MIDDLETON, MALCOLM Sleight Of Heart (Full Time Hobby) cd 10.98
A new album from our favorite (favourite!) Scottish sadsack. We lovingly compare his music to an abandoned puppy in the rain... lapping up the last drops from empty pint glasses outside the neighborhood (neighbourhood!) pub. The all-acoustic songs on Sleight Of Heart, a mix of originals and covers (including a great, unflinching slow creeping rendition of Madonna's "Stay"!), sound more off the cuff and barebones than those on his last album 2007's A Brighter Beat. His haggard voice is once again joined by the dulcet pipes of Jenny Reeve as well as Mogwai's Barry Burns on piano and The Delgados' Paul Savage on drums. Five years down the line Middleton's first solo album 5: 14 Fluoxytine Seagull Alcohol John Nicotine still continues to slay Cup, but each of his subsequent full lengths have plenty of woeful weepers to delight any craving for that unmistakable Scottish melancholia. Go on, slip into this bummer goodness!
MPEG Stream: "Follow Robin Down"
MPEG Stream: "Stay"

MIDDLETON, MALCOLM Waxing Gibbous (Full Time Hobby) cd 14.98
As the first few songs from Malcolm Middleton's latest album burst forth, you sorta get the feeling that he's thrown off the sadsack shackles of past dour hopelessness. The feverish tempo of many of these songs suggests that he might've come to the realization that too much time has been wasted mopin' around, and he's pulled up his socks and gotten a move on. The fantastic opening tune (and clear choice for the first single off the album) "Red Travellin' Socks" had us imagining what the world would be like if the New Pornographers had blossomed out of Scotland instead of Canada. 'Tis buoyant, beautifully produced pop with soaring female backing vocals that's as infectious as can be. Sure there's still the occasional song during which Middleton's spirits droop and his shoulders slump under the weight of the woes of his heart and soul as well as that of the rest of the world. Need proof? Give "Ballad Of Fuck All" a spin! Yeah, the title sez it all. He's never been one to mince words. As well there are a few endearingly dorky moments when the parts don't quite seem to fit - such as the introduction of programmed beats and/or a bleep-bloop synth line (as on "Zero") into the predominantly folksy acoustic setting. On the other hand, the same additions to songs such as "Box And Knife" work beautifully! Day in and day out, Middleton seldom disappoints! Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Red Travellin' Socks"
MPEG Stream: "Box And Knife"

MIDLAKE The Courage Of Others (Bella Union) cd 13.98

MIDLAKE Trials Of Van Occupanther (Bella Union) cd 14.98
Midlake have garnered some pretty notable classic rock comparisons ranging from the Alan Parsons Project to Neil Young. Some reviewers have been quick to compare the group's opening track "Roscoe" to Fleetwood Mac. We agree that Lindsey Buckingham would approve of the delicate acoustic guitar picking (reminiscent of "Silver Springs") on "Bandits" and the crunchy guitar solo (ala "Go Your Own Way") on "Head Home," and Christine McVie wouldn't sneeze at the subtle electric piano lines that blend nicely into the rhythm section, yet contribute heavily to each song. However, we think the band's opener "Roscoe" is more comparable to Blue Oyster Cult's "Don't Fear the Reaper." After about ten seconds you begin to expect the cowbell to come in. Soon enough Tim Smith begins singing in a melancholy tone comparable to early Thom Yorke or Mark Kozelek and the cowbell seems miles away as you are swept up in the beauty of The Trials of Van Occupanther.
MPEG Stream: "Roscoe"
MPEG Stream: "Head Home"

MIDNIGHT Complete and Total F@#cking Midnight (Outlaw) cd 10.98

MPEG Stream: "All Hail Hell"
MPEG Stream: "Hot Graves"
MPEG Stream: "Endless Slut"

MIDNIGHT CIRCUS, THE Richard, Rodney, Rastus, Raoul, Roderick, Randy, Rupert (Hyped2Death) cd 11.98
Hooky -and- haphazard, and nicely lo-fi, yes it's another batch of early '80s UK DIY goodness, rescued from oblivion by Hyped To Death's Messthetics series! Leicester's Midnight Circus, who considered The Instant Automatons (reviewed last list) their mentors in the whole DIY cassette culture art punk thing, appeared on one collectable vinyl comp (Angst In My Pants) as well as on many many self-released cassette-albums with titles like Pre-Natal Counseling, The Bland Craze, Galvanizing The Dead, and Do Modern Atoms Wear Fashionable Clothes.
As per general Messthetics standards, they weren't terribly musically accomplished, but they -were- creative and fueled by much post-adolescent angst... Perhaps the Arctic Monkeys would have wound up like The Midnight Circus if they grew up 30 years earlier. Expect their Gang-Of-Four-ish guitars to be accompanied by beer can percussion (or crudely amplified metronome, or at best a cheap drum machine), that sort of thing, which of course we totally dig.
This is a "best of" of sorts, compiling tracks from that comp, their cassettes, and previously unreleased recordings as well circa 1980-83 and it includes scads of liner notes and cool black-and-white graphics in the 10-page cd booklet, as you should expect from these very thorough, labor-of-love Hyped To Death productions.
MPEG Stream: "Leather & Lace"
MPEG Stream: "Pre-Natal Counseling"

