May 2011
Look for "Rick's Pick"

CLASSICAL
 
$21.98
 
Title:    Orchestral Works
Label:    Aeolus (dist. Albany)
Composer:    Johann Joachim Agrell
Performer:    Helsinki Baroque Orchestra / Aapo Hakkinen
ISBN:    9786314088859
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00426798100478
Prod.#:    BESAALOS10047
Cat.#:    AE-10047
Period:    Baroque
Genre:    Classical
Release type:    New
Comments:    Uppsala, Sweden is hardly known today as a hotbed of compositional activity during the baroque period; nor is the name of Johann Joachim Agrell known much today at all--only a handful of recordings of his works are available. This new one is among the best. It includes three concertos (one for oboe, one for violin, and one double concerto for harpsichord and flute) along with three orchestral sinfonias, all of which are delightful if not necessarily hugely innovative for the time. The playing by the Helsinki Baroque Orchestra and soloists is excellent. (RA)
 
$18.98
 
Title:    Spanish Music for Classical Guitar
Label:    Telarc
Composer:    Isaac Albeniz
Performer:    David Russell
ISBN:    9786314154219
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00888072327122
Prod.#:    BECDTELA32712
Cat.#:    TEL-32712-02
Period:    Romantic
Genre:    Classical
Release type:    New
Comments:    Guitarist David Russell's output in recent years has been largely devoted to fairly predictable material, but he plays these familiar pieces with unusual conviction and insight. This is certainly true of his new album, a collection of brief pieces by Spanish composer Isaac Albeniz. They include extracts from his Suite Espanola No. 1, Doze Piezas Caracteristicas, and Recuerdos de Viaje, among others; not all were originally written for guitar, but good luck guessing which those are--Russell plays all of them with such authority that they sound as if they were not only written for guitar, but for him specifically. (RA)
 
$17.98
 
Title:    The Bach Family Album
Label:    Centaur (dist. Qualiton)
Composer:    Various Composers
Performer:    Aulos Ensemble
ISBN:    9786313942602
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00044747306827
Prod.#:    BECDCENT3068
Cat.#:    CRC 3068
Period:    Classical
Genre:    Classical
Release type:    New
Comments:    The name "Bach" is so intimately associated with the baroque period that it can be easy to forget that Bach's sons--many of them quite prolific composers--inhabited a very different musical world and contributed significantly to its development. On this album we hear Johann Christian, Johann Christoph Friedrich, and the famous Carl Philipp Emanual Bach helping to usher in the classical period; their chamber pieces are separated by brief selections from J.S. Bach's Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach. The Aulos Ensemble, always reliable, is in truly rare form on this marvelous disc, and the pieces they've chosen are consistently excellent. Highly recommended to all classical collections. (RA)
 
$18.99
 
Title:    Que je chatoulle ta fossette: Danceries
Label:    Ricercar (dist. Allegro)
Composer:    Pierre Attaingnant
Performer:    Doulce Memoire
ISBN:    9786313643981
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    05400439002944
Prod.#:    BECDRICE294
Cat.#:    RIC 294
Period:    Renaissance
Genre:    Classical
Release type:    New
Comments:    It's not actually clear that the dance tunes and songs collected here were written by Pierre Attaingnant; what is known is that he published them, and in the 16th century such legal niceties as authorial attribution had something of a tendency to be honored in the breach. Whether he wrote them or not, we still owe a great debt of gratitude to Attaingnant for printing and preserving them, and to the very fine Doulce Memoire ensemble for recording them with such joyful vigor. Recommended to all early music collections. (RA)
 
$17.99
 
Title:    Musical Humors & Lamentations
Label:    Etcetera (dist. Allegro)
Composer:    Various Composers
Performer:    L'Art du Bois
ISBN:    9786314216405
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    08711801102894
Prod.#:    BECDETCE1418
Cat.#:    KTC 1418
Period:    Rennaissance/Baroque
Genre:    Classical
Release type:    New
Comments:    This is a thoroughly enjoyable collection of sonatas, airs, divisions, and other tidbits from English composers of the 16th and 17th centuries: familiar names include Purcell, Dowland, Holborne, and Blow; less familiar ones include Thomas Robinson and Francesco Corbetta. L'Art du Bois is a six-piece ensemble consisting of three recorders, two lutes, and a viola da gamba, and their playing is exquisite; the tunes are lovely, light and lively -- none of the melancholy for which some of these composers were known and celebrated. (RA)
 
