LAUHKEAT LAMPAAT The Most Pollo (Qbico) lp 25.00
Another mysterious transmission from some haunted forest deep in the wilds of Finland (featuring special guest, AQ fave Lau Nau). And it's everything we've come to love about our deep listening wanders through the deep dark woods. An abstract stroll through a barely there sound world, nothing but creaks and shuffles, breathing, footsteps, instrument buzz, electronic hum and random clatter. Eventually a wheezing horn makes it presence known, and is soon joined by chiming bells and muted percussion. Slowly, the sounds grow and build in volume and intensity, eventually coalescing into a massive Sunroof! like skree, replete with flurries of bells and percussion, swirling swooshing FX like wild stormy winds and mumbled distant drums. And that's just side 1. Side 2 skips around a bit from caveman freejazz with spazzy hand drums, muted percussion, grunted vocals and jazzy skronk, to an ambient symphony of creaking and keening high end very reminiscent of John Cale, to a weird buzzing raga like Eastern groove with the only discernible rhythm to be found, a droney stumbling stagger. Very cool.
Pressed on thick vinyl and packaged in a full color sleeve with killer yarn monster cover art!

LAVAGNINO, ANGELO Gamma 1 Quadrilogy (Dagored) cd 16.98
"60s Italian Cinematic Science Fiction Classic Freaky Sounds" is the subtitle here, truly. Never heard of Angelo Lavagnino or his sci-fi Gamma 1 Quadrilogy before but now we'd love to see these four made-for-TV films, from circa '66-'67: I Diafanoidi Vengono Da Marte (which, the liner notes inform us, is referenced in an Allen Ginsburg poem, believe it or not!), I Criminali Della Galassi, Il Pianeta Errante, and La Morte Viene Dal Pianete Aytin. Films which were known in English, respectively, as War Of The Planets, Wild Wild Planet, War Between The Planets, and Snow Devils -- which, while not literal translations of the Italian titles, should still give you an idea of what sort of action must have been unfolding on the screen. Space operas and alien invasions, that sort of thing, super dramatic and colorful. Of the 31 tracks, almost 70 minutes here, there's a few cuts in the groovy "Easy Tempo" style, but mostly a lot of atmospheric, spooky tracks evoking bug-eyed sci-fi menace. Very cool indeed. Italian soundtracks from the '60s, that's rich ore to mine... and this collection represents a particularily good find.
MPEG Stream: "Diafanoidi"
MPEG Stream: "Amebe Cosmiche"
MPEG Stream: "I Diavoli Dello Spazio"

LAVELLE, BRIAN & RICHARD YOUNGS Radios (Freek) cd 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Guitar/casio mayhem from 2 British freeks.

LAVENDER DIAMOND Imagine Our Love (Matador) cd 13.98
So Lavender Diamond have finally released their much buzzed-about Matador debut, and anyone familiar with said buzz has probably heard the words, "precious" and "winsome" too many times to keep count. While those words do describe frontwoman Becky Stark's particular vocal charms, a gauzy theatrical mix of Linda Ronstadt, Julee Cruise and Margo Timmons from the Cowboy Junkies, they don't accurately quantify the listening experience of this particular record which is sunny and wide-eyed in a seventies soft rock way without becoming as cloying as one would expect from such superlatives. We enjoyed their first EP, and have been waiting for what seems forever for this to appear. While it's a perfectly solid record, it falls just shy of being great. The band thankfully grounds Stark's soaring vocal delivery, but we wish that with such wealth of musicianship from Jeff Rosenberg (Lumen, Young People etc.) Ron Rege Jr. (The Swirlies) and Steve Gregoropolis (W.A.C.O.), they were given more room to expand on their strengths. But this is understandably Stark's show, which initially began in Providence as an indie operetta and has been developing through acclaimed live performances up to this current incarnation. They've definitely carved a niche for themselves that has avoided the pitfalls of freak-folk to be a more pliant pastiche of seventies alt country folk pop. Quite lovely indeed.
MPEG Stream: "Like An Arrow"
MPEG Stream: "When You Wake For Certain"

LAVENDER DIAMOND Imagine Our Love (Matador) lp 14.98
So Lavender Diamond have finally released their much buzzed-about Matador debut, and anyone familiar with said buzz has probably heard the words, "precious" and "winsome" too many times to keep count. While those words do describe frontwoman Becky Stark's particular vocal charms, a gauzy theatrical mix of Linda Ronstadt, Julee Cruise and Margo Timmons from the Cowboy Junkies, they don't accurately quantify the listening experience of this particular record which is sunny and wide-eyed in a seventies soft rock way without becoming as cloying as one would expect from such superlatives. We enjoyed their first EP, and have been waiting for what seems forever for this to appear. While it's a perfectly solid record, it falls just shy of being great. The band thankfully grounds Stark's soaring vocal delivery, but we wish that with such wealth of musicianship from Jeff Rosenberg (Lumen, Young People etc.) Ron Rege Jr. (The Swirlies) and Steve Gregoropolis (W.A.C.O.), they were given more room to expand on their strengths. But this is understandably Stark's show, which initially began in Providence as an indie operetta and has been developing through acclaimed live performances up to this current incarnation. They've definitely carved a niche for themselves that has avoided the pitfalls of freak-folk to be a more pliant pastiche of seventies alt country folk pop. Quite lovely indeed.
MPEG Stream: "Like An Arrow"
MPEG Stream: "When You Wake For Certain"

