Best Ever Albums

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

Tap — Fri, 8 May 2026 22:42:07 GMT

Author: Tap

Posted: 05/09/2026 02:42

This week's got some good action, there's Fire-Toolz showing up on Warp Records, أح�...د [Ahmed] beginning to tackle the discography of Thelonious Monk, Alabaster DePlume and Vladislav Delay Quintet separately being like "that's not enough, jazz fans need EVEN MORE", half an Animal Collective deciding to do something under the name Croz Boyce, and a lot of the other stuff mentioned above (I'm really curious about that Cola one).

But my big suggestion is Guttersnipe!!

There's a lot of stuff out there in the world that I've seen from people that I have not liked and that's been true for a while but it's really been getting to me lately. This kind of cosmic noise rock of shrieking guitar drum energy feels like the noise that's been in my head and it's been a relief to see it out in the world, maybe you'll feel the same!!

Guttersnipe - Extinction Burst!
https://guttersnipe.bandcamp.com/album/extinction-burst

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

MadhattanJack — Fri, 8 May 2026 01:05:45 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 05/08/2026 05:05

I guess the Big Rock Album Releases tomorrow are the new Broken Social Scene LP, Remember The Humans, and Social Distortion's new album Born to Kill? Normally they try to avoid these situations where similarly-named bands release albums on the same day, but we're fully into the TikTok Era of Modern Music now, so I guess nothing matters anymore.

There's also the new LP from Aldous Harding, Train on the Island — the album cover photo has her face hidden by blue paint, but it's on 4AD so I guess we have to give them the benefit of the doubt there. The Lemon Twigs have a new album called Look For Your Mind!, which strikes me as more of the same from them, though that's not necessarily a bad thing. And speaking of lemons, Lemoncello are releasing their second LP, Perfect Place, continuing their effort to drag Irish/Celtic folk music kicking and screaming into the synthesizer-and-beatbox era. Finally, for the geriatric set there's a new Midge Ure album, A Man of Two Worlds (no BC link yet); early-80s post-punkers The Loft are back with a second post-reunion LP, Badges, which actually sounds really good; and last but not least, Amy Grant has a new album called The Me That Remains, her first LP in 13 years. Hard to believe her first album came out almost 50 years ago! And I still haven't heard it.

Of course, all of this is of little consequence to me personally, as I'm mostly just concerned with The Asteroid No.4's new album, In Praise of Shadows, and The Haunted Youth's Boys Cry Too. Which of these is the most recommendable? Which one am I most excited about as a music listener and human torque converter? And which is likely to have the most impact on global culture and pop music history in general? (If any?)

Honestly, I think it's a toss-up in nearly every respect.

Boys Cry Too is the more immediate and ear-grabby of the two, but In Praise of Shadows (which is somewhat more subtle) will probably be more rewarding after repeat listens. Haunted Youth frontman/singer (and only stable member) Joachim Liebens has a better voice for the material than the Asteroids' Scott Vitt, but the Asteroids have always been good vocal arrangers, and Liebens, not so much. His two or three emo-screamo moments on this album are also a bit questionable in my opinion, like he's just trying too hard. The Asteroids have been around a long time and are more experienced musicians and songwriters, both in the psychedelia and shoegaze genres, and while that doesn't make them better, there's definitely more going on in there. Finally, in terms of titling and cover art, I'd have to give the nod to The Haunted Youth — neither of these album covers are spectacularly great, but the broken-heart motif has more visual impact and so does the title (even though some people will assume it's a reference to The Cure, which it probably is). Meanwhile, "In Praise of Shadows" has been used as an album title by well over a dozen bands prior to this album, whereas "Boys Cry Too" has been used by only two, maybe three others.

So... I'd have to conclude that Boys Cry Too is more recommendable to most people who are likely to have read this far, but I'll probably have In Praise of Shadows ranked higher on my 2026 year chart... eventually. Whereas if you've skipped all the explanatory material above and are just reading this one paragraph, you'll probably like the new album by Quebecois post-punk band Cola, entitled Cost of Living Adjustment. More on them in a future post, maybe! 😄

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

Repo — Thu, 7 May 2026 18:11:58 GMT

Author: Repo

Posted: 05/07/2026 22:11

RELEASE DAY EVE: May 8th, 2026.

