A real light batch of releases kick off December, before bigger drops on 12/10 and 12/17, then two Tuesdays of nada. Info and links for the ones you want to know about most below, plus some other ones you may not have heard of (but should know), with audio & video for your listening and viewing pleasure. Click here to check out releases that dropped over the past few months.
AAA Battery, Year Of The Woman (Rescord)
The trio featuring Canadian quirky-pop veteran Spookey Ruben on vocals, San Francisco bassist Joe Maydak and Chicago-area guitarist/drummer Fred Jeske present their debut LP. First single "Tea Time" has been described by Ruben described as sounding something like "softcore Porno for Pyros." Listen to the aforementioned track after the jump and find out what else dropped today...
Ben Allison, The Stars Look Very Different Today (Sonic Camera Records)
BEEdEEgEE, SUM/ONE (Self-Release)
The project of Brian DeGraw, from Gang Gang Dance.
Boston, Life, Love & Hope (Frontiers)
Marley Carroll, Sings (Melanaster Records)
Glen Hansard, Drive All Night EP (ANTI-)
The Hip Abduction, The Hip Abduction (self-release)
St. Pete's own worldbeat, dub reggae, funk, jazz, rock n' jam ensemble hits hard with a new self-titled full-length, further building upon the West African sounds and instrumentation (kora, ngoni), amping up the funkadelic factor, and generally showing a heavy dose of studio class, with production by Michael Goldwasser (Easy Star Records). The septet stages an album release show on Sat., Dec. 28, at Jannus Live in St. Petersburg; more info about that here.
I-Exist, From Darkness (Prosthetic Records)
Leona Lewis, Christmas, With Love (RCA)
Magic Trick, River Of Souls (Empty Cellar Records)
The third work of well-skewed pop songs Tim Cohen (The Fresh and Onlys) and his band, Magic Trick. Recorded in The Tree House, his attic studio, and the sound has a much cleaner appeal than the lo-fi output of his other act; Cohen's whispery low intones joins female chants (Noelle Cahill and Alicia Vanden Heuvel) against light pulsing drums and melodic basslines. Guitarists Tom Heyman and Steve Peacock add odd texture and shred along with horn player Marc Cappelle’s brass, making for a moody downbeat brew. "Come Inside" below.
Muse, Live at Rome Olympic Stadium CD/DVD (Warner Bros.)
Actual release date 11/29.
Mutual Benefit, Love’s Crushing Diamond (Other Music Recording Co.)
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Live From KCRW (Bad Seed Ltd)
The digital release of the RSD vinyl album Cave issued on Friday.
Stevie Nicks, In Your Dreams DVD (Warner Bros.)
A documentary that looks at Nicks as she and music whiz Dave Stewart write and record In Your Dreams, her first studio album in more than a decade. The doc was also co-produced and co-directed by Stewart.
Jake Owen, Days Of Gold (Sony Nashvile/RCA)
She & Him, The Capitol Studios Sessions EP (Merge)
Britney Spears, Britney Jean (RCA)
Yes, yes, we know she actually released her album on Black Friday to take advantage of all those sale hunters. However, we’re including it here since we did not include it last week. Plus, today marks the date of the Deluxe Edition release, which includes four bonus tracks. Ooh, la la.
Sumie, Sumie (Bella Union)
You know Yukimi Nagano from Swedish synth pop band Little Dragon. Sis Sandra Sumie Nagano aka Sumie, is also a musician, not much like her sibling; acoustic guitar, delicate vocals, folk tendencies... this is her debut. "Show Talked Windows," below.
Xiu Xiu, Nina (Graveface Records)