$14.97
 
Title:    Paul Galbraith Performs Mozart, Bach & Britten
Label:    Mashulka Productions
Composer:    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; Benjamin Britten; J. S. Bach
Performer:    Paul Galbraith
UPC:    610074266952
Cat.#:    383043
Period:    Various
Genre:    Classical
Release type:    New
Comments:    Paul Galbraith plays a custom-designed eight-string guitar that he holds upright, like a cello, which makes for an arresting visual. But the playing itself is what counts, and on this very carefully-designed program his playing is absolutely stellar. Benjamin Britten's Nocturnal after John Dowland is bracketed by transcriptions of a Mozart sonata and one of Bach's cello suites, and the program ends with three lovely "encores" (by Albeniz, Ravel, and Bach). Galbraith's gorgeous tone and impeccable technique are breathtaking throughout; this is a brilliant, brilliant recording. (RA)
 
$27.98
 
Title:    Complete Flute Quartets
Label:    Fuga Libre (dist. Allegro)
Composer:    Ferdinand Ries
Performer:    Oxalys
ISBN:    9786314166274
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    05400439005761
Prod.#:    BECDFGAL576
Cat.#:    FUG576
Period:    Romantic
Genre:    Classical
Release type:    New (2-discs)
Comments:    Ferdinand Ries really never had a chance of escaping the shadow of Beethoven (his rough contemporary), even if he had been a comparable talent. He wasn't, but he was still a very fine composer, and this two-disc collection of his complete flute quartets is delightful. Oxalys plays on modern instruments, but flutist Toon Fret's instrument is a transitional wooden one with what looks like a full set of keys; this gives his instrument a slightly unusual, rather fruity tone, one that complements the music beautifully. Recommended to all classical collections. (RA)
 
$62.94
 
Title:    The Complete Early Divertimenti
Label:    Bis (dist. Qualiton)
Composer:    Franz Joseph Haydn
Performer:    Haydn Sinfonietta Wien / Simon Standage
ISBN:    9786314189600
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00675754030889
Prod.#:    BECDBIS 18068
Cat.#:    BIS-CD-1806/08
Period:    Classical
Genre:    Classical
Release type:    Boxed Set (5-discs)
Comments:    This five-disc boxed set, comprised of recordings made between 1993 and 2009 (most of them previously released but some not), constitutes the first-ever complete collection of Haydn's early divertimenti, in chronological order. The great Simon Standage leads the Haydn Sinfonietta Wien in spirited performances that do not, to my ear, stay as perfectly and consistently in tune as one would expect. But the price is right and the format is very well suited to examination by students of the classical period. Recommended with only slight reservations. (RA)
 
$17.98
 
Title:    A Midsummer Night's Dream
Label:    Glossa Cabinet (dist. Qualiton)
Composer:    Felix Mendelssohn
Performer:    Orchestra of the 18th Century; Gubenkian Choir / Franz Bruggen
ISBN:    9786314199791
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00675754031299
Prod.#:    BECDGLSA81101
Cat.#:    GCD C81101
Period:    Romantic
Genre:    Classical
Release type:    Reissue
Comments:    The Glossa label's Cabinet series is bringing some wonderful older recordings back to market, none more so than this excellent period-instrument account (originally issued in 1997) of Mendelssohn's overture and incidental music to A Midsummer Night's Dream. It's from this suite of pieces that the famous "Wedding March" comes, but the rest of the music is every bit as enjoyable, and Franz Bruggen leads the Orchestra of the 18th Century through a very fine rendition. Highly recommended to any library that doesn't already own the original recording. (RA)
 
$47.97
 
Title:    The Victoria Collection
Label:    Coro (dist. Allegro)
Composer:    Tomas Luis de Victoria
Performer:    The Sixteen / Harry Christophers
ISBN:    9786314165734
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00828021608926
Prod.#:    BECDCOOR16089
Cat.#:    COR16089
Period:    Renaissance
Genre:    Classical
Release type:    Boxed Set (4-discs)
Comments:    Those libraries that don't already own all previous releases by The Sixteen (or that are missing the four included in this box: Call of the Beloved, Mystery of the Cross, Requiem 1605, and Devotion to Our Lady) should jump to take advantage of this midpriced reissue set. Not only does it focus on the work of one of Spain's most thrilling composers, but it showcases one of England's finest Renaissance specialist choirs. The Sixteen's blend is colorful and bright, its intonation always above reproach, and its feeling for this repertoire matched only, perhaps, by that of the Tallis Scholars. (RA)
COUNTRY/FOLK
 