Black Gaze: And the casements of the heavens were opened! ☂️

Det Hjemsokte Hjertet (2026) by Panopticon

Genesis 6:5. AND the Lord saw that the evil of the human creature was great on the earth
and that every scheme of his heart's devising was only perpetually evil.
AND the Lord regretted having made the human on earth and was grieved to the heart. (Robert Alter transl.)

Panopticon are right up there with Godspeed You! Black Emperor at constructing epic dystopian soundtracks for the fall of modern civilization. As I make like Noah and start building my own personal ark to bide out the forthcoming flood, I honestly cannot think of a better backdrop soundtrack than whatever Panopticon rains down on us tomorrow.

What May 8th, 2026 release(s) do YOU have your ears & heart set on when midnight strikes?! 🔭�'�

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

MadhattanJack — Thu, 7 May 2026 03:46:53 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 05/07/2026 07:46

Repo wrote:

How about unleashing that on Monday? 🤓

Good idea, so it's unfortunate that I ignored it and it's already Thursday. (I had to make an unforeseen out-of-town trip.) I will try to make up for it by posting this last-minute "quick list"...

Already in the BEA database, as of today:

Weird Nightmare, Hoopla: Solo power-pop guy from Toronto, a bit lo-fi and slightly chaotic in spots, but that's fine in this case. Some very catchy tunes on this record — it reminds me of those two Sharp Pins albums from last year, though it's more polished than the first one was, and not quite as exhuberant or Beatlesque. It's worth a listen, anyway.
Pope, BFM: These guys are from New Orleans, and this sort of starts out as a pop-punk record that gradually evolves/devolves (depending on your perspective) into a folk-rock, almost-Americana album over the course of 12 tracks, until it gets to the 13th when they somehow remember they're supposed to be a pop-punk band just in time for one last hurrah. The singer's voice is ideal for power-pop, but only about four tracks could be described as such. There are several good songs on this LP, but I have to admit I prefer those four, if only because the guy's voice sounds better on them. (If I had to compare his voice with someone else's, I'd probably go with Ben Gibbard from Death Cab for Cutie.) Unfortunately, "BFM" is the acronym for so many popular terms it's impossible to say what the title means.
Modern Woman: Johnny's Dreamworld: Bubbly art-pop from London. Definitely the best album cover of the bunch — it's quite appropriate too, since the image of women indulging in a violent altercation in the midst of a pastoral setting almost perfectly illustrates what this band is trying to do musically. That said, there's only one woman in the band, and she doesn't look all that modern to me.
Sub*T, How My Own Voice Sounds: I guess you could call this "grungepop," and it's not bad, but the singer's low-in-the-mix bored-whisper style just isn't appropriate for the hard-edged, guitar-oriented material. I guess that makes this the most appropriate album title of the bunch — I kept expecting her to start shouting or screaming, or doing something other than the bored whisper, but it just never happens. Some people will like it, but it just didn't quite work for me — it's sort of like what Pale Saints sounded like after Ian Masters left and Meriel Barham took over on vocals. I still bought the record, but it just wasn't them anymore.

The rest of 'em:

Goo, Oh Wow, Oh Well: Cheesy girlpunk from Keighley — not that cheesy girlpunk is necessarily bad. Keighley, I'm not so sure about.
Youth in Government, Silhouettes: DC-based self-professed somethingazer duo, but it's really just basic alt-rock with extra reverb. Nice production sound, actually.
Genre is Death, Attractive People: I agree that genre is death, that's why I'm so obsessed with what genre everything is. Anyway, this is a noisy post-punk sprechgesang band from NYC, but that doesn't mean you should drop everything and go check them out.
Blush., In The Grey: Kind of a shoegaze-pop act from Victoria, British Columbia that maybe wants to be more of a run-of-the-mill alt-rock act, but doesn't have the singer or lead guitarist they need to make the "leap." Some good moments in this one.
Mild Mannered, Living in Fear: Solo dronegazer dude from Chilliwack, British Columbia, who I like because he's apparently rather "left-leaning" and he's only asking for a dollar on Bandcamp for the whole album. Very cool-sounding. (Must be something in the air up there.)
A Lilac Decline, Eternity Bores Me: This is Cecilia Danell (it's an anagram!) who is from Sweden by way of Ireland, and is better known as a visual artist. I'm not going to say "for good reason," but I'm afraid she does paint better than she sings, and her backing band only partially makes up for it.
Cindy, Another Country: Slooooowwwww twee from San Franscisco. Not bad though, for what it is. (This is their fifth LP, so they must be doing something right.)
Above Me, Soften the Blows: Solo dreampop, male singer, also from San Francisco. (Must be something in the economy over there.) Not bad, but this guy's voice is very, very whispery, arguably too much so.

