led them to a fixation with Cate Le Bon's magical art-rock masterpieces of late ('Crab Day', 'Reward') and inviting her behind the production board. Le Bon channels the wisdom and solemnity of another generation of art-rockers like Robert Wyatt, Anthony Moore, and Beefheart with a brainy grace, and she's helped the Windy City Five pull off yet another transformation with 'Cousin'. We beam with pride at every bit of good news from SLOW PULP, the former Madison West denizens who now send their shambolic daydream pop worldwide, making their Anti- debut with 'Yard', another quick classic of modern indie chemistry, in on blue vinyl. The ANIMAL COLLECTIVE renaissance continues with the release of a sprawling double album called 'Isn't It, Now?' that matches the strength and ambition of last year's 'Time Skiffs', an includes a heavenly sidelong jam. When a band as rare as BLONDE REDHEAD calls us to supper, we come running. It's been nearly a decade since the magical art-pop trio graced the world with a new record, and 'Sit Down For Dinner' delivers a full meal, in on white vinyl.

The well-attired showman CHARLEY CROCKETT has made fans all over, including here behind the counter, with his energetic and spirited live show, captured on a jam-packed set called 'Live From The Ryman', which draws a deep set list from several of his classic albums. Alabama songwriter JASON ISBELL challenged himself to hit a new lyrical standard with the release of his breakout solo album 'Southeastern' ten years back. The modern classic gets an anniversary edition on blue vinyl with subtly updated cover art, plus deluxe CD and vinyl editions with loads of demos and live material. An essential DR. JOHN record, 'Plays Mac Rebennack' from 1981, captures the legend on piano solo, and gets a nice new edition this week, plus we've got the 50th anniversary edition of the GRATEFUL DEAD's 'Wake Of The Flood' on a remastered LP, as well as a picture disk version.

When GREEN DAY's breakout album 'Dookie' spread through my 7th grade cohort like a runaway virus, I probably should have had a hunch that 30 years later I'd be sitting here waxing nostalgic about it. After all these years, there is still no more ironclad combo of unstoppable pop hooks and goofy innuendo; its a record that's still light years better than the thousands of imitators it inspired. We have a new baby blue vinyl version of the lp, alongside a super deluxe box that appears to have a junior high locker's worth of stuff rattling around inside of it. We also have a cool t-shirt to giveaway, which you can enter to win with a purchase of either one. The fan-favorite TV ON THE RADIO record 'Return to Cookie Mountain' established the New York indie omnivores as an unstoppable force, but its lingered out of print for many years now! Touch and Go reclaims one of the greatest signees with a fresh edition of this gem on orange wax. It's been twenty five years since DUSTER released their debut album 'Stratosphere' in near anonymity, introducing a small few, then eventually a swelling crowd of tens of thousands, to their inimitable brand of inward-gazing space rock. To make the occasion, Numero has done up a special edition on splatter vinyl with a poster and foil-stamped sleeve, as well as a CD version ok. The mighty JESUS LIZARD see a remaster of their classic 'Goat' emerge on white vinyl.

Hard-hitting NYC hip-hop duo ARMAND HAMMER make records you set a calendar reminder for. Billy Woods and Elucid trade bars of ingenious menace on 'We Buy Diabetic Test Strips', in on purple wax, with guest production from Jpegmafia. We welcome a slew of hard to come by records on the Backwoodz label as well: inventive lyricist CURLY CASTRO's 'Little Robert Hutton', an expanded edition of ELUCID's 2016 album 'Save Yourself (+ Instrumentals)', and the darkly psychedelic 'Decay' by FATBOI SHARIF and STEEL TIPPED DOVE.

Globetrotting electronic artist LAUREL HALO has established a solid rep for a granular ambient sound that reveals sizeable details below its murky surface; her latest is 'Atlas' and its a stunning career high. UK composed MINOR SCIENCE blesses the Balmat label with an immersive collection of drone settings called 'Absent Friends Vol.III'. Footwork academic JLIN composed the pieces on 'Perspective' for a Chicago percussion ensemble that has been performing them for years, but now she renders them in their larval bleep form in a new clear vinyl. Producer SHACKLETON has rowed far upriver from his dubstep days, collaborating with clarinetist WACLAW ZIMPEL on the haunting 'In The Cell Of Dreams'.

Ten years since the release of HAIM's classic 'Days Are Gone' means its time for a reissue! Deluxe green vinyl, new artwork, and a disc of bonus tracks, demos and remixes makes a nice one for the fans. We've been getting requests for records by DJO from the more discerning (and youthful) members of our customer base for some time, and now its time to finally deliver. Joe Keery, better known as the handsome fella Steve on Stranger Things, makes some incredible electro-pop under the moniker, drawing on influences like Phoenix, Tame Impala, and Todd Rundgren. We've got limited color editions of 'Twenty Twenty' and the follow-up 'Decide'. ODESZA makes a turn towards hazy dream pop on 'Flaws In Our Design', in on sky blue wax, and we've got the latest from DEL WATER GAP, the artfully titled 'I Miss You Already + I Haven't Left Yet'.

Legendary hitmakers BOOKER T. & THE MG's hit quite a stride in their late 60s run of LPs for Atlantic, during which time they were the Stax Records house band and had credits on countless tunes in the charts. We've got lovely reissues of four of these classics, 'And Now!', 'Doin' Our Thing', 'Soul Dressing' and 'Hip Hug Her'.

