Springtime is here and so are new releases from from Xiu Xiu, Nurse With Wound, Air and others!
Xiu Xiu – Always (Polyvinyl / Bella Union)
Latest LP from California band Xiu Xiu – a follow up to their 2010 release Dear God I Hate Myself.
Always was produced by Greg Saunier from Deerhoof and features contributions from Carla Bozulich, John Dieterich and many others.
Read: Xiu Xiu’s Jamie Stewart Breaks Down Dark ‘Always’ (SPIN)
Stream the album: The Line Of Best Fit
Reviews: Pitchfork | The A.V. Club | Paste Magazine
Tracklist: Hi | Joey’s Song | Beauty Towne | Honeysuckle | I Luv Abortion | The Oldness | Chimney’s Afire (Mickensian Suicide) | Gul Mudin | Born To Suffer | Factory Girl | Smear The Queen | Black Drum Machine
Nurse Without Wound – Creakiness And Other Misdemeanours (United Jnana)
Compilation of various NWW releases, including split with Spasm and Having Fun With The Prince Of Darkness 7″.
This strange mix of early ’90s work and more recent material, showcases some of the many moods of Steve Stapleton. Classic cut-and-paste insanity from Nurse With Wound’s middle period has been paired with some of Stapleton’s powerful ambient vocal pieces from the last few years. This compilation does not make much sense on paper and perhaps is a little misguided in terms of its scope but it does sound brilliant from every angle.
Brainwashed
Audio Samples: Creakiness | Little Dipper Minus Two (Echo Poeme Sequence 1) | A Perfectly Natural Explanation
Reviews: Brainwashed
Disappears – Pre Language (Kranky)
3rd LP from Chicago band that features members of 90 Day Men and Sonic Youth.
Tracklist: Replicate | Pre Language | Hibernation Sickness | Minor Patterns | All Gone White | Joa | Fear Of Darkness | Love Drug | Brother Joliene
Reviews: Pitchfork | No Ripcord | PopMatters
Air – Le Voyage Dans La Lune (EMI)
Seventh studio album from French duo Air.
According to a press release, the album takes its inspiration from the classic 1902 silent science fiction film A Trip to the Moon (Le voyage dans la lune) by Georges Méliès. A fully restored version of the film is currently playing at film festivals worldwide. Air composed an original score for this new film version of the film.
Wikipedia
Reviews: Pitchfork | NPR | The A.V. Club
Tracklist: Astronomic Club | Seven Stars | “Retour sur terre” (“Back on Earth”) | Parade | Moon Fever | Sonic Armada | Who Am I Now? | Decollage (“Takeoff”) | Cosmic Trip | Homme Lune (“Moon Man”) | Lava