LAVENDER DIAMOND The Cavalry Of Light (L.D.P.) cd 6.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Each time we hear that AQ pal Jeff Rosenberg has a new music project we secretly fantasize that it'll continue to push the 'out-there' dissonant envelope as many of his past outfits have (the ever-expansive Tarentel, spazz-rock duo Pink & Brown, hypnotic art-folk trio Young People, and earthy instrumental duo Lumen to name a few), and shine the spotlight more on his considerable guitar talents. But even though each of his subsequent groups have definitely kept us on our toes, each one taking a new unpredictable Rosenberg direction, quite often the unassuming gent opts to humbly play the solid, no-frills support role. Such is the case with Lavender Diamond, a timorous folk pop combo who present themselves in Lawrence Welk-worthy attire, black suits and taffeta gowns, and in which Becky Stark's gentle'n'mild vocals take centerstage while Rosenberg, Steve Gregoropoulos and well known visual artist Ron Rege Jr back her up on guitar, piano and drums respectively. Maybe this is what all those jaded hipsters need these days... some wide-eyed, earnest songs of unabashed innocence. Sure seems so, 'cause folks have been gobbling this up like crazy already. You can even easily imagine the quartet doing a great cover of Coven's "One Tin Soldier" or perhaps something by The Carpenters! As for Jeff's guitar magic, alas, we'll just have to continue crossing our fingers that he'll unfurl it again someday. But for now we can happily soak in the sunny subdued country folk of The Cavalry Of Light.
MPEG Stream: "You Broke My Heart"
MPEG Stream: "Please"

LAVENDER DIAMOND The Cavalry Of Light (Matador) cd 4.98
This out of print self-released folk pop gem, originally reviewed way back in 2005, has been picked up, gussied up and re-released by the kind folks at Matador and is finally available again!
Each time we hear that AQ pal Jeff Rosenberg has a new music project we secretly fantasize that it'll continue to push the 'out-there' dissonant envelope as many of his past outfits have (the ever-expansive Tarentel, spazz-rock duo Pink & Brown, hypnotic art-folk trio Young People, and earthy instrumental duo Lumen to name a few), and shine the spotlight more on his considerable guitar talents. But even though each of his subsequent groups have definitely kept us on our toes, each one taking a new unpredictable Rosenberg direction, quite often the unassuming gent opts to humbly play the solid, no-frills support role. Such is the case with Lavender Diamond, a timorous folk pop combo who present themselves in Lawrence Welk-worthy attire, black suits and taffeta gowns, and in which Becky Stark's gentle'n'mild vocals take centerstage while Rosenberg, Steve Gregoropoulos and well known visual artist Ron Rege Jr back her up on guitar, piano and drums respectively. Maybe this is what all those jaded hipsters need these days... some wide-eyed, earnest songs of unabashed innocence. Sure seems so, 'cause folks have been gobbling this up like crazy already. You can even easily imagine the quartet doing a great cover of Coven's "One Tin Soldier" or perhaps something by The Carpenters! As for Jeff's guitar magic, alas, we'll just have to continue crossing our fingers that he'll unfurl it again someday. But for now we can happily soak in the sunny subdued country folk of The Cavalry Of Light.
MPEG Stream: "You Broke My Heart"
MPEG Stream: "Please"

LAVENDER DIAMOND The Cavalry Of Light (Matador) 12" 9.98
This out of print self-released folk pop gem, originally reviewed way back in 2005, has been picked up, gussied up and re-released by the kind folks at Matador and is finally available again!
Each time we hear that AQ pal Jeff Rosenberg has a new music project we secretly fantasize that it'll continue to push the 'out-there' dissonant envelope as many of his past outfits have (the ever-expansive Tarentel, spazz-rock duo Pink & Brown, hypnotic art-folk trio Young People, and earthy instrumental duo Lumen to name a few), and shine the spotlight more on his considerable guitar talents. But even though each of his subsequent groups have definitely kept us on our toes, each one taking a new unpredictable Rosenberg direction, quite often the unassuming gent opts to humbly play the solid, no-frills support role. Such is the case with Lavender Diamond, a timorous folk pop combo who present themselves in Lawrence Welk-worthy attire, black suits and taffeta gowns, and in which Becky Stark's gentle'n'mild vocals take centerstage while Rosenberg, Steve Gregoropoulos and well known visual artist Ron Rege Jr back her up on guitar, piano and drums respectively. Maybe this is what all those jaded hipsters need these days... some wide-eyed, earnest songs of unabashed innocence. Sure seems so, 'cause folks have been gobbling this up like crazy already. You can even easily imagine the quartet doing a great cover of Coven's "One Tin Soldier" or perhaps something by The Carpenters! As for Jeff's guitar magic, alas, we'll just have to continue crossing our fingers that he'll unfurl it again someday. But for now we can happily soak in the sunny subdued country folk of The Cavalry Of Light.
MPEG Stream: "You Broke My Heart"
MPEG Stream: "Please"

LAVENDER DIAMOND / QUEENS OF SHEEBA split (Cold Sweat) 7" 5.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Aaah, a Devendra Banhart sighting! While in Europe back in 2004, this neo-folk troubadour recorded with the band known as Queens Of Sheba. This lil' record features one of the resulting songs of that session -- "It's A Christmas Time Celebration". Yes, we are well aware that it is already the middle of January, but who are we to squelch a little belated holiday themed music? The flipside is the elegantly attired "Impossible Occurances" by LA's dream-folk combo Lavender Diamond. Artwork by Ron Rege. Limited pressing of 2500.

