Happy 2008 to all! We hope you had a great holiday wherever you were. We have good and bad news. First the bad. As you might have heard, just before Christmas, Bloomington lost a great musician and friend - Evan Farrell died from smoke inhalation from a house fire out in California after playing a reunion gig with the Japonize Elephants. We are taking donations for his wife and family as well as helping organize a benefit on January 20th. Stop in for more information or to donate. Now the good - we vacuumed. But seriously, our last newsletter of '07 listed all our personal best of lists for the year, but lots of stuff was sadly left off. To share the wealth, we passed the mic to a few friends around town and had them provide us with their take on the year, we hope you enjoy it after this week's meager but mighty new relases... NEW ARRIVALS for the Week of 1/2/2007 ------------------------------------------------------------------ (Exact arrival dependent on shipping delays and mishaps, sorry) Radiohead - In Rainbows (TBD) ................................................................... You've probably heard of these guys before, this is their new album. It is the same one released online last year, except this has pristine audio fidelity on handy and portable archival compact disc format with full color artwork. It is also quite good. VA - Plum [7inch box set] (Thrill Jockey) ................................................................... Fifteen years ago, Thrill Jockey was founded. This ten 7" box shines the anniversary light on their past and present as many of their artists record cover versions of eachother. Includes David Byrne trying his take at Fiery Furnaces, Mouse on Mars twisting the Sea and Cake and so much more. Very limited edition and sure to be a hot collectors item. ------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------ FRIENDS OF LANDLOCKED MUSIC END OF THE YEAR LISTS! ------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------ Jim Manion - WFHB Music Programming Director ------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Sam Baker - Pretty World (BlueLimeStone) The best singer/songwriter I've discovered since Townes Van Zandt. Required listening. 2. James Blood Ulmer - Bad Blood in the City: Piety Street Sessions (Hyena) Recorded at Mark Bingham's New Orleans studio, Ulmer sets fire to post-Katrina complacency with an el scorcho take on classic electric blues. 3. Tinariwen - Aman Iman (World Village) A guitar army of Malian Sahara Desert nomads, Tinariwen amps it up over ancient rhythms and riffs with guitar lines that hold the same musical ancestry as American blues. 4. Einsturzende Neubauten - Alles Wieder Offen (Potomak) Crafting beauty out of noise, EN once again proves industrial music can mutate with high consciousness. 5. VA - I'm Not There OST (Sony) The best set of Bob Dylan covers ever produced, created to accompany Todd Haynes' challenging Dylanologist biopic. 34 tracks and nary a clinker. Ben Swanson - Secretly Canadian Records ------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. M.I.A. - Kala / LIVE (Interscope) Best show of the year by far and wide. What I imagine seeing the Talking Heads in '81, still constantly stretching their boundaries... totally raw process of discovery for everyone present. 2. Le Loup - The Throne... (Harly Art) A world unto itself, I really don't know what else to say.... 3. Yeasayer - All Hour Cymbals (We Are Free) They move in all the right ways. Their excessive use of reverb is a bit divisive, but, well, reverb is badass. It makes everything okay. Plus they know how to sing. 4. Cave Singers - Invitation Songs (Matador) Absolutely beautiful. It took me a while to get it, but get me they did. Cave Singers manage to sound to utterly timeless and contemporary at the same time. 5. Nicole Willis - Keep Reachin' Up (Light In The Attic) How is something this classic still made today? "Holdin' On" is the standout with the opening Hendrix riffage, Ya Kid K chorus and a fucking B3 solo. When did the B3 become cool again? DJ Spikes (the chrome dome of hip hop knowledge) ------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Heliocentrics - Out There (Stones Throw) Holy funk bomb! leave it to Malcolm Catto to remind us what real beat making is. 2. DJ Krush - History of DJ Krush 3 DVD (Red Ink) Incredibly thorough coverage of the japanese legend's career, with a nice ambient undercurrent. 