Email February 15, 2018
NEW THIS WEEK AT THE SHOP:




In the "Things You Probably Haven't Heard Before" category we have two very wonderful reissues. The RVNG label takes a bit of a detour from it's spelunking in the forgotten caverns of new age and synth to bring us a collection of songs by late-80s songwriter Mark Renner, who amassed quite a body of work to little acclaim in the late 80s. These songs vary a good deal across the span of this set, but Renner sits squarely between the ethereal lonerism of Arthur Russell and the stoic melodies of Echo and the Bunnymen. Temporary Residence unearths two long, rare CD-only performances from Songs: Ohia, the project of the much-missed songwriter Jason Molina. I'm a pretty big Molina fan, and I'd never heard either of these songs before, and they've quickly become favorites. Both of them are staggeringly beautiful and emotionally wrenching, like the best moments of S:O's vast catalog.











We have two LP reissues of early rarities from New Zealand punk minimalists This Kind of Punishment, plus a new record from Lea Bertucci, three killers from the Dark Entries label by Intense Molecular Activity, Rich la Bonte, and Solid Space. New electronic EPs are in from Omar S, TBZ, Jack Peoples, Carmen, and Superstar & Star.
USED VINYL ALERT:
Our next MUSIC TRIVIA at the High Noon Saloon is Tuesday, April 10th. Registration starts at 5:30 with the first question from Angie and Marty at 6PM. Save the date for May 8th!
RECORD STORE DAY 2018 - SAVE THE DATE:
Save the date - April 21st, 2018 is Record Store Day (RSD) 2018!
OTHERS TALK BACK:
This isn't the spot to lay down odds on the third race. OTB is where Others Talk Back and give you the lowdown on what they've been feeling lately. This one's for the customers.
Ezra Furman – “Transangelic Exodus” This is Mr. Furman’s seventh album, either as a member of a band or as a solo artist, since 2007. According to the press surrounding this release, this album is a collection of personal and autobiographical sketches. The music Mr. Furman has composed fleshes out those sketches. He utilizes a whole variety of different musical styles to get the lyrics across. The styles include seventies pop, punk, psychedelica, neo-disco, singer-songwriter pop, along with a few others. You would think that by using all those disparate styles that “Transangelic Exodus” would be a total stylistic mess. Quite to the contrary, Mr. Furman’s musical gifts make this album a fascinating listen. The different styles totally complement the lyrical themes about growing up confused and accepting your sexuality and the ramifications of that sexuality - regardless of what society thinks. This album is the furthest thing from a musical mess and failure. “Transangelic Exodus” is nothing short of a great album. - Ted Talks
Susanna’s last name is Wallumrod and she is from Norway. She composes and releases original material, but also specializes in covers. And “Go Dig My Gave” is a collection of covers. Susanna covers English and American folk songs, Elizabethan ballads, Joy Division, Charles Baudelaire, Lou Reed and Elizabeth Cotton. The only instruments used are baroque harp, violin, accordion and African finger organ. The songs are slowed down, and the sparse instrumentation focuses the listener’s attention on the lyrics and the melodies of each song. Her musical skills can make a ballad from four hundred years ago sound as current and modern as a Joy Division. Listening to this I can’t help think of Nico. But Susanna’s voice is not like Nico’s Teutonic voice of doom. I am reminded more of Nico’s approach to cover material. “Go Dig My Grave” is an engaging look at the power of a great song stripped down to its basics, and interpreted by a masterful musician and vocalist. - Ted Talks