LAVETTE, BETTY I've Got My Own Hell To Raise (Anti) cd 14.98
Something so nice about the tradition of soul singers covering songs by an impressively wide array of artists, and usually with such strong conviction and charisma. In the '70s Tina Turner had this amazing ability to transform Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin songs and make them her own. Aretha could always breath new life into old songs too. Now, enter the amazing voice of Bettye LaVette. A survivor of the Detroit soul scene of the 1960's, she never really had any huge hits but that never stopped her from carrying on and using her strong powerful voice to make a handful of soulful records over the last several decades. On this outing she tackles songs by the likes of Lucinda Williams, Johnny Cash, Aimee Mann, Fiona Apple, etc. In using stripped down instrumentation or even entirely acapella (as on her stunning version of Sinead O'Connor's "I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got"), LaVette finds the grit and guts of every song she covers. We love the times when her voice sounds a lot like that other Betty we love so much (Betty Davis!), and just like Davis when words come out of LaVette's mouth they hit you hard, with passion and presence.
MPEG Stream: "Joy"
MPEG Stream: "I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got"

LAVETTE, BETTYE Tell Me A Lie (Reel Music) cd 14.98

LAVETTE, BETTYE The Scene Of The Crime (Anti) cd 15.98
An icon of the Northern Soul scene, Bettye Lavette has been making music since she was a teenager in the early '60s. Much like Candi Staton, her career has taken many twists and turns over the decades. Many had thought she had vanished until she hit the scene again a few years back with her debut on Anti, a covers record called I've Got My Own Hell To Raise that most definitely demonstrated her dynamic range and undying musical passion. The Scene of The Crime finds her recruiting gritty Southern rockers the Drive By Truckers as her backup band along with legendary Spooner Oldham on Wurlitzer and piano. It's a bleak and raw outing that's as much blues and gospel as it is soul and country. There's an undercurrent of sorrow and despair much like Staton's most recent album, His Hands. After all these years, Lavette's honest delivery and strong presence are still very much intact.
MPEG Stream: "Somebody Pick Up My Pieces"
MPEG Stream: "Jealousy"

LAVEY, ANTON Satan Takes a Holiday (Amarillo) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Anton, founder of the Church of Satan, is a virtuosic thereminist and makes most of this cd's music on a big old organ in one take, which, when you hear all the different layers of sounds, is pretty impressive.

LAWLER, R. KEENAN Music For the Bluegrass States (Xeric) cd 16.98

MPEG Stream: "That Train Has Already Left The Station"
MPEG Stream: "Wall Climbing Spirit"

LAY, JOSH Asphyxiation Worship (Black Horizons) 7" 8.98
Everybody except a tiny handful of folks missed out on that Josh Lay cd-r on the last list, sold out in a flash, but for those of you who missed out, here's a brand new 7" from Mr. Lay, drummer for aQ faves Cadaver In Drag. But of course the sound here is a bit different than the cd-r. The first side begins with a noisy drone, but soft noise, an undulating layer of deep gurgly rumble and highend whir that gradually grows thicker and more ominous, until it explodes into a blast of chaotic blackness, a weird abstract black ambience with howled demonic vokills, a bit like a black metal track with the guitars and drums removed, haunting and evil and black, but more a sort of blackdrone. The flipside is all drone however, never exploding into any sort of evil blackness, instead opting to lurk in shades of grey, slithering and shimmering and whirring.
Super fancy trifold gold ink on thick black cardstock sleeve, and LIMITED TO 350 COPIES!

LAY, JOSH Poison Drinker (Sentient Recognition Archive) cd-r 9.98
LAST COPIES!!!
We totally blew through these the first time around, selling out before most folks got a chance to snag one, well here's another chance, another super limited pressing, we got a whole bunch but odds are these will fly out of here lickety split again!
This just might be our favorite new 'noise' record. The key to that statement being those little marks around the word noise. This is most definitely noisy. But it's not pure noise. It's textural. It's droney. Somehow it's weirdly melodic too. Hard to explain, it's a big ol' massive slab of grinding guitar drone, laced with shards of static, and streaks of high end skree, the low end undulates and pulses, creating a distinct, but super subtle melody, a dense rumbling support for all the high end weirdness happening o'er the top. 
Josh Lay for those who may not know, is in fact the drummer for fucked up avant noise doom combo Cadaver In Drag, and this here is what happens when you let THAT kind of drummer make his own record. Not sure what he's using, guitar, synth, 4-track, shortwave radio, effects. We like to think the cover of the cd is an actual photo of the recording taking place, a beat up old console turntable, two old blown speakers, a cow skull, a half drunk bottle of booze, and an upside down cross. Cuz, c'mon, put all that stuff together, it would have to sound a little something like this, At least we'd hope so. 
Two tracks, the first, the title track is the above mentioned 'noise', a gloriously heavy blown out crumbling damaged stretch of coruscating sound, weird that something so obviously harsh could be so listenable, but it really is. At one point some creepy horn comes in, maybe it's a synth, but it sounds like a horn, it blats for a second, then just lays down and forms another layer of buzz, tones warble and wail, almost like some radio shack built siren, and gets all tangled up in that thick viscous buzz. We literally can't stop listening to it. So much so, that it's only right now, that we actually made it to the second track, which is kick ass also, but much more subdued, a weird stuttery loop, locked into an endless rhythm, while beneath, the same deep ominous low end from the opening track buzzed and reverberates, as the track progresses, more and more sounds enter the mix, a microscopic symphony of beeps and buzzes, squeaks and squiggles, all just adding to the general dreamy noise drenched din. AWESOME!
MPEG Stream: "Poison Drinker"

LAY, JOSH True Mask (Small Doses) cd 13.98
It all started with Poison Drinker, Josh Lay's last full length, a noise record that managed to be both noisy and melodic, harsh and pummeling, but also weirdly listenable, and kinda pretty. We're pretty particular when it comes to noise records, so for that record to kick our asses so hard, something special was definitely going on, which was confirmed with the super limited Worm Terrain cassette. Now we've got Lay's first proper cd full length, and while definitely still noisy, it's even more removed from traditional 'noise music'. Sure there are several serious bursts of harsh grinding NOISE, but here, those parts almost sound more black metal, with distorted hellish vox, over swirling sheets of sound. But those moments are actually few and far between. The first half of the title track is all synthy and sci-fi, droney and abstract, a looped electronic soundscape that eventually does splinter into some blackened noise, but the second track pulls the sound back from the edge, weird angular riffs buried beneath a sea of glitches and trills, that riff is the anchor of the song, chugging away relentlessly beneath a endlessly churning and ever shifting field of glitched out hiss, and some more of those sinister vokills.
But as the record progresses, it gets less and less noisy, and more and more abstract and a tiny bit prettier. Track three is a high end sprawl of looped glistening skree and throbbing rhythmic bass pulses, minimal vokillizing, a swirling sea of streaked trebly blur, and then the final track, which is perhaps still technically noisy, but that noise is blunted, muted, dulled, like some churning blackened sonic sea, a throbbing industrial dronescape, a little Wolf Eyes, but way less abject, and weirdly a little bit warmer sounding, still ominous and buzzy, but again, strangely soothing and almost serene.
MPEG Stream: "Behind The Mask"
MPEG Stream: "Human Skin"