$15.98
 
Title:    Looking Glass
Label:    Topic
Artist:    Fay Hield
ISBN:    9786313766369
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00714822057325
Prod.#:    BECDTOPI573
Cat.#:    TSCD573
Genre:    Folk
Release type:    New
Comments:    Fay Hield may not be a household name in the U.S., but on the strength of her first solo CD (after a couple of releases as a member of the a capella quartet The Witches of Elswick), she really ought to be. Her voice is sharp, clear, and powerful, and her song choices are flawless; for this program she dug deeply into a variety of old printed songbooks, and worked with several collaborators (notably multi-instrumentalist Jon Boden and fiddler Sam Sweeney) to create new arrangements for them. The result is brilliant, and should be picked up by all folk collections. (RA)
 
$17.98
 
Title:    Fly Down Little Bird
Label:    Appleseed Records
Artist:    Mike Seeger and Peggy Seeger
ISBN:    9786314130091
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00611587112521
Prod.#:    BECDAPPL1125
Cat.#:    APR CD 1125
Genre:    Folk Music
Release type:    New
Comments:    This wonderful recording features siblings Mike and Peggy Seeger singing songs they first learned as children growing up in a family of folk musicologists. Recorded not long before Mike Seeger died in 2009, these were mostly recorded in Mike’s study, and have the feel of a Seeger family singalong. The fare is classic Americana - Appalachian songs originally performed by Bascom Lamar Lunsford, folk songs collected by John and Alan Lomax, and other delights. It’s like Mike invited you over to his house to hear him pick a few tunes with his sister Peggy. A true joy from beginning to end. Very highly recommended. (GH)
 
$16.98
 
Title:    Shake 'Em on Down: A Tribute to Mississippi Fred McDowell
Label:    Stony Plain
Artist:    Rory Block
ISBN:    9786314192761
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00772532134422
Prod.#:    BECDSTON21344
Cat.#:    SPCD1344
Genre:    Blues
Release type:    New
Comments:    Multiple-award winner Block treats us to some extraordinary blues guitar on this passionate tribute to blues icon Mississippi Fred McDowell. Mixing McDowell’s songs with her originals, this tribute honors McDowell while showcasing Block’s slide and acoustic guitar work. Another stellar example of why Rory Block is one of the finest guitarists and singers playing the blues today. Recommended. (GH)
 
$14.95
 
Title:    Old-Time Smoky Mountain Music
Label:    Great Smoky Mountains Association
Artist:    Various Artists
UPC:    200923250111
Cat.#:    200923
Genre:    Folk
Release type:    Compilation
Comments:    In 1939, linguist Joseph Sargent Hall brought a portable recording device into the newly created Smoky Mountain National Park to document the once-isolated region’s folk traditions. Though primarily interested in spoken word traditions, he also recorded many ballads and tunes originally from the British Isles, local ballads, American folk songs, and commercial songs learned from 78 rpm recordings. The audio quality is better than some of the field recordings of the era and the selections provide a well-rounded perspective on the wide range of music those living in the Park region were listening to and playing in 1939. (CLHD)
 
$13.00
 
Title:    Barn Doors and Concrete Floors
Label:   
Artist:    Israel Nash Gripka
Cat.#:   
Genre:    Americana
Release type:    New
Comments:    Israel Nash Gripka brings an impressive lineage to the table - an Ozark native, his daddy was a Baptist preacher with a record collection that included Neil Young, the Who, the Rolling Stones, and gospel music. You can hear all of these influences filtering through Gripka’s story-song narratives. He’s a storyteller, to be sure, but delivers his tales via an electric/Americana band that sounds like Tonight’s the Night-era Neil Young. The album’s title refers to the fact it was recorded in a barn, which gives it the slightly- sloppy-but-engaging feel of the Stones' Exile On Main Street. And just to add another comparison to the list, Gripka’s songs have the power and energy of early Whiskytown or the Old 97’s. Highly recommended. (GH)
 
