new releases from our friends at MusicOnVinyl
Has there ever been a bigger, more epic, theatrical hard rockin' album than Bat Out Of Hell (1977)? Containing seven little masterpieces written by classically trained pianist and composer Jim Steinman, with Todd Rundgren on the production seat, this seminal Meat Loaf album continues to amaze to this day. The record is deemed one of the best selling albums ever with over 30 million units sold.
"You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth (Hot Summer Night)", the album's B-side opener "Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad" and of course "Paradise By The Dashboard Light" – can you imagine a wedding without at least one of these classics? Steinman continued to work with the likes of Bonnie Tyler ("Total Eclipse Of The Heart"), Sisters Of Mercy, Barbara Streisand and ultimately reunited with Meat Loaf for the Bat Out Of Hell sequel in 1993.
This awesome album will see the light as a limited first pressing on hellish red vinyl!
- 180 gram audiophile vinyl
- Insert
- First pressing of 2000 numbered copies on hellish red vinyl
The American singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega released her second album Solitude Standing in 1987. It's her most popular and critically acclaimed album of her impressive career so far and includes the iconic tracks "Tom's Diner" and "Luka".
As can be seen on the insert that includes this package, some of the songs have been written prior to 1987. "Luka" was released as a single in 1987 and remains her highest-charting hit single in the United States, reaching number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. At the 1988 Grammy Awards "Luka" got Suzanne Vega nominated for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
"Tom's Diner" is included twice on the album with the a cappella vocal version as the first track and the instrumental version as the last track. It was later used as the basis for a popular remix by the British group DNA in 1990 and covered by many artists including Bingo Hand Job (R.E.M. and Billy Bragg).
The diversity of the album is what made it so good and this album can be marked as a true classic. Now finally available again on high quality vinyl!
- 180 gram audiophile vinyl
- Insert with lyrics
Founded by Ron Greco, Cyril Jordan and Roy Loney, the American Garage Rock band The Flamin' Groovies had their start in San Francisco in the mid Sixties. The debut album Supersnazz was released in 1969, containing both re-creations of '50s Rock 'n Roll songs and more melodic tracks. It made the group one of the forerunners of the Power Pop movement of the '70s—a genre the Flamin' Groovies had a major influence on and contributed significant work to.
Supersnazz has achieved a reputation among not just Flamin' Groovies fans, but lovers of Rock & Roll in general. It held up very well across the decades and is still able to make its own case for greatness as an impressive document of straight-ahead Rock & Roll circa 1969. It's both fully contemporary to its time and timeless, which makes the album a classic work. Now finally available again on high quality vinyl. 180 gram audiophile vinyl
Released in the summer 1967, Reach Out by the Four Tops defined the sound of young America – exactly the credo of Berry Gordy's Motown Records.
The Holland, Dozier & Holland produced album opens with the title track "Reach Out, I'll Be There", which became the group's second Pop/R&B chart topping single. What follows is a faithful cover of The Left Banke's "Walk Away Renee", a wonderful version of the classic Tim Hardin composition "If I Were A Carpenter" and the uplifting "I'll Turn To Stone". The flip side opens with the iconic Monkees cover "I'm A Believer" (originally written by Neil Diamond), followed by the Four Tops classics "Standing In The Shadows Of Love" and "Bernadette".
A true Soul classic. 180 gram audiophile vinyl
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from our friends at Relapse
Portland, OR's underground crust miscreants NUX VOMICA unleash their Relapse Records debut and first full-length album in over 5 years. Blending the suffocating atmospherics of doom / sludge with the raw ferocity of black metal, punk and d-beat, NUX VOMICA construct an organic heaviness caught somewhere between Neurosis and His Hero Is Gone. Their self-titled LP is a 3 song, 40+ minute emotional odyssey into the depths of human darkness. A flawless combination of epic song structures with crushing melodies and colossal riffs with powerful dynamics, NUX VOMICA is a truly captivating listening experience that will appeal to fans of anything extreme.
Pressing Info:
First Press
1000 x Grey Standard Gram
100 x Clear (do not request clear)
***Includes a free digital download of the entire album***
Get a copy at Relapse
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from LightInTheAttic
In 1983, a man named Lewis recorded an album named L’Amour, which was released on the unknown label R.A.W. And that’s about all we know.
The record itself is a delicate, whispered album, reflecting the way the artist himself – spectral, movie star-like – almost disappears into the grey of the cover. It should come as no surprise that it failed to shout loudly enough to be noticed, another private press album that sank without trace.
The ingredients are simple: smooth synthesizers, feather-light piano, ethereal, occasionally inaudible vocals and the gentle plucking of acoustic guitars. But the effects are arresting: a spine-tingling, sombre album that echoes Springsteen’s Nebraska or Angelo Badalamenti’s atmospheric soundtracks. Later, Arthur Russell would grasp for something similar on the epochal World Of Echo LP.
L’Amour is a true discovery of the blog age, uncovered in an Edmonton flea-market by collector Jon Murphy, passed on to private press fanatic Aaron Levin, shared on the internet and speculated over by lovers of curious LPs. There’s almost no information about Lewis or the album on the internet. There’s precious little on the sleeve: a dedication to Sports Illustrated supermodel Christie Brinkley, a photo credit for Ed Colver, the noted L.A. punk rock photographer, and credits for engineer Bob Kinsey and synth player Philip Lees. All that was known of Lewis is conjecture: a rumor that he was a con artist who fled after not paying for L’Amour’s photo-shoot and a dubious theory that he was not actually of this earth.