3. Radiohead - In Rainbows - Discbox (self) A very smart idea executed perfectly. 4. Sixtoo - Jackals and Vipers in Envy of Man (Ninja Tune) This and the Joe Beats album are masterworks in fusing original beats with mixtape techniques. 5. Burial - Untrue (Hyperdub) What music will sound like in two thousand seven pressed on wax. Jonathan Richardson - DJ Jonny Yuma / Early Day Miners ------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. The golden years of Reggae: 1969-1987 To me, reggae is the most complete music in the world, the best of all of my musical worlds. It's soul, it's punk, it's experimental, it's psychedelic. Bottom line- it just sounds fucking cool. Artists, producers and DJs that I think are the best in the genre are Horace Andy, King Tubby, Lee Perry, Dr Alimantado, Prince Jazzbo, Prince Jammy, Joe Gibbs, Augustus Pablo, Scientist, Black Uhuru, Sly & Robbie, Burning Spear, almost anything produced by CS Dodd, Desmond Dekker, Prince Buster, Hugh Mundell, Jacob Miller, Aggrovators, Revolutionaries, Soul Syndicate, Prince Far I, U-roy, Wackies, Dillinger, Mad Professor, Niney The Observer, Congos, Roots Radics, Tapper Zukie and way more. Reggae never ceases to amaze me the further I dig. 2. Krautrock vinyl reissues The Neu! vinyl reissues a couple years back helped to spur the interest to reissue many popular krautrock gems in vinyl format. Thanks to labels like Lilith, Four Men With Beards and a few other "grey" labels, many of the holes in my record collection are finally getting filled. Most noteworthy this year are the Cluster and Harmonia reissues, a few Can reissues and the most amazing first Faust record.   3. Spirit of '68 Bloomington show promoters come and go with regularity. I dabbled in it a few years back and realized that burnout is always inevitable. Promoters in Bloomington do too much with too little and usually with next to no support from the community. It is a thankless job with few rewards, but Dan Coleman with his Spirit of '68 is doing a fantastic job so far. Let's hope he keeps up the quality and not quantity ethos for some great shows in '08.   4. The rediscovery of all the music that I already own. 2007 was a year of retrospection for me. I rediscovered many things in my collection that I have never listened to. This is an ongoing thing that will probably last my whole life. Frankly I'm overwhelmed by the amount of music that is released each year. Sure, there is lots of stuff that's really great, but there is a lot more music that is mediocre at best. I wish there was just one new band that I could sink my teeth into without wondering if there is something better coming out the next week.    5. Things I did like in 2007. Deerhunter - Cryptograms & Fluorescent Grey EP Yeasayer live LCD Sounsystem - Sound Of Silver Bobb Trimble reissues Liars Besnard Lakes at Landlocked Music Wooden Shjips A Place to Bury Strangers Mike Bridavsky - Russian Recording Studio ------------------------------------------------------------------ 1) Tapeopcon 2007 The Tapeopcon was a glorious union of recording nerds and musicians. The final one took place this past summer at a Hilton Resort in Tucson, AZ. Hot tubs, giant swimming pool, performances by John Vanderslice and Calexico at the pool, while drinking free beer and hanging out with close friends from all over the country, and also Dave Allen of Gang of Four. It was pretty awesome. Unfortunately this was also the last one ever, RIP. 2) Chicago Mastering Opened by Bob Weston and Jason Ward. World class mastering by super sweet dudes at a rate that's actually affordable for most independent musicians. http://www.chicagomasteringservice.com/ 3) Racebannon IV: Acid Or Blood Official news that Racebannon's long awaited full length will be coming out on Southern Records USA. - http://www.myspace.com/racebannonrocks 4) Bottomless Pit - "Hammer of the Gods" (Comedy Minus One) Tim and Andy from Silkworm started Bottomless Pit after Silkworm could not play anymore due to a very unfortunate accident. This album rules. http://www.myspace.com/bottomlesspitchicago 5) Wipers - Is This Real [LP reissue] (Jackpot) 180 gm reissue. This record also rules. John Terrill - (aging musician, graphic