New Release Round-Up 02-22-19

Gary Clark Jr. - This Land - Warner Bros
The GRAMMY® Award-winning maverick channels his signature sense of soul from the crossroads of rock ‘n' roll, blues, jazz, hip-hop, reggae and punk. Gary Clark Jr's most accomplished songwriting and virtuosic performances to date; This Land delivers socially relevant, transcendentally ambitious, and musically rich declaration as unapologetic, undeniable, and unique as he is. He emerges with a body of work that is dynamic in every sense, embodying an ever-evolving sound that transformed him into an artistic force anointed by everyone from President Barack Obama to the late Prince.

The Claypool Lennon Delirium - South of Reality - ATO Records
South of Reality, The Claypool Lennon Delirium’s epic sophomore album might be just the antidote this sick world needs. Music so potent it could repel an asteroid impact from space, these seasoned warriors of psychedelia have crafted timeless songs that may as well be chiseled in stone. The  monolithic dream team’s new record was produced by Les Claypool and Sean Lennon themselves, and engineered and mixed by Les Claypool at his own Rancho Relaxo studio in Sonoma County, California.

Badflower - OK, I'm Sick - Big Machine Records
Badflower releases their debut album OK, I'm Sick as the first signing on new joint venture Big Machine Records/John Varvatos Records. Since their emergence in 2014, the group has become one of L.A.’s most buzzed about Rock bands, achieving a 2-week run at No. 1 on KROQ’s Locals Only Show with “Heroin.” The crushing realness of their latest single “Ghost” brought the band to the attention of iHeartRadio who spotlighted them as an On The Verge Artist.

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Bayonne - Drastic Measures - Mom & Pop Music
Each song on Bayonne's Drastic Measures is orchestral in texture, unfolding in countless layers and kaleidoscopic tones. With great intensity of detail, the Austin-based artist otherwise known as Roger Sellers deepens that sonic complexity by weaving in elegantly warped samples of the field recordings he's gathered for over a decade. But in its powerful melodies and pristine arrangements, Drastic Measures ultimately bears a pure pop lucidity even in its most grandiose moments. Throughout the album, Sellers matches his bursts of experimentation with the graceful piano playing he's honed since he was a little kid. By his early 20s he'd discovered minimalist composers like Steve Reich and Terry Reilly, which led him to infuse an atmospheric, ethereal quality into much of his work. With the release of Primitives in spring 2016, Sellers adopted the moniker of Bayonne as a way to distinguish his more electronically crafted output from his other musical projects. I'd been playing a lot of shows with a very folk-based set, so using a different name was a way to separate those two personalities, he explains. In bringing Drastic Measures to life, Sellers merged his increasingly classic-pop-inspired sensibilities with a production approach closely focused on looping, layering, and overdubbing. Even if you hear something simple like clapping or finger snaps, it's probably layered 10 or 20 times, he says. I just like to stack and layer everything to get these big sounds, and create a really wide sonic space within the songs.

 

Lily & Madeleine - Canterbury Girls - New West Records
As for the album, for Lily & Madeleine, Canterbury Girls refers to a real place they know, in Broad Ripple, IN - and for them, as Madeleine explains," it’s the first place of adolescent freedom, the first place of blossoming girlhood - and a place to imagine the future a girl wants,” But the opposite is also at play; when youthful dreams are lost and the kind of emotional baggage that women have to carry, more often than not, becomes their burden. Burdens of disgust, of pain, unwanted attention, and trauma - the double standard, the disappointments, the disrespect, the fury, the helplessness, and the resignation. Sharing the angst bundled baggage and taking refuge in sharing and realizing you aren’t alone… that’s when healing begins. It’s the story of many, and the story of Canterbury Girls everywhere.

 

UPCOMING RELEASES 

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - The Best Of Everything: The Definitive Career Spanning Hits Collection - Geffen Records
This collection of personal favorites and important milestones is the first anthology to span Petty's entire career, from the first album to Mudcrutch 2. The album contains 38 tracks on 4 LP’s including the hits “Free Fallin’, American Girl, “You Don’t Know How It Feels”, You Wreck Me: and many more. The album also includes two unreleased tracks, “The Best of Everything (Alternate Version)” and the previously unreleased and unheard “For Real”.  