Anyway, Friday of this week, which is now tomorrow, is probably going to be the biggest release day of the year from my perspective, as it's quite possible that the two albums I'm most interested in will end up as #1 and #2 on my 2026 chart at the end of the year. Still, it's only May, so who knows. 🤔

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

Tap — Fri, 1 May 2026 21:40:03 GMT

Author: Tap

Posted: 05/02/2026 01:40

Repo wrote:

Honestly, between you & Tap, we may just have the BEST weekly roundup of new releases on the entire internet. 🥳

For real! It's great to see what you guys pull, feels like we get pretty good coverage here.

One other big rec for this week: Octo Octa - Sigils For Survival
https://octoocta.bandcamp.com/album/sigils-for-survival

Just some really great dance music here, with enough happening to keep the stationary entertained

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

Repo — Fri, 1 May 2026 07:37:42 GMT

Author: Repo

Posted: 05/01/2026 11:37

MadhattanJack wrote:

My problem this week is that I can't decide between my Top Three picks. I realize this is cheating, so I'm going to describe how each would be the pick-of-the-week if I had to decide based on one of three different "deciding factors" - most listenable, most interesting, and most everything else.

Nice categories! And I know you're just kidding around, but certainly NOT cheating. You're just an overachiever! I LOVE your weekly roundups! 🥰

Honestly, between you & Tap, we may just have the BEST weekly roundup of new releases on the entire internet. 🥳

MadhattanJack wrote:

So... again, sorry for cheating, but I just couldn't help myself. There were about ten more albums that were, uhh, just okay, good-but-not-great, so if anyone wants me to post those too, just say so.

How about unleashing that on Monday? 🤓

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

MadhattanJack — Fri, 1 May 2026 00:07:49 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 05/01/2026 04:07

I already mentioned the albums this week from Tori Amos, The Black Keys, Kacey Musgraves, American Football, Arcade Fire (sort of), and Super Furry Animals. I didn't mention the new one from Young The Giant because I honestly didn't think they were all that popular, but I guess I was wrong about that, sorry. As for the new Zara Larsson LP, I guess you'll just have to make up your own minds on that one...

In addition to those, for the 90's-era types out there, the Boo Radleys have a new one called In Spite of Everything. It's basically a straight-up pop album, but I like it better than their last one, which was also a straight-up pop album. And that's fine really, I just wish they would stop making straight-up pop albums. There are also new LPs by Laibach (Musick) and The Claypool-Lennon Delirium (The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy), which I'm sure are fantastic if you like those bands. (I don't dislike them, personally... they just don't quite do it for me.)

My problem this week is that I can't decide between my Top Three picks. I realize this is cheating, so I'm going to describe how each would be the pick-of-the-week if I had to decide based on one of three different "deciding factors" - most listenable, most interesting, and most everything else.

Most Listenable: White Flowers, Dreams For Somebody Else. Normally this would be the easy #1 choice, except that this album isn't as good as their last one (Day by Day), so that's disappointing, but it's still pretty darn good. They're a male-female dreampop/trip-hop duo from Preston in the UK, and she's got one of those soft, breathy, waifish voices, but it doesn't sound totally like Portishead — more like Still Corners, or (if you must) Alvvays. I'm a sucker for this kind of stuff, and I know it, so I won't be miffed if nobody else likes it. (Okay, maybe a little.)

Most Interesting: Kind of unexpected, but there's another duo (who were apparently a trio until recently) called "youbet" who have a new self-titled LP, but it's not their debut, it's actually their third album. And yes, it's a terrible band name, since it doesn't just sound like an online betting platform, it is in fact an online betting platform. But the album is really cool, and very musical and clever — not quite early-XTC-style clever, but still pretty darn clever. According to Rolling Stone (paywalled), both band-members are music teachers, and one of their students went on to be a member of Geese, though I guess you'll have to be a Rolling Stone subscriber to find out which member of Geese it was and what they were supposed to be teaching them. Also, I'm pretty sure both members of youbet are trans/non-binary people, which I think makes them my all-time favorite trans/non-binary band ever (beating out Disiniblud by just a scoche). But maybe that only makes it all the more important that they get a better band name...?