artist, misanthrope) ------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Eduardo Mateo - Mateo Solo Been Se Lame (Lion Productions) Finally reissued in North America with English liner notes, lyrics and bonus tracks. I'm extremely proud that I had a hand in the production of this CD. Eduardo Mateo's first solo record after leaving his group El Kinto - released in Argentina and Uruguay in 1971. In my opinion one of the most sincere and beautiful records ever recorded. Mateo was considered a national treasure in Uruguay and it's about time for the rest of the world to recognize the same. 2. Smokey and His Sister - S/T (Sundazed) An album recorded in '67 that never came to be. Smokey Mims wrote songs that were far more mature in lyric and arrangement than most of the Pop Psych recorded from that time until now. With his sister, Vicki, he recorded this baroque masterpiece that has sat collecting dust on Columbia Records' shelf for 40 years. A thousand thanks to Sundazed for setting this exquisite bird free. 3. The Slade Anthology Vol. 1 (Salvo) A guilty pleasure to be sure. This particular anthology was released in Russia and besides including 2 hit-packed CDs it also has a DVD. In the early 70s Slade were trailblazers for the sound that rock & roll would become. The DVD includes TV appearances that prove, without a shadow of doubt, that Slade were one of the tightest, hardest working rock bands that ever existed. It is available domestically as a separate DVD: The Very Best of... Slade. Go out and buy it because "Mama, Mama Weer All Crazee Now!" 4. Michael Blount - Patchwork LP (CBS) Not available on reissue (yet). I discovered this classic by chance last year and it has not left my turntable since. Beautiful folk/pop by an unknown and undiscovered Brit genius. Released overseas in 1970 this album has some of the most perfectly subtle lyrical songwriting ever recorded. Just a drop-dead, feel-good, pop/folk classic. 5. Moby Grape Reissue Series (Sundazed) I'd been waiting for The Grape to be dutifully reissued for many years. In my mind they were hands-down the best band of the San Francisco Scene. Moby Grape had a history of legal hassles throughout their career and unfortunately it has followed them on into the future. The first three have been recalled due to a contract problem involving their first manager. It is a terrible shame, because each CD was beautifully restored with perfect sound and tons of bonus tracks. David Brent Johnson - WFIU DJ ------------------------------------------------------------------ Best of reissue/historical jazz of 2007 1. Nat King Cole - Where Did Everyone Go? (Collectors) Cole's late-night torch-ballad album, long domestically unavailable, resurfaced this past year both as part of a monumental Bear Family box and a 2LP-on-1CD. With arrangements by Gordon Jenkins, this rivals Frank Sinatra's Sings for Only the Lonely for circa-1960 heartbreak honors. Listen to "I Keep Goin' Back to Joe's" and pour yourself another drink. 2. Miles Davis - Live at the 1963 Monterey Jazz Festival (Monterey) Sure, the On the Corner box has been getting most of the attention, and is a electric-Miles fan's wet dream. But don't overlook this performance of the Seven Steps to Heaven band, when the then-new rhythm section of Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, and Tony Williams was kicking Miles out of his early-60s doldrums. After Jimmy Heath saw the new group he said, "Miles, them mother%@ers are gonna set everybody on fire!" Also includes the perenially-underrated George Coleman on tenor sax. Fave track: a playfully-wicked take on "Stella By Starlight." 3. Julie London/Bud Shank Quintet - All Through the Night (Capitol) Julie in 1965 with Bud Shank's West Coast jazz group, laying down Cole Porter tunes. A refreshing cool-without-ennui vision of the oft-belted Porter songbook. 4. Bennie Maupin - The Jewel in the Lotus (ECM) Maupin was a key member of Herbie Hancock's Head Hunters group, but he's made only a handful of solo records. This 1974 ECM release is more evocative of the early-70s sextet LPs that Maupin and bassist Buster Williams recorded with Hancock (who's also present here)- what Hancock called "the upper atmosphere of music and the more ethereal kind of far-out, spacey music." 