LAY, JOSH Worm Terrain (Husk) cassette 5.98
We all went pretty nuts for Josh Lay's Poison Drinker, a glorious slab of decaying black noise, but not like SKKKKKRGGHHH noise, no this was something much more nuanced, still harsh and grim, but layered and tripped out and psychedelic and damaged and demented and buzzy and droney, THAT kind of noise. A follow up 7" offered more of the same, but with some added blackness, even some fucked up evil vokill action. Besides creating all this sonic sickery, he also plays drums for the mighty Cadaver In Drag. Needless to say, we figured we oughta track down anything we could get our hands on by this guy. There's a new full length cd coming soon, but until then, we have this limited cassette to tide us over. Well at least a few of us. LIMITED TO 100 COPIES, they're almost gone, we got the last little handful, so if you want one of these, gotta be quick. And believe us, you DO want one of these.
Thick, grinding, crumbling dronescapes, textured and layered, thick and constantly changing shape and sound and timbre, buried melodies, throbbing muted rhythms, the various strands occasionally coalescing into something almost metallic, sometimes splintering into jagged shards of pulsing low end buzz. Streaks of skree stretch across the sky, a delicate sonic latticework in the background, while up front, an oozing, whirring black cloud of muted crunch, and smeared chaotic shimmer are fused into a heaving expanse of suffocating doomdrone sickness. Warm and woozy and noisy and intense and epic, and like everything else we've heard from Lay, fucking awesome.
Again, LIMITED TO 100 COPIES. We have maybe 8 left. Blue tapes, full color J-cards, each one hand numbered.

LAZARUS Like Trees We Grow Up To Be Satellites (Temporary Residence) 2cd 14.98
This is the second solo album of lilting autumnal folk from Trevor Montgomery (formerly of Tarentel). His soft, ragged vocals and gently fingerpicked acoustic guitar are smoothed and warmed by glistening piano and strings. With each subsequent song the heavy heartedness grows and grows. The cycle of aching woe is emphasized by the endless feeling recurrence of certain melodic motifs that surface throughout the album lending it a very hypnotic vibe (although some might interpret this more as repetition or even redundancy?).
Note: As an added bonus there's a whole second cd titled Demos For The Backwards America, but y'know what? The differences seem really pretty slight between the demos and 'finished' tracks. Heck the the disc artwork is very very similar too (making it very easy to confuse one with the other). So this almost seems like a cd that comes with a duplicate disc.
MPEG Stream: "The Walking Sonnet"
MPEG Stream: "This American Dream"

LAZARUS Songs For An Unborn Sun (Temporary Residence Ltd.) cd 14.98
Gorgeous album! Lazarus is Trevor Montgomery (ex-Tarentel), the lanky, gravel-voiced troubadour of sadness who has here laid down some of the most poignant and heartfelt vocal and acoustic guitar tracks ever. And the album would be lovely left at that, but then to make it even better, Trevor asked Marty Anderson from the amazing local group Dilute to embellish the music: the results are quietly stunning. Marty adds his own barely-there creaky treble vocals -- he sounds like a wrinkled crone following creepily on Montgomery's every step (in a good way) -- and tiny dots of electric guitar squiggles. A singer songwriter record with fascinating audible touches that make it both hauntingly bittersweet and yet refreshingly cleansing. Another winner from the Temporary Residence label.
MPEG Stream: "Poets the Liars"
MPEG Stream: "Ocean (Burn the Highways)"

LAZARUS Trickster (St. Ives) lp 14.98

LAZARUS BLACKSTAR Tomb Of Internal Winter (Future Noise) cd 9.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
With a name like Lazarus Blackstar, we were sort of expecting something a bit more polished, it definitely has a nu-metal or modern rock ring to it, but holy shit, nothing could be further from the truth. LB are purveyors of some of the crustiest, filthiest, heaviest sludge doom we've heard in ages. Featuring a who's who of British sludge / punk / crust / metal royalty (including at least one member of the legendary Sore Throat) these guys are broooootal. Massive, thick downtuned chug, crushing drum pound, a vocalist who sounds like he's spitting out vital organs with every anguished guttural roar, definitely hearing some Eyehategod, Grief, Bongzilla and that sort of thing, but the band bring some weirdness, like in the opening track, when after trudging through some seriously glacial black tar buzz, a guitar line soars from beneath the murk, tracing out a weirdly warm and buzzy and almost major key melody over the lurching lumber below. "Son Of Sorrow" slows it down even more, veering into some serious Bunkur / Moss / Monarch territory, before launching into an Electric Wizardly, almost stonery groove. The closer "Victim Of The Clergy", superimposes some demonic growling over a haunting hymn, the hammer falls and the song erupts in a slow negative trudge, the vocals this time punkish and yelped. There are some fucked up samples, some weird ambient percussion, like the sound of water dripping, or echoey footsteps, but the riff and the drums pound away, relentlessly, as various voices hover over the top, finally dropping out and finishing with a priest offering absolution. Heavy as fuck. Definitely need to track down the full lengths....
MPEG Stream: "Tomb Of Internal Winter"
MPEG Stream: "Son Of Sorrow"