$15.99
 
Title:    Guitar Laboratory
Label:    Selectone (dist. Allegro)
Artist:    Steve Wariner
ISBN:    9786314093808
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00826411201122
Prod.#:    BECDSLCT2011
Cat.#:   
Genre:    Country & Western
Release type:    New
Comments:    Wariner usually sings on his albums, but here it’s all instrumental. He got the idea to play mad scientist in his studio, and uses a batch of different guitars in every style he likes. Each track is different, with the results a stylistic and virtuosic showcase for Wariner. While all the tunes are broadly country-based, he veers into rockabilly and Hawaiian, as well as territory formerly inhabited by James Burton, Hank Garland, Chet Atkins, and other heroes. Guests include Paul Yandell and Leon Rhodes. Fun and mellow, this one is for summer evenings in the back yard. (JW)
JAZZ
 
$13.98
 
Title:    Disney Jazz Volume 1: Everybody Wants to be a Cat
Label:    Walt Disney/Universal
Artist:    Various Artists
ISBN:    9786313945528
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00050087134044
Prod.#:    BECDUMG D000312602
Cat.#:    D000312602
Genre:    Jazz
Release type:    New
Comments:    With their catchy melodies and their widespread popularity, Disney tunes have long been easy targets for jazz interpretations. Indeed, John Coltrane covered the Mary Poppins song “Chim Chim Cheree” in 1965. Everybody Wants to be a Cat: Disney Jazz, Vol. 1, is an officially sanctioned set of Disney covers by a roster of contemporary jazz stars. Arrangements include a Dave Brubeck trio version of “Someday My Prince Will Come,” an intriguing Kurt Rosenwinkel guitar trio take on “Feed The Birds,” Esperanza Spalding’s typically unique interpretation of “Chim Chim Cheree,” plus other small group, vocal, and big band numbers. Overall, a nice collection with plenty of memorable moments. (I would be remiss if I didn’t take this opportunity to plug producer Hal Willner’s 1989 Disney set, Stay Awake, which stands as one of my favorite “various artists” recordings of all time. Still widely available, this brilliant compilation inlcudes Sun Ra doing “Pink Elephants on Parade,” Tom Waits’ dark deconstruction of “Heigh Ho,” NRBQ’s buoyant “Whistle While You Work,” The Replacement’s giddy version of “Cruella De Ville,” plus other works by Bill Frisell, Betty Carter, James Taylor, Bonnie Raitt, Los Lobos, and others. Oh, there’s also Aaron Neville’s version of “The Mickey Mouse March,’ which always brings a smile to this former Guest Mousekateer’s face.) (GH)
 
$11.98
 
Title:    Perpetual Motion
Label:    Greenleaf Music
Artist:    Donny McCaslin
ISBN:    9786314013271
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00186980000176
Prod.#:    BECDGENL1017
Cat.#:    1017
Genre:    Jazz
Release type:    New
Comments:    McCaslin seems to want lots of variety, and he gets it on his latest release. He combines tenor sax balladry with a dose of funk, an ingestion of fusion, and an undercurrent of electronics to create a smorgasbord of soundscapes that keep you listening for what’s next. The musicians vary, with two drummers and two pianists, but the switches add to the motion that McCaslin wants to suggest in these mostly original compositions. Thematic linkages from piece to piece help create a unified experience. The result is perpetually enjoyable. (JW)
 
$14.95
 
Title:    Arc Suite T/Pi T/Po
Label:   
Artist:    Mario Pavone
UPC:    884501389044
Cat.#:    PSR #061010
Genre:    Jazz
Release type:    New
Comments:    Having worked with Anthony Braxton and Bill Dixon, bassist Mario Pavone has been a mainstay in avant-garde jazz circles for decades. Here he assembles a sextet that continues to push boundaries but echoes more mainstream jazz ideas as well. Tenor saxophonists Tony Malaby and Jimmy Green interweave their complex lines while Peter Madsen takes a more melodic approach on piano. Pavone holds the swirling affair together, and the sound brings to mind jazz noir and film music placed in an experimental context. Musical light and dark, sun and shade combine to create mystery. Nicely done. (JW)
 
