Last night, at Black Mountain’s recommendation, I watched Antonioni’s Zabriskie Point.

In their press release, the group rattles off a list of influences including King Crimson, Alex Chilton, Shirley Collins, Please Kill Me (the book, I assume), Dennis Wilson and among others, “the house blowing up in the desert at the end of Zabriskie Point.” Well, I love Black Mountain and I like all these other things they list, but I’d never heard of Zabriskie Point, so it sounded like I had my evening planned.

Luckily Avid Video, the video rental shop below mine, had it sitting on the DVD shelf so I snatched it up to take home. Apparently the movie, which was released in 1970 to much controversy, has been tied up in some kind of copyright issue (perhaps due to the Pink Floyd soundtrack? or maybe a Rolling Stones song that appears on it?) and just came back into rentable existence within the last year or two. Score.

In more turbulent, uneasy moments during the film, the music is abrasive and squelchingly psychedelic, but as the camera pans around barren, beautiful desert scenes, the music drips into more melodic, drifting soundscapes. It was a surprisingly daring psychedelic score for 1970. Maybe I’m wrong in that though, any suggestions for exploring this? Goblin didn’t start their soundtrack work until the mid-70s, right? The movie itself is a cultural study and time-capsule glimpse at student unrest (through following two young characters) in the late 60s and hints at the fact that you’re given the option to control our own paths. It comes across as very anti-attachment and establishment. That’s all I’ll say on that as I’m no movie critic. I did really enjoy it though. Go rent it from Jason or Paige at Avid Video!

The scene of the house blowing up is pretty epic. It’s definitely the focal point of the movie as it drags on in all its exploding glory and is wonderfully gratuitous. I’ll post more on the amazing new Black Mountain LP later, but here’s something to tide you over. It comes out September 14th and you’re gonna love it! Sweeping, ethereal space-twang with ominous riffs and heavy vibes. It’s desert rock for sure…I can see where this movie would click in with their mood.

Black Mountain – The Hair Song
Opening track on the record.
[Downloaded from Jagjaguwar's site]
Out 9/14 on Jagjaguwar Records.

I’m staring at the future. A comic of its bony, contorted chest happens to be spread out in front of me on my desk. And it’s way less bleak than it was only 10 minutes ago. Slotted for a mid-October release date is a shining, beautifully remastered version of a sadly under-pressed classic…Iggy Pop and James Williamson’s 1977 masterpiece, Kill City. Recorded after the hurricane of bad times that resulted in the collapse of the Stooges and in the midst of the two or three decade long mental and physical downward spiral of one, James Osterberg, who was in a perpetual choke-hold identity crisis from the day he donned himself Iggy Pop, Kill City was meant to be a triumphant reuniting of Stooges heavyweights. But guess what. They still had a hard time getting along. Not only this, but the Asheton brothers still wanted nothing to do with it. Soupy Sales’ kids stepped in to provide the rhythm section. No joke. And not only were they amazing, they could handle Pop’s shit.

The recordings were rough, flat, paranoid, problem-filled, coke-fueled, tense, sloppy…but the sessions and what they potentially captured were breathtaking. Diehard fans and some curiosity seekers have owned this piece of history for years (thanks to Bomp’s wisdom and perseverance), and now it’s hitting the market again with wider distribution and a renovated sound. The sound is 100% clearer, the levels are pushed and the instruments stretch and slide at higher, bulkier levels. This is a Detroit rawk muscle record as it was meant to be heard 33 years ago. All raucous garage born out of sweat, blood and bad times.

Just wanted to write a quickie today as it’s almost getting a little late. The listening station is back up and running with a handful of releases that came out yesterday. Up this month are four brand spankin’ newbies and one sneak preview of something that’s coming out mid-September. Knowing a lot of my regulars and friends, the preview might be of some interest. While these guys are up on the listening wall, they’re all sale-priced a couple bucks below their suggested retail prices.

No blog mp3s on these, gotta swing into the shop to hear them!

This month:

Brad Laner – Natural Selections (Hometapes)
A stunning solo record of lush psychedelic sunshine pop. Interesting confusion of Beatles pop and Elliott Smith paranoia. Layered to perfection.