Most Everything Else: Noveller, I Am the Weather. Sarah "Noveller" Lipstate hasn't made an album since 2021's Aphantasia, because she's been playing guitar in Iggy Pop's backing band and also doing soundtrack-type work, which has apparently allowed her to upgrade her home recording studio quite substantially. Her music is usually described as "effectronica," since she does it by manipulating dozens of guitar effects pedals, which (to me at least) makes her the Coolest Active Musician Today. Word is that this album is going to be less ambient and more "cinematic" and neo-classical, with percussion and even piano on some of the tracks. The only preview track, "The Girl Who Was Death," features Iggy on vocals — the first and only vocal ever to be heard on a Noveller album, and it's Iggy! Those of you who are into offbeat 60's British TV might also recognize that song title as having been the name of an episode of The Prisoner, and it's clearly intentional because there's another track on the LP called "Portmeirion," which is the name of the Welsh resort where The Prisoner was filmed. So, extra points for that.

So... again, sorry for cheating, but I just couldn't help myself. There were about ten more albums that were, uhh, just okay, good-but-not-great, so if anyone wants me to post those too, just say so. (This post is already way too long.) And next week will be even more problematic — new albums from two of my current-favorite bands in the world, The Asteroid No.4 and The Haunted Youth! How to choose between those two? It may be impossible.

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

MadhattanJack — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 22:01:09 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 05/01/2026 02:01

Repo wrote:

Quique is better than Loveless. Whew. That feels so good to get off my chest. I think I've been holding that in since 1993. Alright. Let's build some momentum on this ...

Honestly, I actually like Polyfusia more than Quique. And as for Loveless, I used to think it was overrated... but I kind of changed my mind later. (Probably because I learned what "overrated" really means!)

And if I were to be "brutally" honest (hopefully not to the point of offending you or anyone else), what I've heard of Sol.Hz sounds more like ambient dub to me than shoegaze, and you could probably say the same for some of their earlier stuff too. I like them, but compared to Jetman Jet Team... well, nobody really compares to Jetman Jet Team. What am I saying.

Tap wrote:

Ben Vida - Oblivion Seekers

Everyone knows I like anything with a 100% textual album cover, especially when it's a typewriter-style typeface... though I prefer it when the text is descriptive rather than just a lyric sheet. This record could also replace my hypnotherapist, which would save me quite a bit of money. I'll add it to my list! 😄

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

Repo — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 20:19:34 GMT

Author: Repo

Posted: 05/01/2026 00:19

Tap wrote:

My "suggestion" is that you should listen to

Ben Vida - Oblivion Seekers

And I put suggestion in quotes because it is not a suggestion, it is mandatory. Ben Vida's shift from weird psychoacoustic electronic headfuck activity into some really weird almost POP type of stuff is truly incredible and its some of the best stuff happening and everyone must listen because I have made it mandatory

https://benvida.bandcamp.com/album/oblivion-seekers

Ha! I'm on it! 🙌 😊

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

Tap — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 20:02:52 GMT

Author: Tap

Posted: 05/01/2026 00:02

Repo wrote:

RELEASE DAY EVE: May 1st, 2026.

Exhale & Let it All Out! 😮‍�'�

Sol.Hz (2026) by Seefeel

Deep breaths. Ok. I’m ready. Here goes…

Quique is better than Loveless. Whew. That feels so good to get off my chest. I think I've been holding that in since 1993. Alright. Let's build some momentum on this ...

Quique is better than Loveless!
Quique is better than Loveless!
Quique is better than Loveless!
Quique is better than Loveless!
Quique is better than Loveless!

So here's hoping to Seefeel dropping something even half as good tomorrow! 😇🙏 AND, just in case anyone is wondering, I actually prefer Isn't Anything and that You Made Me Realize EP over Loveless as well. Not that I don't love Loveless. I just love Loveless a little less.

What May 1st, 2026 release do YOU have your ears & heart set on when midnight strikes?! 🔭�'�

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

Repo — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 18:16:27 GMT

Author: Repo

Posted: 04/30/2026 22:16

RELEASE DAY EVE: May 1st, 2026.