$15.98
 
Title:    Sign of Life
Label:    Savoy Jazz (dist. Fontana)
Artist:    Bill Frisell
ISBN:    9786314202484
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00795041781826
Prod.#:    BECDSAVO17818
Cat.#:    SVY17818
Genre:    Jazz
Release type:    New
Comments:    Once again, guitarist and composer Bill Frisell brings together an unusual cast of supporting players to create a beautifully twisted take on avant-jazz-country-classical music. His style is never the same from one album to the next, but it is always instantly recognizable, and there seems always to be at its core an expansive and deeply goodhearted attitude towards the world. On Sign of Life he is helped by violinist Jenny Sheinman, violist Eyvind Kang, and cellist Hank Roberts; you'll hear hints of the blues, of traditional country music, of classical minimalism, and of edgy avant-gardism, but what you'll mostly hear is one of the most gifted and unique musical minds to have emerged in America in the last fifty years. (RA)
 
$18.98
 
Title:    Night Song
Label:    ECM
Artist:    Ketil Bjornstad; Svante Henryson
ISBN:    9786314096205
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00602527095790
Prod.#:    BECDUMG B001523602
Cat.#:    2108
Genre:    Jazz
Release type:    New
Comments:    Jazz? Eh, not really. What pianist Ketil Bjornstad and cellist Svante Henryson have created on Night Song is something that doesn't fit comfortably in any specific musical category: at times it sounds like Brahms, at others it sounds like Brian Eno, and at others it might make you think of a very subdued version of Keith Jarrett or a less musically perverse Eric Satie. What it really is, quite frankly, is perfect rainy-day-with-a-book music, and I mean that in the best possible way. (RA)
 
$18.98
 
Title:    Sophisticated Ladies
Label:    EmArcy
Artist:    Charlie Haden and Quartet West
ISBN:    9786314182342
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00602527508160
Prod.#:    BECDUMG B001534702
Cat.#:    001534702
Genre:    Jazz
Release type:    New
Comments:    For this recording, bassist Charlie Haden called up a bunch of female vocalists with whom he had long wanted to work--Melody Gardot, Norah Jones, Renee Fleming, Cassandra Wilson, Diana Krall, and his wife Ruth Cameron--and invited them to record an album of standards with his Quartet West (and, on several tracks, strings). The result is an unusually warm, sumptuous, and frankly sexy album. Neither the songs nor the singers are particularly torchy or seductive, but there's a powerful and pervasive feeling of languorous intimacy on the vocal selections, a feeling that is nicely counterbalanced by the quartet's more uptempo instrumental tracks. Brilliant. (RA)
ROCK/POP
 
$13.98
 
Title:    Many Hands: Family Music for Haiti
Label:    SPV
Artist:    Various Artists
ISBN:    9786313758005
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00881626932322
Prod.#:    BECDSPVR269323
Cat.#:    STR-01
Genre:    Children's Music
Release type:    Compilation
Comments:    Many Hands: Family Music for Haiti is loaded with diverse music for kids of all ages and tastes. The disc features some of the usual children’s-music suspects (Dan Zanes, They Might Be Giants, and Pete Seeger), as well as Haitian performers (Jerrice Baptiste and Bonga and the Vodou Drums of Haiti), many other lesser known musicians (Emily Curtis and Recess Monkey), and artists more known for adult material (Jonathan Coulton and Baby Gramps). It’s a delightful mix for a good cause (all after-tax profits are donated to the Haitian People’s Support Project) and is sure to entertain both kids and adults. (CLHD)
 
$14.98
 
Title:    Left By Soft
Label:    Merge (dist. ADA)
Artist:    David Kilgour
ISBN:    9786314207373
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00673855041926
Prod.#:    BECDMERG50419
Cat.#:    MRG419
Genre:    Pop/Rock Music
Release type:    New
Comments:    In a music culture where the most buzzed-about bands are forgotten soon after appearing, an artist like New Zealander David Kilgour is rare. Since starting The Clean with his brother, Hamish Kilgour, in 1978, he has been writing consistently high quality songs, not to mention his exquisitely crafted guitar work. An indie pioneer, his work is not just influential, but arguably the standard by which all New Zealand bands are measured. This album, his first “full band” venture since the excellent Frozen Orange (2004), features a mix of elegant country-rockers and understated, instrumental gems featuring his effortless guitar mastery. Some 30 years on, his brilliant streak continues. (TWB)
 