'A Symphonic Celebration' collects a full suite of JOE HISAISHI's most beloved compositions for the Hayao Miyazaki films like 'Spirited Away' and 'My Neighbor Totoro', ten themes in all, all in one place on a double album for the first time. CHARLES MINGUS looks back to 40s bebop on the 1960 album 'Pre-Bird', which gets the Verve/Acoustic Sounds treatment this week. TENDERLONIOUS returns with 'You Know I Care', and SONIC YOUTH's avant-garde session with JIM O'ROURKE, 'Invito Al Cielo', is back in print.

Our never-ending celebration of JONI MITCHELL continues with four limited color vinyl reissues of some of her best known works. If you've been looking for nice copies 'Ladies Of The Canyon', 'Court and Spark', 'Miles Of Aisles', and 'The Hissing Of Summer Lawns', now is the time!

Veteran jazzy beatmaker J-ZONE is tapped for the ongoing Madlib Invazion Library Series, turning in the lively, percolating 'Intoxicated Skull'. Brazilian jazz singer DORA MORELENBAUM has a sublime new EP of smoky serenade called 'Vento De Beirada'. Iconic illustrator and sometime musician Raymond Pettibon has a new group called PSING PSONG PSUNG, their LP 'Only Fan' is on red wax and naturally has some lovely artwork by Raymond. Aussie post-punkers EXEK turn in another marvelously woozy banger of po-faced brilliance on 'The Map And The Territory'.

Storied bands like Minor Threat, Fugazi, and Rites of Spring put DC punk on the map, but the District has given us countless other groups, many of which only existed long enough to release one or two records, if any. Somehow, we have four such examples in the house this week! FURY was the very brief band featuring Chris Thomson from Ignition on vocals (before he moved to Madison to start Circus Lupus) alongside 3 ex-members of Swiz; their sole EP 'Resurrection' is back in print. HOOVER made only one LP, 1994's 'The Lurid Traversal Of Route 7', a classic of lumbering, pummeling post-hardcore drama. After Circus Lupus, Chris Thomson started LAS MORDIDAS with members of Fidelity Jones and Rain; their scattered singles and demo tracks are collected for the first time on 'Ex-voto'. Before he joined the infamous No Trend, Jack Anderson played bass in a short lived early 80s group called SKAM, who nailed a combination of The Clash and scenemates the Teen Idles, but released no records until this collection called 'No Name'.

SLEEP TOKEN's soul-blasting debut album 'Sundowning' is back in print this week in both gold and silver editions, and we've got a big new one from CODE ORANGE called 'Above'. Before they changed names and vibes (sorta) to Mystic 100s, MILK MUSIC emitted some of the finest, stonedest hardcore the PacNW could muster, and their 'First Demo' is given an LP edition this week with an added track. The OSEES continue to elevate their krauty garage game with the very dope 'Intercepted Message'.

LA rockers CHERRY GLAZERR return with a mature, reflective, and still very raw new album called 'I Don't Want You Anymore'. Pop singer MOLLY BURCH is back with another addictive slab of synth n singin' confections called 'Daydreamer', produced by Wild Nothing's Jack Tatum. Chicago songwriter KARA JACKSON's arresting debut, 'Why Does The Earth Give Us People To Love' is back in a limited vinyl run, for fans of Fiona Apple and Adia Victoria. Lastly but definitely not leastly, please check out the latest album from New York trio SAY SHE SHE, who update the girl-group funk sound of Tom Tom Club and Chic to a new form of perfection on 'Silver'.

It's another five star selection in the Used Vinyl Alert this week. We've got faves and essentials from Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Grateful Dead, John Lennon, the Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, the Band, Steely Dan, the Eagles, Boston, Tom Petty, Tom Waits, The Beach Boys, Bruce Springsteen, John Prine, George Harrison, Rush, Led Zeppelin, and Fairport Convention.

A real heavy dose of hard rock, metal and other riffery this week spans the decades. We've got Dokken, Executioner, Blacklist, Chateaux, Attila, Rainbow, Frijid Pink, ZZ Top, Wishbone Ash, Molly Hatchet, Ozzy Osbourne, Bloodrock, Blue Öyster Cult, Van Halen, Deep Purple, Def Leppard, Iron Butterfly, AC/DC, Scorpions, Kiss, Rob Zombie, Gojira, Whitesnake, Judas Priest and even more!

High quality jazz as always, including nice ones from Herbie Hancock, Ornette Coleman, Miles Davis, George Benson, Pat Metheny, Sonny Rollins, Chick Corea, Freddie Hubbard, Getz & Gilberto, Dave Brubeck, Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus, BadBadNotGood, Return To Forever, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Jimmy Smith, and Thelonious Monk.

Blues is in from Jimmy Witherspoon, Magic Slim, Paul Black, Jeff Beck, Bobby Bland, BB King, Paul Butterfield, Howlin’ Wolf, Lonnie Brooks, Son Seals, Roy Buchanan, Dolly Parton, Marty Robbins, Doc Watson, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Patsy Cline, Hank Williams, Glen Campbell, and Bob Wills.

Lots more of our fave names in the mix as well. U2, the Cars, Eurythmics, Men At Work, Talking Heads, Ian Dury, Guided By Voices, American Football, Lettuce, Jack White, Florence and the Machine, Radiohead, Tangerine Dream, Deadmau5, Chemical Brothers, Kanye West, Black Star, Wu-Tang, Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff, Burning Spear, The Temptations, Prince, Kool and the Gang, Diana Ross, the Stylistics, and Funkadelic!

Yes, we are still buying! Call Ron to schedule (608.213.3610).