Exhale & Let it All Out! 😮‍�'�

Sol.Hz (2026) by Seefeel

Deep breaths. Ok. I’m ready. Here goes…

Quique is better than Loveless. Whew. That feels so good to get off my chest. I think I've been holding that in since 1993. Alright. Let's build some momentum on this ...

Quique is better than Loveless!
Quique is better than Loveless!
Quique is better than Loveless!
Quique is better than Loveless!
Quique is better than Loveless!

So here's hoping to Seefeel dropping something even half as good tomorrow! 😇🙏 AND, just in case anyone is wondering, I actually prefer Isn't Anything and that You Made Me Realize EP over Loveless as well. Not that I don't love Loveless. I just love Loveless a little less.

What May 1st, 2026 release(s) do YOU have your ears & heart set on when midnight strikes?! 🔭�'�

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

MadhattanJack — Wed, 29 Apr 2026 22:55:22 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 04/30/2026 02:55

imacgill wrote:

Also, if I remember reading correctly they named their band after Echo & The Bunnymen's debut album which also does not have an image of a crocodile on it's cover.

I looked into this...

Most people wouldn't, of course, but this is just sort of "what I do." As it turns out, there are roughly a hundred recording artists on Discogs whose names contain the word "crocodile" in some way, shape, or form, and practically none of them have made albums with cover art featuring one or more crocodiles, or again, lizards of any kind.

I don't mean to derail the thread or anything, but honestly, I was astonished by this. What is it about crocodiles that causes bands to put the word in their band names but not images of them on album covers? And is this common for bands that name themselves after other animals? Or is it crocodile-specific?

If I had to some up with a theory, I'd say maybe the answer involves the process most bands go through in choosing a name. In my own experience, usually there's a meeting, often more than one, and some sort of list is produced, and the band members take names off the list in a process of elimination. So you don't necessarily end up with the best name, you end up with the one that nobody objects to, or that everyone objects to the least. You could easily end up being called "Crocodiles" if the people in the band keep suggesting names like "The Shite-Munching Morons" or "Holeface" and just won't stop. But with album covers, it's a completely different story — there's a lot of real work involved, which often costs real money, and it has to look good, so a lot of bands choose a more conservative approach and just use a group photo or something conventionally representational and, again, inoffensive.

I still don't like it, but I guess I shouldn't complain.

Anyway, I've been looking for surprise drops and other stuff that I missed from last week, at least among things that I personally might want to listen to, and surprisingly I haven't found any. There was a pretty decent album released yesterday by a (Canadian!) band, Ace of Wands, called Future Wave — it's sort of not-quite-prog, not-quite-post-punk, maybe a little 70s AOR, very nice recording, kinda-sorta quirky, but not really my thing genre-wise. Still, some people should like it. It's their third LP, though the previous two haven't made it into the BEA database, at least not yet. (It's probably the vocals, as is often the case - their singer doesn't seem to emote much.)

The big pop/rock releases this week will be the new albums from Tori Amos, The Black Keys, Kacey Musgraves, and American Football. Also, the "reimagined" version of Arcade Fire's Pink Elephant goes into general release, and there's a rarities album coming from Super Furry Animals. I'm not so interested in any of these, though word is that the Tori Amos album, In Times of Dragons, is one of her "weirder ones," and it appears to be some sort of long-form metaphor for the US political situation to boot. So I'll probably give that a listen at least. 😄

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

imacgill — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 23:00:08 GMT

Author: imacgill

Posted: 04/25/2026 03:00

[*]Crocodiles, Greetings From Hell: A long-running garage-punk duo from San Diego, Crocodiles have now made 9 albums and have yet to put an image of a crocodile — or any other lizard — on an album cover, or even a single or EP cover. C'mon guys, your records are a lot of fun and you sound pretty good, but put your money where your mouth is for once!

When I saw earlier today that this band is still together and releasing a new album I was surprised. I own a couple of their albums and saw them play live in 2011 when they opened for Dum Dum Girls (At the time Crocodiles singer Brandon Welchez was married to Dum Dum Girls Dee Dee Penny-since divorced). They had a real J&MC vibe going on in both their style and noise pop sound. Might check this album out now that I know they didn't drop pff the face of the earth. Also, if I remember reading correctly they named their band after Echo & The Bunnymen's debut album which also does not have an image of a crocodile on it's cover.