5. Charles Mingus Sextet w/ Eric Dolphy - Cornell 1964 (Blue Note) On the heels of the Coltrane-Monk and Parker-Gillespie concerts, another unearthed gem. This sounds like a Mingus group having fun; not a word one normally associates with Mingus units, after imbibing the numerous narratives of stage tantrums, smashed instruments, punch-staggered sidemen, etc. But the raucous, biting laughter at the heart of tunes such as the epic 29-minute version of "Fables of Faubus", the runaway creativity of "Take the A Train," and the sheer exuberance of "Jitterbug Waltz" signify good times for this ensemble on this particular occasion. 6. King Oliver - Off the Record: Complete 1923 Jazz Recordings (Archeophone) Audiophilism can be a deep, dark abyss, but this stunningly remastered 2CD anthology of Oliver's seminal recordings with a young Louis Armstrong is rife with revelatory sonic detail. A true signal moment in jazz history, and the exuberance comes through more brilliantly than ever on this new set. Comes with a sumptuous 32-page booklet that explores the musical nuances of every track... Early jazz is cool, kids, and I got it at Landlocked. 7. Beyond-category category: VA - ESP Catalogue (ESP) ESP was a small 1960s label that proudly proclaimed, "The artists alone decide what you will hear" on their record sleeves. Whether or not the artists actually got compensated is another story, but at least we, lucky listeners, once again have relatively easy access to key works by Albert Ayler and other important 60s avant-garde figures--not to mention prime broadcast material from bop-era heroes Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, and Billie Holiday. Jason Lee Groth - Magnolia Electric Co, Coke Dares, King Chakra ------------------------------------------------------------------ I'm going with my five favorite shows this year. I saw a lot more shows than I listened to records, I think. My New Year's Resolution for 2008 is to listen to more records. So, anyway, in a particular order: 1) Sonic Youth, Daydream Nation @ Pitchfork Music Festival, July 2007 Seeing Sonic Youth is always a treat, and seeing them perform my favorite of their albums in its entirety had me excited months before it happened and kept me excited months after. Yeah, the sound could have been better that first night at the Pitchfork festival, but the songs and performances could not have been. I had not seen them as a 4 piece in years, and the noisy pop majesty came through even more with one less person on stage. Their encore, all songs from Rather Ripped (which was on my list as one of my favorite records of 2006), featured Mark Ibold (formerly of Pavement, currently of Sonic Youth) on bass and gave Kim the chance to spin, which brought my travelling companion to tears of joy. I am totally for this "let's get the band together and play our classic album" trend as long as they are as good as this show, which might be a bit difficult. 2) Grinderman @ All Tomorrow's Parties in Minehead, UK, May 2007 Magnolia Electric Co. was lucky enough to be invited to play the Dirty Three-curated All Tomorrow's Parties festival in the UK in May, and Nick Cave was, I suppose, the headliner. I was completely unfamiliar with Grinderman but they soundchecked right before us with their entire set. I didn't realize how fortunate I was to catch Grinderman at all, let alone twice in one day (the soundcheck had, maybe, 100 other people watching). Nick Cave was unbelievably snotty and high-kick prone, exhibiting what I can only imagine was the same sort of energy he used to give off in the Birthday Party. The songs were loud, raunchy, and unrelenting. His performance was inspiring simply because he really didn't have to be so energetic - we were all just happy to see him. The Bad Seeds were amazing, too, but that wasn't unexpected. I considered buying a plane ticket to New York to see them open for the White Stripes at Madison Square Garden, but I didn't want to ruin the magic (oh, and I didn't have the money, either). 3) Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings @ the Vogue, Indianapolis, November 2007 I was introduced to my first Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings record in a high-rise apartment in Phoenix, AZ, the same night I was introduced to the New Modern (a delicious red whiskey cocktail from the 1973 Playboy Bartender's Guide) and the Adventure Burger (imagine beef, chicken, bacon, eggs over easy, guacamole, and every condiment in your house in your mouth at once). Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings were my favorite of the 3 new discoveries (the New Modern being a close second) and, when informed they would be playing in Indy on a Sunday night I literally choked on the gum that I accidentally swallowed (the two things happening at the same time were, however, coincidental). I knew the band would be awesome, but I didn't know how awesome. Their work on record (Amy Winehouse's included) is impeccable, but live they are somehow able to be completely robotically tight while still playing with more soul than I have ever seen in a 9-piece band (at least in 2007). And Sharon Jones - good God - she worked the half-full Sunday-night-at-the-Vogue crowd as if she were on her first tour as a 16 year old who punk rocker who actually lives by the "even if the crowd is thin, you always give a good show." I smiled and spoke about the show with great emotion for days. 4) Morrissey @ the Murat, Indianapolis, May 2007 I saw Morrissey on the Alma Matters tour in the late 90s and I often refer to that show (a bit hyperbolically) as the most violent I have ever attended. The surge of young Morrissey lovers when he hit the stage at the Aragon in Chicago crushed and nearly knocked the wind out of me. He was electric and his band played a loud, if short (he had the flu), set. I was not expecting the same rush in 2007 at the Murat in Indy, and, to be fair, I didn't get it - I was seated, in a not-completely-full balcony, and was surrounded, mostly, by couples. Morrissey's performance, however, was unbelievably good, a thousand times more energetic and urgent than back in 1998. Part of it, I'm sure, was the material he played in 2007 was far superior to that of 1998 - they opened with "The Queen is Dead" and I thought I was going to throw up with joy. His voice sounds amazing, his band was great (although 3 guitar players for those songs seems a bit much, but, hey, it works), and he even tore his shirt off. Way to go, Moz! 5) The Who @ the Quart Festival in Kristiansand, Norway Magnolia Electric Co was also fortunate enough to be invited to play in Norway at the Quart Festival this year. The headliners? The Who, Beastie Boys, and the Euro-loved Scissor Sisters. We arguably had the worst time slot of the festival, playing at 1am after a popular Norwegian band and The Who (who, of course, played on a much larger stage). Inherent in this terrible time slot was, however, the chance to see The Who. Yes, they're old, and yes, they only have two surviving members and, yes, they have, like, eight guys on stage now, but they were great. Townsend has given up his old man schtick and is back to windmills, screams, and "Can't Explain." Daltrey is as self-consciously beefcake-like as ever but he can still scream effectively during "Won't Get Fooled Again." And, even though they were supporting a new album (Endless Wire) they did not subject the festival crowd to too much of the record (which, to be fair, isn't so bad, minus the Townsend-as-Tom-Waits weirdness) but, instead, played their amazing hits in such a way that it felt like a band and not just a Branson act. It was pouring rain while we stood in the mud and watched them bring it, and it made the embarrassingly empty show we played later totally worth it. Honorable Mentions: Golden Boots (any show they played, probably, but especially in Kansas City, August 2007), Drakkar Sauna (especially in Athens, GA, September 2007), We Ragazzi at All Tomorrow's Parties, Black Mountain, and David Vandervelde solo in Munchen, Germany, July 2007. Oh, and I finally got in to Steely Dan this year, but that's for a different list. Thanks to all the participants and you for reading! Check back next week as we return to our regularly scheduled weekly update format... ................................................................... COMING SOON (dates often subject to change, sorry) ................................................................... Cornelius - Gum EP (1/15) Dirty on Purpose - Like Bees EP (1/15) Magnetic Fields - Distortion (1/15) Black Mountain - In the Future (1/22) Blood on the Wall - Liferz (1/22) Bodies of Water - Ears Will Pop & Eyes Will Blank (1/22) Cat Power - Jukebox (1/22) Collections of Colonies of Bees - Birds (1/22) Envy - All the Footprints You've Ever Left (1/22) Evangelicals - The Evening Descends (1/22) Hello, Blue Roses - The Portrait Is Finished (1/22) Hey Willpower - PDA (1/22) Mahjongg - Kontpab (1/22) Eric Matthews - The Imagination Stage (1/22) Mono - The Sky Remains the Same as Ever DVD (1/22) Jon Mueller - Metals (1/22) Photon Band - Back Down to Earth (1/22) Rafter - Sex Death Cassette (1/22) Jed Speare - Sound Works 1982-87 2CD (1/22) Richard Swift - Instruments of Science and Technology (1/22) Times New Viking - Rip It Off (1/22) Helio Sequence - Keep Your Eyes Ahead (1/29) The Mars Volta - The Bedlam is Goliath (1/29) Radar Brothers - Auditorium (1/29) Sons & Daughters - The Gift (1/29) Vetiver - remix 12" (1/29) Xiu Xiu - Women as Loers (1/29) Hot Chip - Made in the Dark (2/5) Bob Mould - District Line (2/5) Earles & Jensen Present: Just Farr A Laugh Vol 1 & 2 (2/19) ------------------------------------------------------------------ Top 5 sellers at Landlocked Music for the week of 12/24 - 12/30 1. Radiohead, In Rainbows (TBD) 2. V/A, I'm Not There OST (Sony) 3. Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Raising Sand (Rounder) 4. Kentucky Nightmare, Take Her Favour (self) 5. Beirut, The Flying Club Cup (Ba Da Bing) Don't miss the boat! We have still fresh CDs, LPs and DVDs from Bonnie Prince Billy, Rivers Cuomo, Jonny Greenwood, Tool, Hi-Tek, Wu-Tang Clan, Aloha, Blood Meridian, Bodies of Water, Daft Punk, Nick Drake, 4 Bonjours Parties, Ghostface Killah, Interpol, Kentucky Nightmare, Joe Lally, One Be Lo, Rufus Wainwright, Boris w/ Merzbow, British Sea Power, Cloudland Canyon / Lichens, Electric Wizard, Gorillaz, LoVid, Major Stars, James Murphy and Pat Mahoney, Nine Inch Nails, Push-Pull, Six Organs of Admittance, The Valerie Project, Cursive, Opeth, Residents, Boscoe, Vashti Bunyan, Burial, Eskiboy, Robyn Hitchcock, Os Mutantes, Pantaleimon, Wire, Battles, Bright Eyes, Burial, Citay, Loren Connors, Einsturzende Neubauten, Grizzly Bear, Jay Z, LCD Soundsystem, Operation Ivy, Gram Parsons w/ The Flying Burrito Bros, Pedro, Pine Hill Haints, Sigur Ros, Bobb Trimble, White Williams and much much more! ------------------------------------------------------------------ Upcoming Bloomington shows that Landlocked Music is excited about: 1/17 - Toubab Krewe @ Bluebird 1/24 - Chicago Afrobeat Project @ Fester's 2/1 - Peter and the Wolf @ Bear's 2/2 - Capillary Action @ Art Hospital 2/3 - Six Organs of Admittance / Tren Brothers @ Waldron 2/9 - Carrie Newcomer @ Buskirk-Chumley 2/12 - Nina Nastasia @ Art Hospital 2/16 - Haste the Day + more @ Rhino's 2/28 - They Might Be Giants @ Bluebird 2/29 - Avett Brothers @ Bluebird 3/1 - Pelican / Black Cobra / Unearthly Trance @ Rhino's 3/3 - Bowerbirds / Phosphorescent @ Waldron 3/4 - Evangelicals / Headlights @ Waldron 3/13 - David Allan Coe @ Bluebird 3/20 - Islands @ Rhino's 3/21 - The Dirtbombs / Kelley Stoltz @ Jake's 3/27 - Bodies of Water / Le Loup @ Waldron We have tickets and further information for many of these wonderful performances. Sorry, but we can only accept cash for ticket purchases. ------------------------------------------------------------------ More information about shows and more on the horizon is available for the technologically inclined at http://www.landlockedmusic.com/ or http://myspace.com/landlockedbton or http://indiana.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2385198570 We are looking to buy/trade all your old unwanted CDs & LPs! Bring 'em in and we'll make an offer. We are also ready, willing and able to special order anything for you. Email us or drop in and we will hook you up with whatcha need. Feel free to forward this to all your lovely friends that need to know whats going on, we'd love to have them join our little party here on the newsletter. Tell us what you think, what you desire. ------------------------------------------------------------------ BFF, Jason & Heath info@landlockedmusic.com Landlocked Music 314 S. Washington St. (next door to Boxcar Books) Bloomington, IN, 47401 http://www.landlockedmusic.com/ http://myspace.com/landlockedbton http://indiana.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2385198570 (812) 339 - 2574 Hours of Operation: Monday - Saturday : 11:30am - 7:30pm Sunday : Noon - 5pm