LAZER CRYSTAL EP1 (HBSP - 2X) lp 21.00
Record number two from this Cave side project, and while the name Lazer Crystal certainly evokes thoughts of pretty much every Myspace band in the land, since those two words have been used in various combinations over and over and over, these guys in fact have most definitely forged their own unique sound, and have been doing so for a while now. Fans of Cave's tribal spaced out drone-y krautrock, should be prepared for something entirely different. This is most definitely dance music, but seeing as it's the work of Cave men (and by extension, members of Warhammer 48k), you can expect something a bit more twisted and home brewed than your typical dancefloor fodder.
Right out of the gate, it sounds like (Daft) punk rock kids doing their own lo-fi sort of Justice dance rock, all stuttery synths, woozy spaced out melodramatic melodies, thick swaths of warm buzz, and some gothy dramatic crooning a la Human League or Depeche Mode. Propulsive and hypnotic, but also groovy, fun, funky and a wee bit goofy.
The second track takes that goofiness a little further, twisting the sounds of the opening track into bleeping blooping malfunctioning glitchery, swirling effects, still more buzzy synths, letting the track get way more abstract and space-y and almost ambient at times.
The flipside starts off with what sounds like some Nintendo 64 8-bit video game music, but fused into some primitive electro jam, still a distinct krautrocky undercurrent, and those croony Human League vocals all tangled up with the warm buzz, giving it an almost M83 vibe. The last track might be our favorite, definitely the darkest and the buzziest, ominous and sinister, but just a bit, still groovy and funky, and those vocals still crooning oddly throughout.
Incredible packaging, we talk about things being 'handmade' all the time, but these sleeves are WAY handmade, all done by different artists, some are collages, others are painted, some are 3-D and very tactile, some are eye poppingly colorful, everyone totally different. Includes a full color insert as well. And as you might imagine, SUPER LIMITED, TO ONLY 300 COPIES.

LAZER CRYSTAL Hot Pink BMX / National (HBSP - 2X) 12" 11.98
First there was Warhammer 48K, then there was Cave, now there is Lazer Crystal. That's right those crazy noisemakers from Chicago have gone and got themselves a brand new band with a brand new sound. Fans of Cave and WH48K might be a bit thrown, but most likely only for a second, as the sound of Lazer Crystal was definitely hinted at in sounds of both those bands, especially Cave.
It may look like a 12". And it is, but there's only one song on each side, with most of each side being the runout groove, but fear not, there's plenty of sound to be found! Super ghetto spray painted cover art, tiny scrawled photo copied insert, all leading us to drop the needle and get bowled over by LC's wild lo-fi electro krautrock jams. Think total eighties John Hughes soundtrack new wave, all tangled up with electronic Kraftwerk style Krautrock. Analog synths buzz over fuzzy grooves, machinelike beats pound and pulse while vocoder-ed vocals swoon and swoop all over the place.
The flipside introduces some Bryan Ferry like crooning to the proceedings, the perfect compliment to the lurching synth drenched new wave krautrock what-the-fuck beneath. Groovy, danceable, weirdness that kicks a surprising amount of ass!!!
Anyone into all those French new wave reissues we've been digging lately, or any of the more modern dance floor destroyers, will probably find the perfect place for this in their next DJ set.

LAZERCROTCH Nugut! / Black Bugs Bleed Black Blood (Poisonous Gases) 7" 5.98
Skweee! We've explained skweee before, you know it's an infectious and sometimes silly electronic music subgenre, an 8-bit obsessed video gamey sort of instrumental hiphop/electro music, coming from Scandinavian places like Sweden, Finland, and... Portland Oregon??
Sure, why not! The, um, interestingly-named Lazercrotch hails from Portland, and his debut 7" is the first American skweee release we've ever encountered. And it most definitely IS skweee, and the truly skweee agree, Lazercrotch is gettin' props from the likes of Mrs. Qeada and Randy Barracuda.
"Nugut!" is a low-slung, loose-limbed groove, with the crunching bass blurp and whooshing synths we like... likewise the flipside is totally skweeed up too. Cool. It's a 45, which means you can play it on 33 if you like, for extra slowed down, drugged out, fucked up effect.
We look forward to hearing more from Lazercrotch, and Poisonous Gases, the label he's formed to promote skweee in this country.

LAZY Microsonics (Dr Jim's) cd 14.98

LAZY FARMER s/t (Sunbeam Records) cd 16.98

LB Pop Artificielle (Shadow) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Lb is yet another pseudonym for the ever prolific Atom Heart. While the Senor Coconut Kraftwerk covers album has brought him a much broader audience, it needs to be stated that Atom Heart's aesthetic quality control has never been his strongest suit, with almost as many records as Pete Namlook that quite simply bombed. For every banner album like the Senor Coconut, Atom & Tea Time, or Los Sampler's, you should expect a handful of albums like "Pop Artificielle." Here as Lb, he does versions of a handful of pleasantly inoffensive songs by the likes of Prince, John Lennon, David Bowie, and Donovan with a similiar inoffensiveness, thereby creating the Air Supply of electro. For those who like the softer side of Atom Heart.