When Light In The Attic looked to release the album, they set out to investigate the mystery. They found some answers, but more intrigue too. Colver was able to fill in some blanks. Firstly, Lewis is a pseudonym. The man the photographer met was named Randall Wulff. He stayed in the Beverley Hills Hilton, drove a white convertible Mercedes and dated a girl who looked like a model. He paid for his photo session with Colver with a $250 check, which bounced.
Eventually, the trail led to Alberta, Canada, where that first LP had been found. Liner notes writer Jack Fleischer along with master detective Markus Armstrong found Randall’s nephew, who remembered Randall as a stockbroker. His vague recollections include a visit to Randall’s apartment, with all-white furniture and that beautiful girlfriend in situ. Crucially, he offered another name – another of Randall’s pseudonyms – which led to a Vancouver studio and the revelation that Lewis had recorded three or four albums of “soft religious music” there. Alas, even the new nom de plume led only to dead ends.
Lewis remains a ghost, a total mystery, but the music will be heard. The album is being pressed for the first time in more than 30 years, and widely distributed for the first time ever. Lewis’s royalties will be placed in escrow until he makes himself known. Perhaps you know Lewis. Perhaps Lewis is you. The only certainty is this: Lewis is about to find a whole bunch of new fans.
•First ever LP reissue, first time on CD & Digital
•All tracks newly re-mastered
•LP housed in deluxe Stoughton “Tip-On” gatefold jacket
•New liner notes by Jack D. Fleischer
•Unseen photos by legendary photographer Ed Colver (Black Flag, Circle Jerks)
•LP includes download card
•Color vinyl editions (housed in Silver Foil Stamped jacket):
200 on Grey wax (LITA Vinyl Subscriber exclusive)
700 on Clear wax (LITA.net pre-orders exclusive)
100 on “Romantic red” wax (LITA Shop exclusive)
Available:
Digital – Out Now
CD – May 13th
LP – June 24th
Pre-Order at LightInTheAttic
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from JoyfulNoiseRecordings
With “The Sky as Well as Space”, Memory Map continue to flesh out their uniquely guitar-driven blend of indie pop. Few bands straddle song-craft and technical prowess as effortlessly as Memory Map. Using three guitars (one which cheats its way into acting as a bass), a three-piece drum kit, and vocals from all four members, Memory Map organically fuse cascading guitar lines, complex rhythms, and layered vocal harmonies into shamelessly accessible guitar pop.
In the three years since their debut, Memory Map have gained depth both in composition and production. The album simultaneously showcases the band at their most catchy (“Magnetic Center”), menacing (“Dark Freshman”), and emotional (“Order In the Waves”, “Antelope Earth”).
Why the three-year gap between albums you ask? Well, the delay is largely due to the popularity of a certain cat. Band member Mike Bridavsky owns and takes care of the most famous cat on the planet, Lil BUB. And because Memory Map have been so flexible in working around Lil BUB’s schedule, the band is officially BUB approved.
- Clear w/ White Splatter Vinyl (limited to 250 hand-numbered copies, includes download)
- Clear w/ Black Splatter Vinyl (limited to 250 hand-numbered copies, includes download)
- (also available on black vinyl)
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Record Store Day 2014’s official book is ‘Dust & Grooves: Adventures in Record Collecting’
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Sam Roberts Band has a very exclusive 12″ available on limited edition clear, hand-numbered vinyl! The 12″ includes the singles ‘We’re All In This Together’ and ‘Shapeshifters’ along with remixes by Young Galaxy and Andrew Weatherall.
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In celebration of Record Store Day 2014 on April 19th, Metal Blade Records will be releasing two exclusive vinyl pressings! Type O Negative "Slow Deep and Hard" and Karma To Burn's self-titled albums will be released as double 180 gram vinyl in gatefold sleeves! The vinyl will be available at participating Record Store Day locations.
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very cool write up:
Mono a Mano: Retro King Nick Waterhouse on His Love of Vintage Vinyl & Mastering in Mono
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Sarcofago Re-Issuing "Rotting" Album On Vinyl
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Beastwars Announce Vinyl Reissue
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cool story about some youngsters getting in the vinyl groove:
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Portland's Best Record stores
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Petition launched to reintroduce Technics turntables
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Top 10 Concert Tours from Pollstar
The Top 10 Concert Tours ranks artists by average box office gross per city for shows in North America. The list is based on data provided to the trade publication Pollstar by concert promoters and venue managers.
1. Billy Joel; $1,813,571
2. Justin Timberlake; $1,781,797
3. George Strait; $1,567,009
4. Jay Z; $1,094,769
5. Trans-Siberian Orchestra; $876,295
6. Jason Aldean; $644,985
7. Kings Of Leon; $556,737
8. Zac Brown Band; $508,618
9. Imagine Dragons; $483,379
10. Lady Antebellum; $434,040
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album cover art of the day:
AMBERIAN DAWN: 'Magic Forest' Release Date Announced