 

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Mark Morton - Anesthetic - Republic
Mark Morton, the prolific guitarist of Lamb of God, will release a 10-track album titled Anesthetic. With Mark at the creative center, Josh Wilbur (Lamb of God, Trivium) co-writing, recording, mixing, & producing, & Jake Oni also co-writing & performing. Singers include Chester Bennington, Randy Blythe, Jacoby Shaddix, Myles Kennedy, Alissa White-Gluz, Mark Lanegan, Chuck Billy, Jake Oni, Josh Todd, Mark Morales & Naeemah Maddox. Musically, Morton performs all guitars, with Roy Mayorga, David Ellefson, Ray Luzier, Paulo Gregoletto & Alex Bent, Mike Inez, Jean-Paul Gaster, Steve Gorman & Marc Paul rounding out the band. Comes on red vinyl with 12 tarot cards.  

 

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For more information on these and other releases out this week, check out our New Releases charts by week section.

New Release Round-Up 02-15-19

Tedeschi Trucks Band - Signs - Fantasy
“Signs” is the fourth studio release from Tedeschi Trucks Band and offers another outstanding example of their ability to expand musical boundaries in ways that only a rare caliber of musician can achieve. “Signs” showcases the band at their best – combining inventive musicality and provocative lyrics across eleven original tracks, running the gamut from uplifting soulful anthems, to bittersweet ballads and driving rock and roll. The album was recorded at Derek and Susan’s home studio, Swamp Raga, on two-inch analog tape giving it a warmth and richness that recalls the ambience of the best vintage recordings. Vinyl mastering and lacquers were cut from the analog master tape and pressed on 180 gram black vinyl for highest sound quality.

Robert Ellis - Texas Piano Man - New West Records
Hello. I'm Robert Ellis, The Texas Piano Man. I wanted to take a moment to say a few words about this record and what you might expect from it. Texas Piano Man is a collection of songs specifically written for my piano driven Rock & Roll band from the great state of Texas. Myself and the guys bring these songs to you in the very spirit of Texas itself; loudly, confidently, over the top, larger than life, at times deadly serious and yet always with a wink and a smile. We invite you to come on in, stay a while, and when you leave take with you the spirit of these songs, the spirit of Texas, and the spirit of The Texas Piano Man himself. Adios!

 

J.S. Ondara - Tales Of America - Big Machine Records
J.S. Ondara offers a unique take of the American dream on Tales Of America, his debut album. Born and raised in Nairobi, Kenya, J.S. fell in love with Bob Dylan and moved to Minneapolis Minnesota when he was 20 to pursue a career as a singer-songwriter. He notes other musical influences as Neil Young, Noah Gundersen, Damien Rice and Ray LaMontagne. His debut album, Tales of America, is an examination of the American Dream from an outsider's perspective; an introspection on a universal matter.

 

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Ryan Bingham - American Love Song - Axster Bingham Rec
American Love Song finds Ryan Bingham honing his creativity on two distinct levels, the personal and the cultural. The record is co-produced with Charlie Sexton, the superb Austin guitarist who has played for years in Bob Dylan s touring band. American Love Song was recorded at Arlyn Studios and Public Hi-Fi in Austin with additional recording at Matter Music/Stella Sound in Los Angeles.

Avril Lavigne - Head Above Water - BMG
Avril Lavigne's first album in over 5 years includes the title track Head Above Water and Tell Me It's Over

Picture This - MDRN LV - Republic
The biggest selling Irish act in both 2017 and 2018, and the nation’s hottest musical export in decades, Picture This arrived as a phenomenon with their self-titled 2017 full-length debut, Picture This. Certified triple-platinum in Ireland, it held the #1 spot Overall in the country for four weeks, while topping the Streaming Chart for seven weeks. Moreover, it remained in the Top 5 since release. Just over two years since their formation, they’ve impressively sold over 400K tickets.

UPCOMING RELEASES 

Badflower - OK, I'm Sick - Big Machine Records
Badflower releases their debut album OK, I'm Sick as the first signing on new joint venture Big Machine Records/John Varvatos Records. Since their emergence in 2014, the group has become one of L.A.’s most buzzed about Rock bands, achieving a 2-week run at No. 1 on KROQ’s Locals Only Show with “Heroin.” The crushing realness of their latest single “Ghost” brought the band to the attention of iHeartRadio who spotlighted them as an On The Verge Artist.

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For more information on these and other releases out this week, check out our New Releases charts by week section.