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM 45:33 (DFA) cd 14.98
Last year, DFA producer and LCD Soundsystem mastermind James Murphy released 45:33 as part of an iTunes exclusive "workout" series for Nike, which is probably the best thing he's ever done -- and probably one of the most lucrative. However, this release is the post-Nike, post-licensing version, and is lacking the original artwork. Which was? A total rip-off/homage to Manuel Gottsching's E2-E4 cover, which was so obvious that he decided to sue. But we digress. This review is about a Nike workout song, and how as completely shitty as a 45 minute disco-punk take on Jazzercise sounds like it might be, this record rules. Why? Well, rather than catering to the dancefloor -- as has been the case with less-than-exciting tracks like "Daft Punk Is Playing At My House," "Movement," or "North American Scum" - Murphy was given a medium through which he could indulge himself in any and every fantasy that could possibly fit within the LCD oeuvre. The result is a record that ranges from cheesy (but awesome) Chicago House piano escapades to New Wave synth hooks to full-on Arthur Russell freakouts to Brian Eno bliss. Murphy has always worn his influences on his sleeves, but 45:33 shows him blending them all in such a seamless fashion that the differences between those influences begin to dissolve. If you've heard "Someone Great" -- off the group's newer album Sound of Silver -- then you've heard one of the four or so movements that comprise this record. If you haven't heard it, just skip it and start here. This is a great producer at his best, and will undoubtedly be remembered as such. Edge of Sanity gave death metal its 40+ minute epic song, Ricardo Villalobos did a 37 minute techo single, La Monte Young has recordings that last for a day, doom metal has about 5 million hour long records under its belt. Isn't it time that disco had a go? The CD version features three extra tracks. Each one features a more psyched-out, freakier James Murphy than is typical, and makes a great release even better. Honestly, it's a shame that these aren't on the vinyl version because they rock! Fans of No Wave, Dub, Minimal Techno and Acid beware, this could dominate your disc changer. Totally recommended.
MPEG Stream: "45:33 - Sample 1"
MPEG Stream: "45:33 - Sample 2"

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM 45:33 (DFA) 2lp 17.98
Now on vinyl! Last year, DFA producer and LCD Soundsystem mastermind James Murphy released 45:33 as part of an iTunes exclusive "workout" series for Nike, which is probably the best thing he's ever done -- and probably one of the most lucrative. However, this release is the post-Nike, post-licensing version, and is lacking the original artwork. Which was? A total rip-off/homage to Manuel Gottsching's E2-E4 cover, which was so obvious that he decided to sue. But we digress. This review is about a Nike workout song, and how as completely shitty as a 45 minute disco-punk take on Jazzercise sounds like it might be, this record rules. Why? Well, rather than catering to the dancefloor -- as has been the case with less-than-exciting tracks like "Daft Punk Is Playing At My House," "Movement," or "North American Scum" - Murphy was given a medium through which he could indulge himself in any and every fantasy that could possibly fit within the LCD oeuvre. The result is a record that ranges from cheesy (but awesome) Chicago House piano escapades to New Wave synth hooks to full-on Arthur Russell freakouts to Brian Eno bliss. Murphy has always worn his influences on his sleeves, but 45:33 shows him blending them all in such a seamless fashion that the differences between those influences begin to dissolve. If you've heard "Someone Great" -- off the group's newer album Sound of Silver -- then you've heard one of the four or so movements that comprise this record. If you haven't heard it, just skip it and start here. This is a great producer at his best, and will undoubtedly be remembered as such. Edge of Sanity gave death metal its 40+ minute epic song, Ricardo Villalobos did a 37 minute techo single, La Monte Young has recordings that last for a day, doom metal has about 5 million hour long records under its belt. Isn't it time that disco had a go? The CD version features three extra tracks. Each one features a more psyched-out, freakier James Murphy than is typical, and makes a great release even better. Honestly, it's a shame that these aren't on the vinyl version because they rock! Fans of No Wave, Dub, Minimal Techno and Acid beware, this could dominate your disc changer. Totally recommended.
MPEG Stream: "45:33 - Sample 1"
MPEG Stream: "45:33 - Sample 2"

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM 45:33 Remixes (DFA) cd 14.98
More dance-floor jams in the way of remixes from their 45:33 record,

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM Confuse The Market Place (DFA) 12" 8.98

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM s/t (Capitol) 2cd 17.98
Hey, got your copy yet?! LCDS raise the roof a few more storeys on their self-titled debut double disc, but it's not all cowbells and arpeggiated basslines. For example, on the insistent fourth track "Movement", James Murphy does his best Mark E. Smith impersonation, then immediately shifts gears into a slower, prettier swoon mood for "Never As Tired As When I Wake Up". Throughout the album, the group revisits these two detours from their usual rump-bumpin' and visit a few others too. The seventh track is totally "Warm Leatherette". Hmmm, maybe the question is: Is it a rip-off or an homage? And ditto for the closing song of the first disc "Great Release" which takes on a *very* Brian Eno wistful pop feel. Sorta makes you think that LCDS might be the clubland incarnation of a cabaret singer who can ape any other singer's delivery or maybe a bar band who can recreate any other band's sound... really a skill unto itself, innit? Awww shit, why are we gettin' all serious with such criticism 'n' skepticism and shit when there's a paaarty goin' on?! Just look at that glistening disco ball on the cover, man.
This release includes all of their previously released singles to boot. Yup, that means you get both versions of their track "Yeah" with its lyrics that go something like "Yeah yeah yeah yeahyeahyeahyeahyeah yeah yeahyeah yeahyeahyeah".
MPEG Stream: "Movement"
MPEG Stream: "Great Release"

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM s/t (DFA) lp 14.98
Now available on vinyl as a spiffy double LP!!
Hey, got your copy yet?! LCDS raise the roof a few more storeys on their self-titled debut double disc, but it's not all cowbells and arpeggiated basslines. For example, on the insistent fourth track "Movement", James Murphy does his best Mark E. Smith impersonation, then immediately shifts gears into a slower, prettier swoon mood for "Never As Tired As When I Wake Up". Throughout the album, the group revisits these two detours from their usual rump-bumpin' and visit a few others too. The seventh track is totally "Warm Leatherette". Hmmm, maybe the question is: Is it a rip-off or an homage? And ditto for the closing song of the first disc "Great Release" which takes on a *very* Brian Eno wistful pop feel. Sorta makes you think that LCDS might be the clubland incarnation of a cabaret singer who can ape any other singer's delivery or maybe a bar band who can recreate any other band's sound... really a skill unto itself, innit? Awww shit, why are we gettin' all serious with such criticism 'n' skepticism and shit when there's a paaarty goin' on?! Just look at that glistening disco ball on the cover, man.
This release includes all of their previously released singles to boot. Yup, that means you get both versions of their track "Yeah" with its lyrics that go something like "Yeah yeah yeah yeahyeahyeahyeahyeah yeah yeahyeah yeahyeahyeah".
MPEG Stream: "Movement"
MPEG Stream: "Great Release"