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

Tap — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 00:09:14 GMT

Author: Tap

Posted: 04/24/2026 04:09

Oh I forgot there's also Carla dal Forno and the OOIOO / Lightning Bolt split

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

MadhattanJack — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 23:53:29 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 04/24/2026 03:53

There's lots of good stuff this week, but right now I'm not hearing one particular great thing. That could change, but for the moment at least I'm sticking with my initial reactions, or whatever you'd call 'em. (Impulses? Gut feelings? Overweening tendencies?)

Tokyo Shoegazer, Remains: Look, they're shoegazers from Tokyo. It's right there in the name. No false advertising here, folks! This is my Pick of the Week, but just barely.
Sloome, Blue Fire Doom: Sloome is a shoegaze-pop band from Modesto, CA, and when I use the term "shoegaze pop," of course that's supposed to mean they're more shoegaze than pop. Otherwise, they'd be "popgaze." This band is right on the line between the two, so I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt, for now. They're really more like a "shoegaze power-pop" band, but you can't call them that because then you'd have to call some bands "power-popgaze" or even "powergaze," and that would just be silly. Another problem is that I just recently listened to the band Shoes, because of that new Gary Klebe album, so when I heard this Sloome LP it struck me as sounding a lot like what Shoes would have sounded like if they'd been a shoegaze band, but then people would insist on calling them "shoesgaze" just to be clever. So at some point, you really have to say enough is enough.
Misty Coast, Always Sun: Here's a nice dreampop (with just a touch of trip-hop) duo from Bergen, Norway, who were once in a band called The Megaphonic Thrift. This is their fifth album, and at this point I'd have to say they've surpassed both the Megaphonic Thrift and the Polyphonic Spree in terms of output quality.
Crocodiles, Greetings From Hell: A long-running garage-punk duo from San Diego, Crocodiles have now made 9 albums and have yet to put an image of a crocodile — or any other lizard — on an album cover, or even a single or EP cover. C'mon guys, your records are a lot of fun and you sound pretty good, but put your money where your mouth is for once!
Tempers, Delusion: This is a solo darkwave artist from NYC who sounds like she wanted to make a goth record, but her vocal tone lacks the necessary menace and "growl factor" for that, so she's calling it "low-lit poetic synth-pop." The important thing is that she tried, I guess... It's a pretty good album, and she even reminds me of Shana Falana a little bit, which is good... but for the next one I'd suggest she avoid self-labeling altogether.
Zin, Levitation Frequency: This is a stoner/grungegazey kinda band (duo?) from Pittsburgh, who sound like they might have been a screamo band at one point and the singer just couldn't take it anymore, so now he sounds like he's being slowly strangled over the course of the LP. They sound great, but if you have any empathy at all for people suffering from serious pain in the ol' larynx, it could be triggering for you.
Boy With Apple, Navigation: These folks bill themselves as Sweden's answer to My Bloody Valentine, which probably isn't a good idea marketing-wise because they don't really sound like My Bloody Valentine at all, and Sweden already has Makthaverskan, whom most MBV fans would probably prefer over these folks. Still, I like it!

There are a few more that I'm less thrilled about, but they deserve a mention at least.

The Reds, Pinks & Purples, Acknowledge Kindness: This is a guy named Glenn Donaldson, from the San Francisco Bay area, who may be one of the most prolific recording artists of the 21st century. Discogs lists him as being a member of 30 (that's thirty) different bands, some of which are just DIY one-offs, but not all — this is the 12th album he's recorded as The Reds, Pinks & Purples in just over 6 years, and that's just one "project." As for this particular record, I'd say his vocals sound a bit over-dramatic, like he's trying to be The New Leonard Cohen or something, but otherwise it's fine. And who knows, maybe he will be The New Leonard Cohen, or... something. Someday.
TV Star, Music For Heads: A tweegaze/jangle-pop act from the Sea-Tac area. By BEA rules this would be their second album, but they're calling 2023's six-track Hallucinate Me an EP, so as far as they're concerned this is their debut LP. And it's good, I'm not saying it isn't, a little spotty maybe... the band name just seems a little presumptuous to me.
Visit Me, Daystar: Here's a kind of pastoral-folkgazey, occasionally ambient-electronica-ish trio from England, but they're not telling us what specific part of England they're from, so visiting them is going to be a bit of a problem. I'll probably try to do it anyway, but if I get arrested for stalking, it's going to be their fault.
Cabaret Voltaire, But What Time Is It Really?: It turns out this is just a live album, released for their recent 50th anniversary. Sorry if I got anyone excited...
Rachel Grimes, Waltzes & Love Songs of Henry Hart: I've always liked Rachel's, but since Rachel Grimes started making albums all by herself, I've been less enthusiastic. Also, I don't really like Henry Hart, but that whole bad business goes all the way back to elementary school, and I'd rather not talk about it now. (Okay, that might have been a different Henry Hart, but I don't like to take chances.) It's quality work, though... just not my thing, personally.