Cotton Jones – Tall Hours in the Glowstream (Suicide Squeeze)
Swooning lofi twang. There’s a slight, slow psych bend reminiscent of Wooden Wand and associates. The folksy male/female harmonies are beautiful and moving. Queue this one up for a roadtrip, you’ll smile the whole way there.

Grass Widow – Past Times (Kill Rock Stars)
Punchy, agitated and catchy post-punk. With lofi tendencies. And a great knack for melody. Having made the jump from underground hitmakers Make A Mess Records and Captured Tracks, it’s exciting to see them settled in with the ever-amazing and respected Kill Rock Stars label.

Magic Kids – Memphis (True Panther Sounds)
Grandiose Bowie/Beach Boys/Talking Heads-esque pop from some Memphis ex-garagers. Extremely more focused and finely constructed than their previous efforts. Yes, this is the same label that has brought us Girls, Delorean, etc…that is to say they’re trustworthy in the pure pop department.

New Rough Trade artist, Dylan LeBlanc is setting out in early September on a small stint of record store only tour dates. Somehow luck would have it that he’s drifting through North Carolina on a Saturday afternoon. As even more luck would have it, my Rough Trade/Matador rep contacted me to see if the shop wanted to host him that day. So let’s give it a shot. Since the Record Store Day instore went so well, I figure it’s about time to start testing out the ol’ shop floor again.

LeBlanc sounds like a man who has been collecting sun bleached dust on his worn down jacket for fifty, wandering years. With a haunting pedal steel on which to lay his head, the man eases clenched-jaw tales out in deep-drawled whispers. This is a man you’d expect to find huddled quietly and reflectively around a campfire in any Cormac McCarthy or Jim Thompson book, only giving way to his own dark tales when the fire’s almost burned out. The songs are dark, moving and pretty with that hopeless, lost western twang creeping through their centers. If you can remember back to those early days of haunted My Morning Jacket twang or the despair of Phosphorescent, you’re getting close to the sound of this record.

Remember:

Saturday, September 4th. 4pm. FREE
Stripped down, acoustic instore performance.
(@Bull City Records.)
Facebook Event Page.
Probably even have some cookies’n'drinks.

I’ve been on autopilot for the last few days. This is a bad place to get stuck as a record store clerk. Once you’re on your third straight day with the same 3 CDs in the 5-disc changer the entire time, you’re officially in a rut. You start to enter that dark, dark, “everything sounds the same” place. Because, let’s be honest, it does. Does it? I pulled through my pile of promos behind the counter and put on and pulled off a few of those. As I flip one of the promos over, I see a familiar logo and smile.

Enter…the new Brad Laner album coming out this Tuesday on Hometape Records (Megafaun, Bear in Heaven). Natural Selections is Laner’s second solo record, though he’s been on countless other records by countless other bands. He’s been active in the LA indie/DIY/shoegaze scene since the early 80s. On this stunning record, Laner has woven together layer upon layer of atmosphere, melody and space, creating an intensely rich pop record. We’re talking about some Brian Eno-level shit right here. The slippery hooks and overall psychedelic weirdness of the record are entirely worthy of nods from the Beatles camp. Just sit back and listen to those guitar lines. This is some other-wordly, ethereal pop here…my day is now complete. Thanks again Hometapes!

Brad Laner – Throat

Just a quick one today, time to close up and head home. Thanks for reading!

A couple months back I posted a video from the group Byrds of Paradise. Mention of a possible August show was made and I just realized that date was already upon us…tonight! I won’t bore you with more chatter on them (you can read a bit and see a video at this post), so instead I’ll post a video from the other band playing tonight, Eux Autres. Traveling through from San Francisco, this group has a very innocent, drifting indie pop sound very reminiscent of an era only a few years in the past, when twee was king. There’s a strong blanket of comfort that can be found in warm, fuzzy songs weaved together from an equally sad and beautiful place. Looking forward to checking these guys out tonight…

TONIGHT, Sunday, August 15th.
@ The Layabout, 2702 Lawndale Ave, Durham.
———================———
PINK FLAG (durham, nc)
BYRDS OF PARADISE (brooklyn, ny)
EUX AUTRES (san francisco, ca)
———================———
8pm. 5bucks.

Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=143664318991291&ref=ts

If you’ve been digging on some Dum Dum Girls and Best Coast lately, try your hand at a little Bitters. Mexican Summer Records put out this LP a couple months back and it sadly slipped just under the radar. These guys take the retro girl group sound to an even deeper, darker, more jagged place. Exploring the caverns and cold, dripping stalactites deep in the heart of the girl group tradition, they’ve isolated the feeling of despair in those original lyrics and moods, letting it bubble and spill right out into the open here. The guitars are layered, fuzzed and sharpened into a more post-punk manner creating an interesting juxtaposition between melody and wiry electricity. It might be a little chaotic, but it’s a good sound. Not recommended if you have a headache, but definitely recommended if you need to get lost in a little sound for a bit.

The Bitters – Travelin’ Girl from Mexican Summer on Vimeo.

Peter Case is a powerpop legend. Since the 70s he’s been a sharp, edgy, bubblegum force who has left countless souls scratching used bins for the surprisingly few pieces of original evidence he’s left out there on wax. He careened onto the scene around 1975 with like-minded poet drifters Paul Collins and Jack Lee in the untouchable, legendary pop phenomena The Nerves. The Nerves stirred up jittery, nervous energy with sugar-coated hooks. For me, alongside the equally great Big Star, this band embodies powerpop.

After Jack Lee dismissed himself from the group, Case and Collins crashed through a short stint in The Breakaways. Dissolving almost as quickly as it started, this band split into two groups who would go on to become highly influential within their own scenes and respected dearly by critics and contemporaries – The Plimsouls (Case) and Paul Collins’ Beat (Collins, of course). The Plimsouls would become jangly, college rock, powertwang darlings as Paul Collins’ Beat continued on as powerpop giants. DJ Bonebrake (X) and Ron Franklin sit in with Case on his newest swaggery, blues-rawk roots record brought to us by local label – Yep Roc Records.

Here’s a quick, little crash course in the history of powerpop, college rock and Mr. Case himself.

The Nerves – One Way Ticket [Alive Records comp, 2008] ::
Hanging on the Telephone (written by Lee then made famous by Blondie)

The Breakaways – Walking Out on Love: Sessions [Alive Records comp, 2009] ::
Many Roads to Follow (demo, Case/Collins)
Radio Station (Case)

The Plimsouls – The Plimsouls (Planet Records, 1981) ::
Zero Hour (Case)

The Plimsouls – Every at Once (Geffen, 1983) ::
A Million Miles Away (Case)

Peter Case –  WIG! (Yep Roc, 2010) ::
Banks of the River (Case/Franklin)

This Saturday (8/07) he’s playing the Carrboro Arts Center and despite being on a much anticipated vacation, I’m cursing myself for planning it over that weekend. Oops. Sorry! Yep Roc Records, please bring Peter Case back soon!

Put one of these in your head.

JULIAN LYNCH “IN NEW JERSEY” from OLDE ENGLISH SPELLING BEE on Vimeo.

It will help with your upcoming stressful weekend.
Olde English Spelling Bee Records brings the soothing, moving sounds of color in full smell stereo.

MENOMENA’s brand new Mines album is soothing my pop itch in a heavy way at the moment. In the past the band’s releases had not really grabbed me much, they’ve been pleasant enough, but there’s something about this new record that’s got me plugged into it and addicted. It’s dramatic, melodic, tight and works well swooning and contorting between thick-woven density and well-positioned space. A vocal stretch is pinged out into a smog of reverb only to be snapped back into place with a mechanically-tight drum flutter. Pianos echo, synths drape, guitars jut, drums drive and vocals soar. It’s just enough to both induce a daydream and pull you from it all in the same motion.

As a teaser, here are the first two tracks:
Menomena – Queen Black Acid
Menomena – Taos

Thanks to Spencer Krug and his SWAN LAKE, SUNSET RUBDOWN and WOLF PARADE projects, I’ve recently been peaking my head out of the psych/garage/punk ocean in which I’ve been stuck swimming. Like Krug’s pop explorations, these boys also have laid out an amazing snap back into modern, complex independent pop. The pieces are perfectly constructed together, supporting each other even when you can’t quite hear them. It’s almost as if a thin fabric has been stretched and pulled over the shuffling, shifting pieces, keeping them from scattering off into space. Mines is rooted, tightly contained chaos expressed through the voice of pop.

Thanks Phil for convincing me to give this another more intimate listen!