$18.98
 
Title:    Joined At The Hip
Label:    Telarc
Artist:    Pinetop Perkins & Willie
ISBN:    9786313652310
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00888072318502
Prod.#:    BECDTELA31850
Cat.#:    TEL-31850-02
Genre:    Blues
Release type:    New
Comments:    Sad to say, this was Perkins’ last release before his recent passing at age 97. By this point he was a touch slower on the keys than he used to be, but just as lively, just as strong on both piano and vocals. Partnered with Smith (they go back to Muddy Waters’ band in 1969) on harmonica and sharing vocals, they tear up the joint with hard-core Chicago-style blues. Nearly half the songs are Smith originals, with a mix of older tunes. A great backing band turns the duo into a blues machine that only death could stop. An excellent album. (JW)
 
$15.99
 
Title:    White Noise Sound
Label:    Alive (dist. Redeye)
Artist:    White Noise Sound
ISBN:    9786313812653
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00095081011120
Prod.#:    BECDALVR111
Cat.#:    ALIVE0111
Genre:    Pop/Rock Music
Release type:    New
Comments:    If you didn’t know otherwise, you might think this is a recently discovered lost recording of an early Creation Records band. Touchstones include the Jesus & Mary Chain and My Bloody Valentine, but also Spacemen 3 and 70s-era Suicide. Produced with the help of Pete Kember (AKA Sonic Boom) of Spacemen 3 and Cian Ciaran of Super Furry Animals, the album features gauzy, layered shoegaze pop, some of it almost Eno-esque ambient (but more acid-hazy), along with some gritty, smoldering rockers infused with feedback and even dance beats at times. This band has intentionally stayed under the radar, honing its sound. Their days of remaining unknown may be numbered. (TWB)
 
$13.98
 
Title:    Losing Sleep
Label:    Downtown (dist. Fontana)
Artist:    Edwyn Collins
ISBN:    9786314122522
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00602527487892
Prod.#:    BECDDWTNHVNLP81CD
Cat.#:    81
Genre:    Pop/Rock Music
Release type:    New
Comments:    Edwyn Collins suffered a pair of strokes at age 45 and lost the ability to speak, read, and write. Six years later, after intense rehab, the former Orange Juice frontman has come back with a clear-eyed album of middle age. He brings, as always, his 1960s-influenced pop hooks, but this time he marries them to songs with titles like “What Is My Role?”. Collins wrestles with the big questions in life and makes the struggle sound catchy. (MC)
 
$15.99
 
Title:    Labour of Lust
Label:    Yep Roc (dist. Redeye)
Artist:    Nick Lowe
ISBN:    9786314102159
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00634457262126
Prod.#:    BECDYP 2621
Cat.#:    YEP2621
Genre:    Pop/Rock Music
Release type:    Reissue
Comments:    Nick Lowe has been recording for such a long time that it’s not surprising that his back catalogue is a bit of a mess, though it is odd that the album with his biggest hit (“Cruel To Be Kind") stayed out of print for so long. There are only a couple of bonus tracks on this reissue, but the re-mastered sound allows us to relive the sound of his band Rockpile in its full flower, not to mention classic pop songwriting. (SA)
 
$16.98
 
Title:    Wuppdeckmischmampflow
Label:    Kompakt (dist. Forced Exposure)
Artist:    Robag Wruhme
ISBN:    9786313996025
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00880319046124
Prod.#:    BECDKPKT084
Cat.#:    KOMPAKT CD84
Genre:    Electronica
Release type:    Compilation
Comments:    I have no idea what kind of DJ Robag Wruhme (real name Gabor Schablitzki) is when he’s in a club. He’s worked as one for quite some time, notably as one half of the Wighnomy Brothers, and also as recording artist. But this mix CD proves that he’s a magician at crafting a home listening experience from disparate sources. The layering and mixing of the different tracks is outstanding, and the mixture of styles, from minimalist techno to almost ambient, combining bigger names (Villalobos, Tiefschwarz) with less dance-oriented artists (like Four Tet), makes for a consistently fascinating hour. (SA)
 
$12.98
 
Title:    Yuck
Label:    Fat Possum (dist. Red)
Artist:    Yuck
ISBN:    9786314062538
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00767981123721
Prod.#:    BECDFTPS1237
Cat.#:    FP1237
Genre:    Pop/Rock Music
Release type:    New
Comments:    In the usual pantheon of great guitarists, Dinosaur Jr.’s J Mascis never gets mentioned alongside Hendrix or Clapton. He may lack the flashy technique of Eddie Van Halen, but his style is so distinctive and influential that it can be heard in a new generation of indie rockers. Yuck is the latest band to bear his stamp. Yes, they get all sweet and melodic in the middle of their self-titled debut, perhaps to offer a needed break. But the dominant aesthetic is guitar fuzz and squeal a la Mascis, culminating in the sprawling, calamitous “Rubber.” (MC)
 