Next week: Hopefully, new stuff from White Flowers and Noveller. 😄

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

Tap — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 18:22:02 GMT

Author: Tap

Posted: 04/23/2026 22:22

Oh yeah, psyched to check that White Fence, seems promising. The one I'm most excited for this week is

Fatboi Sharif & Child Actor - Crayola Circles
https://fatboisharif.bandcamp.com/album/crayola-circles

I have really been loving Fatboi Sharif's stuff the past few years, just gets into weird and fucked up zones with his raps and the accompanying production that don't feel quite like anyone else.

Also this one

Matt Gold & Dustin Laurenzi - Devotional Fade
https://dustinlaurenzi.bandcamp.com/album/devotional-fade

I love Laurenzi's stuff, just so tuneful and easy to listen to without taking an easy path with it. This seems like itll be the same!

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

Repo — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 17:36:32 GMT

Author: Repo

Posted: 04/23/2026 21:36

RELEASE DAY EVE: April 24th, 2026.

Psych Pop for Now Heads

Orange (2026) by White Fence

Part of the Ty Segall garage rock universe, Tim Presley under the moniker White Fence has been releasing Psych Pop nuggets since 2010. Ty Segall produces and plays drums. Worth checking out if you have a soft spot for Syd Barrett-ish Psychedelic Pop. I'm a sucker for this particular genre. If you giggle a bit (still!) when someone coughs "420" this is the release of the week for you ( & me! 🍄).

What April 24th, 2026 release do YOU have your ears & heart set on when midnight strikes?! 🔭�'�

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

MadhattanJack — Wed, 22 Apr 2026 21:19:33 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 04/23/2026 01:19

OK, before we get to the April 24 stuff, here are three things I missed from last week.

Eaves Wilder, Little Miss Sunshine: This was a complete surprise (though not a "surprise drop," since it was announced weeks ago) — way better than you'd expect given the name, the album title, or the album cover. It's basically a "waifgaze" album, not unlike a Hatchie or Mitski record, just more punkish, and the vocals more waifish, more like Paula Kelley (see above) or Cranes' Alison Shaw. I'd still rate the Teenage Suicide album a little higher, but it turned out to be less of a "slam-dunk" than I thought because of this record. (And who names their daughter "Eaves"? Do they have kids named "Soffits" and "Perlins" too? Jeez.)
Gary Klebe, Out Loud: If you don't remember who Gary Klebe is, don't feel bad — I didn't either! Klebe was one of the two lead singers in Shoes, the mid-70s power pop band who (along with the Plimsouls, Motors, Records, Romantics, etc.) got lumped in with the New Wave crowd and nevertheless helped popularize the power-pop genre during the 80s. I even have a copy of Present Tense, but it had been so long since that came out (almost 50 years!) I just forgot. Thankfully Klebe hasn't abandoned the genre, this album is 100% O.G. power pop, though there may be a few more acoustic guitars involved now. "Maturity doesn't have to be boring," as my elderly mom once said before falling asleep for the 300th time that day.
Shapes Like People, Under the Rainbow: Here's a nice twee-adjacent janglepop husband-and-wife duo from Kent. (She's originally from New Zealand.) Maybe I'm just misunderstanding their band name, but every time I've encountered a shape they've been really rude and inconsiderate to me, so I don't really think of them as liking anybody. Still, pretty good album.

Obviously this Friday's big release is the new Foo Fighters LP, Your Favorite Toy. I'm not seeing any toys on the album cover, but that might be a wad of Silly Putty™ on the guy's hand in the lower-right corner... There are about a dozen albums that look interesting, including a new Cabaret Voltaire album for the geriatric post-punk set (not to mention a new Ringo Starr album for the geriatric not-so-post-punk set). But I suspect my pick-of-the-week has already been released — yesterday, to be precise, with the appearance of a new 東京�...'吐座 [Tokyo Shoegazer] album, entitled "Remains." Sometimes, if you really want the good stuff, you just have to go to Japan.