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM Sound Of Silver (DFA) cd 13.98
Sophomore slump? No Way!! If anything the newest outing from DFA head honcho James Murphy is even better and more satisfying then his debut full length from a couple years back. While his singles and remixing skills are undeniable we still had our doubts about whether the full length format was well suited for LCD Soundsystem. Sound Of Silver proves that indeed Murphy has found out how to create a cohesive group of songs that feel just right next to each other and not just like a bunch of singles slapped together. Striking us as more earnest and even more carefully crafted then past efforts this is a great record of infectious electronic pop. The goosebump-inducing "Someone Great" might be the best LCD song yet, and instead of hipster ramblings or name checking lyrics its sentiment is bittersweet if not sad and so totally sincere. But not to fear, the party and dance floor have not been forgotten, as tracks like "North American Scum" make it pretty impossible not to crack a smile and start shaking some ass. Smart, sincere and sassy. That's a pretty great combination!
MPEG Stream: "Someone Great"
MPEG Stream: "Get Innocuous!"
MPEG Stream: "Time To Get Away"

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM Yr City's A Sucker (DFA) 12" 6.98

LD Traumatic Times (Hyper Dub) 12" 11.98

LE CAINE, HUGH Compositions Demonstrations 1946-1974 (EMF/JWD) cd 14.98
The Electronic Music Foundation presents this historic collection of recordings by the late Hugh Le Caine, a Canadian mid-century pioneer in inventing instruments for electronic music, some inventions in which necessity might not have had a hand. There's 38 tracks, divided into three sections: Compositions, Humorous Sketches (only four of those, don't worry), and Demonstrations. The Compositions include his musique concrete classic "Dripsody: An Etude for Variable Speed Recorder" and "A Noisesome Pestilence" among others, some prime proto-electronica, for fans of Bruce Haack, Raymond Scott's "Manhattan Research" era, and the whole "Switched On Bach" thing. The Demonstration portion has the somewhat nasal voice of Le Caine carefully explaning his "Electronic Sackbut" and "Touch Sensitive Organ", as well as the "Artificial Larynx", etc. followed by demonstrations of each. Weird and wonderful. For fans of quirky musical eccentricity with an historical bent. The booklet has bilingual, detailed info on each track.
RealAudio clip: "Music For Expo"
RealAudio clip: "Artficial Larynx, driven by Sackbut"

LE CAR Auto-biography (Ersatz Audio) cd 12.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Another Detroit duo featuring Mr. Adam Lee Miller. Yes, prior to the awesomeness of Adult., he along with Ian Clark created music of the icily funky techno kind - demonstrating a wry wit and subtle pushing of the envelope on the dancefloor. Auto-biography is a very thorough retrospective of the brief existence of Le Car (1995-98) recounting each of their releases titled Autograph, Automatic and Autofuel.

LE DOIGT DE GALLIEE Object 5 (Locust) cd 14.98

LE FORTE FOUR W/ PATIENTS Boris the Spider / Priceless (Cortical Foundation) cd + 7" 30.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Unintended for a proper release, this rare gem of the LAFMS has been unearthed and given the Cortical treatment. The brainchild of a then fifteen year old Rick Potts, this 1973 recording is the precursor to Le Forte Four's debut 'Bikini Tennis Shoes' LP, when they were calling themselves The Patients. Recorded in the Potts family's living room,
"Boris the Spider" is a screwball "reworking" of The Who's song of the same name, along with amateur plundering of the Potts' collection of Frank Zappa and Disney records. Also includes a split 7": Slimy Adenoid and the Pablums (featuring Joe and Tom Potts as well as Dennis Duck) do a song about the Residents, cleverly titled "The Residents" backed with Joe Potts' "Mother/Daughter". Limited edition of 700 copies.

LE LOUP Family (Hardly Art) cd 11.98
It really is kind of remarkable the amount of direct influence Animal Collective has had on music makers in the last several years. We heard their influence on the Le Loup debut from a few years ago and this follow up finds this East Coast band still very much indebted to the sound that Animal Collective have created with their multilayered dense pop doused in reverb and bursting at the seems with harmony and melody. This time around it seems they've tapped more into the Panda Bear side of the Animal Collective equation as Family really does have a similar sound and feel to PB's masterpiece Person Pitch. Some of the instrumentation Le Loup uses does help set them a bit apart from the flock of Animal Collective followers, laying down some pretty awesome sounds with the banjo. A friend of ours recently commented that so many of today's Animal Collective soundalikes will be remembered as the modern equivalent to the Dave Clark Five in the time of The Beatles, but hell, when it comes to knock offs, Le Loup have it down pretty damn well.
MPEG Stream: "Saddle Mountain"
MPEG Stream: "Morning Song"

LE LOUP Family (Hardly Art) lp 13.98
It really is kind of remarkable the amount of direct influence Animal Collective has had on music makers in the last several years. We heard their influence on the Le Loup debut from a few years ago and this follow up finds this East Coast band still very much indebted to the sound that Animal Collective have created with their multilayered dense pop doused in reverb and bursting at the seems with harmony and melody. This time around it seems they've tapped more into the Panda Bear side of the Animal Collective equation as Family really does have a similar sound and feel to PB's masterpiece Person Pitch. Some of the instrumentation Le Loup uses does help set them a bit apart from the flock of Animal Collective followers, laying down some pretty awesome sounds with the banjo. A friend of ours recently commented that so many of today's Animal Collective soundalikes will be remembered as the modern equivalent to the Dave Clark Five in the time of The Beatles, but hell, when it comes to knock offs, Le Loup have it down pretty damn well.
MPEG Stream: "Saddle Mountain"
MPEG Stream: "Morning Song"

LE LOUP The Throne Of The Third Heaven Of The Nations' Millennium General Assembly (Hardly Art) cd 11.98
Le Loup is a group of artists & musicians led by Sam Simkoff, who plays the banjo and the keyboards. Coming from D.C. it's no surprise that there is a strong collective spirit heard on this recording with all eight members contributing vocals to songs which have a really organic vibe. Imagine Animal Collective slowed down a bit or Sufjan Stevens if he was a little more rugged and less precious. After putting out the great Arthur & Yu record that we fell in love with earlier this summer, Hardly Art is proving to be one of the best new indie rock labels around. Banjo fans (like Andee) who have a pop soft spot might really dig this...
MPEG Stream: "We Are Gods! We Are Wolves!"
MPEG Stream: "To The Stars! To The Night!"