$13.98
 
Title:    James Blake
Label:    A&M
Artist:    James Blake
ISBN:    9786314154653
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00602527554709
Prod.#:    BECDUMG ATLAS02CD
Cat.#:    ATLAS02CD
Genre:    Dance, DJ
Release type:    New
Comments:    It was bound to happen that someone would take the sounds of British dubstep and apply it to pop music, and it might as well have been James Blake. This pop music is not exactly destined for mainstream success, but Blake uses his voice in very interesting ways, and the cut-up textures will appeal to listeners who are bored with chart hits. (SA)
WORLD/ETHNIC
 
$11.98
 
Title:    Riddimentary
Label:    Greensleeves (dist. Fontana)
Artist:    Diplo
ISBN:    9786314063030
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00054645520027
Prod.#:    BECDGNSV5200
Cat.#:    GS5200
Genre:    Reggae
Release type:    Compilation
Comments:    Diplo is known as a DJ, a producer (M.I.A.), and as one half of Major Lazer (with DJ Switch). Here he curates a collection of mostly dancehall tracks from the reggae label Greensleeves, and, while it gives us some insight into Diplo’s taste in music, the album works just fine as an armchair DJ set as well. (SA)
 
$45.98
 
Title:    Mr. Bongo: Latin Beats
Label:    Indie Europe/Zoom (dist. Allegro)
Artist:    Various Artists
ISBN:    9786313182787
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00711969114225
Prod.#:    BECDIDEUMRBCD70
Cat.#:    MRBCD070
Genre:    Latin
Release type:    Boxed Set (8-discs)
Comments:    You might expect a sprawling, eight-disc compilation of "beats" from all across Latin America to be a bit uneven, and you'd be exactly right. But at this price, you can take the duller selections along with the stellar material (notably the full disc of Cachao y Su Orquestra and some of the tracks from the two discs of modern remixes) and still end up with good value for money. And not even the duller stuff is exactly dull--it's just not quite stellar. The lack of liner notes or musician credits means that this set won't serve academic research functions very well, but it does offer a fine listening experience. (RA)
 
$19.98
 
Title:    Mama, I'll Be Long Gone: The Complete Recordings of Amede Ardoin
Label:    Tompkins Square (dist. Fontana)
Artist:    Amede Ardoin
ISBN:    9786314089740
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00894807002554
Prod.#:    BECDTPKS2554
Cat.#:    TSQ 2554
Genre:    Cajun/Zydeco
Release type:    Compilation (2-discs)
Comments:    Singer and accordion player Amede Ardoin is generally considered one of the true fathers of Cajun and zydeco music, alongside fiddler Dennis McGee (with whom he frequently collaborated). By some strange and wonderful twist of fate, 34 of the 78-rpm recordings he made during the late 1920s and 1030s still survive, and all are presented on this two-disc set; the sound quality is primitive but surprisingly clean, and the music is hair-raisingly raw and eerie. Strongly recommended to all folk and ethnomusicology collections, and to anyone with a deep love of Cajun music. (More casual fans may find this stuff to be rather rough going.) (RA)
 
$14.99
 
Title:    Jahbulon
Label:    M.O.D. Technologies (dist. Redeye)
Artist:    Method of Defiance
ISBN:    9786313842537
ISBN-10:   
UPC:    00859561002028
Prod.#:    BECDMODT0002
Cat.#:    MOD0002
Genre:    Pop/Rock Music
Release type:    New
Comments:    Bassist/producer Bill Laswell has released dozens and dozens of albums since the 80s, juggling and/or ignoring genre labels – dub, worldbeat, jazz, hiphop, funk, ambient, etc. He’s been kind of quiet for the last five or six years, but he seems to be using Method of Defiance as an umbrella project (not just a record label, but not quite a band) for a new phase of his career, mixing some familiar artists, like Bernie Worrell, and some new faces, notably vocalist Dr. Israel here. In a way this is more of the same from Laswell, but this album and its sequel Incunabula sound deeper and more focused than some of his past work. (SA)

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