Maybe I'll change my mind though, if only to be less predictable. 😜

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

MadhattanJack — Sat, 18 Apr 2026 22:05:33 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 04/19/2026 02:05

I just wanted to say that when I posted this the other day, it was meant to be somewhat "tongue in cheek":

MadhattanJack wrote:

It should really be called ""Record Store Weekend" now, since Friday is the day the stock is put out, but most people actually show up at the store on Saturday, and then on Sunday everybody prepares their eBay listings.

As I learned earlier today, this assessment is actually more accurate than I thought! The last time I'd driven to the Not-So-Big City for Record Store Day was about 15 years ago, and back then, the stores would get crowded during most of the day... but not that crowded. There were fewer "RSD Exclusives," and it didn't seem (to me at least) like the "Exclusives" were being treated primarily as investment opportunities by the buyers. I don't think I'm being naïve about this — maybe a little bit, since obviously some of them were, but it just seemed like things were a lot less mercenary back then.

Long story short, basically, I screwed up. I just assumed (rather stupidly) that the store would open at the usual time, not 3 hours early. OOPS! Always check first! I won't make that mistake again. I had a list of 5 items I figured I would buy if they were available, but only two of them were — the other three had been ordered, and for two of them they'd gotten some copies in, but those had all sold out within the first hour while I was still blissfully fast asleep.

In case anyone is curious, the 5 items on my want-list were...

XTC, Live Boots: Live at Emerald City 1981 - SOLD OUT (of all six copies that had come in)
Suede, Coming Up at the BBC - GOT THE LAST ONE
Tommy Keene, Songs From the Film: The 1984 Reflection Sessions - the store ordered some, but none came in
April March (Not An April March), Villerville - GOT THE LAST ONE
Arcade Fire, Open Your Heart Or Die Trying - SOLD OUT ("about" ten copies, "immediately," they said)

So... not bad, actually. The XTC thingy will probably be available on CD via their online store soon enough, and I was mostly just curious about the two others. (Admittedly, I might well have tried to "flip" the Arcade Fire album on eBay, assuming my account there is still active. Haven't logged in there in quite a while. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have been the only one...)

I had a short conversation with the guy who runs the store, and he was quite emphatic that nobody — including him — seems to have any idea on Friday as to what's going to actually sell out quickly on Saturday morning. Advance media coverage (like this article in Variety and this one in Rolling Stone) are useless as far as predicting what's going to sell out quickly and what's likely to still be available after, say, 4 hours or so. People walk in with lists that go for 2-3 pages, in some cases buy well over $1,000 worth of merchandise, and you'd better be prepared for some jostling and getting pushed out of the way.

Here's a Youtube video posted a few hours ago, in which some guy from outside of Seattle gets in his car at 3AM, heads into town for RSD, and while it's still dark out, gets in line behind 25 other people at a store called Silver Platters. They're actually giving the customers numbers and letting them in just a few at a time, to prevent the store from being mobbed. (Good idea!) At the 13:20 mark, you can clearly see the XTC Live at Emerald City record on the wall display at the second store he goes to, so... I guess I should have moved to Seattle instead of where I live now? (It's a nice town.) Thankfully it's just a live album, I don't get too worked up over those, even if it's them. Either way, I'm glad I went, if only for that vague feeling of nostalgia for record shopping the late 70s and early 80s. (These guys look like they enjoyed the vague feeling too.)

Link

Re: Release Day Eve: May 8th!!! ☂️

MadhattanJack — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 21:38:35 GMT

Author: MadhattanJack

Posted: 04/18/2026 01:38

imacgill wrote:

When I saw the trailer I thought it was remake of this movie...music and lyrics by Sia..

Hmm, Scott Walker did the incidentals score too — I guess that was the last thing he recorded before his death in 2019. So I might actually want to see that one! Also, the soundtrack is listed here on BEA, though the track entries don't credit the musicians responsible (they do that on Discogs though).

Various Artists
Vox Lux (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2018)

The words "Vox" and "Lux" are used fairly widely in band names too, so it doesn't look like whoever made that movie was trying to lift something. Of course, when I see or hear the word "Lux" I immediately think of Lux Interior, the (unfortunately deceased) lead singer of The Cramps, who didn't look anything like Natalie Portman.