LE PLASTIQUE MYSTIFICATION In The Land of Melancholy (Obuh Records) cd 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
A Polish collective playing mysterious, moody and melancholy jazz-inflected music. This is apparently their 12th or 13th release! Tapes, synth, guitars, female vocals, etc. On Obuh, the label responsible for various Atman-related releases of avant-garde hippy drone, although this is much more like a noir soundtrack... Le Plastique Mystification is hard to describe (their website says something about "psychoambient, trip-hop oraz minimal music") but regardless, this is pretty nice.

LE SCRAWL Eager To Please (Life Is Abuse) cd ep 5.98
The crazed, genre-scrambling grindcore of Germany's Le Scrawl is, as threatened, back! This new 13-song, 16-minute cdep will either bring a big smile to your face or confuse and annoy you utterly. Imagine Napalm Death teamed up with Uz Jsme Doma. That is, political punk metal all fucked up with horns and a weird sense of humor. Keyboards and flugelhorn aren't normally part of an underground grind band's arsenal, but Le Scrawl aren't normal... Metal nerds should note that this was recorded by Harris Johns, whose previous credits include numerous Sodom albums as well as Voivod, Helloween, Coroner, Tankard, Pestilence, Saint Vitus, Therion, S.A.D.O., and more. But this definitely must have been a unique session for Johns! Scrawl are one of the original wacky grind outfits, and they sure know how to mix up the gruff and the smooth. Metal riff one moment, lounge groove the next. And having just seen 'em live on a rare US tour, I have to say I was amazed at their deadpan delivery of their complex and, well, silly material. Oh yeah, if you don't like ska...well just wait 5 seconds...every five seconds.
MPEG Stream: "Boiling Point"
MPEG Stream: "Drop Dead"

LE SCRAWL Too Short To Ignore (Life Is Abuse) cd 10.98
Ignore the "Le", that's just a silly way to differentiate this Scrawl from the '90s US indie rock girl group. And they are VERY different. "Le" Scrawl is a schizoid grind band straight out of the German peace punk underground, doing the rapid-fire genre-mash thing. They belong in the same record bin with the likes of Naked City, Exit 13, People, Mexican Power Authority, Spazztic Blurr, Alboth!, Boredoms, and Anal Cunt (whose Seth Putnam guests vocalizes on one song here). If you're thinking that's a very '90s list of mostly avantgarde/novelty grind bands well, yes, this Scrawl stuff was recorded between 1990-1999. And we'd all but forgotten this band until the excellent Oakland label Life Is Abuse (purveyors of metallic weirdness like Tarantula Hawk and Ludicra) took it upon themselves to put together this cd, the complete Scrawl discography on one disc, essentially a deluxe, expanded version of Scrawl's "Q" album originally issued in 1995 by Germany's Ecocentric Records. Expanded in that you get the original disc's 24 tracks plus *another* 42 songs (!!) including their self-titled 1993 album, live stuff, singles, demos, and incongrous covers (De La Soul, The Exploited, Terrorizer, Chic, and the Mission Impossible theme!).
Their humorous, herky-jerky musical juxtapositions plus their totally grim punk political lyrix (that you can't understand anyway 'cause they're all gruff and screamy) equals weird, radical, action-oriented artcore. Imagine the quirky European chamber prog of a group like Etron Fou Leloublan colliding with the 20-second blast beat grindcore of a Napalm Death, or Mr. Bungle gone crusty punk, or, when the horn section kicks in, some sort of ADD Fishbone/Uz Jsme Doma hybrid playing in the midst of a Drop Dead practice session. The booklet -- chock full of photos, flyers, and discographical information -- has a 2002 note from main man Mario Anders, promising some new (Le) Scrawl material coming soon! Yikes!
RealAudio clip: "If Everything Fails"
RealAudio clip: "100 Doors"
RealAudio clip: "Dare!"
RealAudio clip: "Good Times"

LE SHOK L.A. To N.Y. (KaPow!) 6" 4.50
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Hmmm, I could swear that they broke up recently... a few times. Southern California's art-punk spazz-wave brats Le Shok dish up three live-on-the-radio tracks including a Screamers cover and two of their own. Recorded on KXLU in LA and WNYU in NY, and with different line-ups both of which include Joey from The Locust. Noisy, confrontational and messy. Yes, this is a 6" record on denim blue vinyl in a hot pink sleeve.

LE SHOK S&M (Slamdance Cosmopolis) 7" 5.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
A band that continues to haunt us from the grave, it's the defunct SoCal art-spazz-punk assembly known as Le Shok. The very special feature of this record? Why they've pressed an additional track right onto the sleeve - a cover of the Chosen Few's "No Fun at the Beaches". The record itself contains two suitably hyper-garage-wave short spurts from the days when Le Shok were a trashy sextet.

LE SHOK We Are Elecrocution (Gold Standard Laboratories) cd 11.98
Now on cd! As we said about the vinyl: More spastic noisemakers from the GSL camp. With some truly astounding cover art (and if you're one of the lucky ones, some truly cool clear pink vinyl). Live, there's a strong chance of an abbreviated set due to on and off stage volatility. On record, it's like a cacophonous cattle prod to your ears. Plug in and rock, baby.