MIDNIGHT MOVIES Lion The Girl (New Line) cd 14.98
Midnight Movies' latest full length Lion The Girl exudes an irresistible sexy confidence. Believe you me, it is your new favorite if you happen to be a sleek late night jetsetter. This is great driving, moody pop a la Metric or Electrelane. Y'know, the kind that's deeply influenced by the shadowy side of '80s new wave, a bit of post-punk tension and maybe some Stereolab too with their penchant for propulsive krautrock-y organ lines. The robust combination of Larry Schemel's guitars, Jason Hammons' synthesizers and new drummer Sandra Vu's drums pack quite the walloping backdrop for Gena Olivier's sultry vocals. Occasionally the L.A. band take a bit of a breather from their fevered pace for a gentler '60s girl group vocal style slow number ("Ribbons") or a druggy space rocker ("Lion Song"). We like! Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Hideaway"
MPEG Stream: "Ribbons"

MIDNITE SNAKE s/t (Birdman) cd 13.98
Raw wah-wank garage psych rawk from a new Pittsburgh PA trio whose in-the-red motorpsycho stylings would make Makoto Kawabata blush. If they were Japanese, this would get filed next to Mainliner and High Rise. All instrumental, which means they don't have to come up with any lyrics to go with such songtitles as "Machinegun Cock" and "Nitro-Turbo-Overdrive"... they just have to play it like they mean it. And they do, bombing out some drunken guitar-bass-drums as if their practice space was on fire and they're trying to put it out with their amps. Don't listen if you don't like hangovers. The aptly named track "Acid Wash" drones things out for about twelve minutes at the end of the disc, without turning down the volume.
MPEG Stream: "Ambassadors Of Throttle (In The Sky We Will Ride)"
MPEG Stream: "Snakebite At Midnite"

MIDNITE SNAKE Shaving The Angel (Birdman) cd 13.98
Good grief, this is the second album AQ's reviewed by Pittsburgh's Midnite Snake and I've only just NOW gotten the terrible pun implicit in their band name. Snake, snack, geddit? Ugh, wish I hadn't! Oh well, let's not hold that pun against 'em, 'cause this is a damn fine disc of raw, in-the-red, motorpsycho, amp-fried garagey geetar heaviness in the tradition of bands like High Rise and The Heads. The cool/curious thing about Midnight Snake is that it's obvious that they're totally IN control of the out-of-control, if your know what we mean. It's weird in a way, for something that's supposed to sound so SCUZZY they're actually not that sloppy.
So, what are this fright-masked trio up to this time 'round? They kick things off by kicking out the jams on the nine-minute "Cruise Control", effects swirling and burbling, bass throbbing, fuzzzzzzzzz baking yr ears to a crisp. Track two, "Sacred Mist" is an even longer jam, moodier at the beginning before building up to the requisite freakout. And then, with track three "Bigfoot '69" they REALLY go off but check out the drumming, tight! It's got all the "get down" energy of something by the late great Lubricated Goat. They follow that up with the mellow "In The Grass", it's all quiet and pretty for over four minutes... what happened??? Smoking grass instead of popping pills we guess, but it's nice. Soon enough, with track five "Shaving The Angel" they're back to the frazzed, fuzzed, frantic sort of stomp-splatter that Midnite Snake fans want to hear from Midnite Snake. Feedback squeal squalls and all. And then, holy crap, the final track number six "Supermodified" is a doozy. Nearly 26 minutes! Mantric noisy space rock mayhem.
File with yr White Hills, Residual Echoes, Comets On Fire... and Japanese stuff like Mainliner, Musica Transonic and Acid Mothers Temple (this actually even LOOKS a helluva lot like an AMT album).
MPEG Stream: "Cruise Control"
MPEG Stream: "Bigfoot '69"

MIDWAY Fist Full Of Quarters (self-released) cd ep 4.98
Do you have a fist full of quarters? About five dollars worth? Do you like feisty '80s-style punk pop tunes? Well, you just might wanna head for this Midway! Their debut five song ep positively bursts with youthful vigor. As you may guess from the title, they're all about cute, no-frills fun. And we'd guess they're more into riding the rollercoasters and the bumper cars, than the Ferris wheel! Fun!
MPEG Stream: "Electricity"

MIGHTY FLASHLIGHT s/t (Jade Tree) cd 12.98
Mike Fellows (of the monumentally important and awesome band Rites of Spring) has had a helping hand in records by Royal Trux, the Silver Jews, Will Oldham, and even Smog. Now he's finally struck out on his own. But don't expect any ass kicking emo. This is a way more subdued and personal affair. Utilising acoustic guitar, piano, electronics, drum machine, and the ubiquitous PowerBook, Fellows has produced an intimate and completely captivating album with obtuse yet engaging lyrics and subtle but pervasive melodies. Imagine Royal-Trux-electronica or Smog-techno or Palace-Brothers-remixed or drum-machine-folk-soundscapes or something, but it's so much more than that. Dark and folky and dreamy and pretty fucking great. This record would have fit perfectly on the Drag City roster (rumor is they turned it down), instead of emo mainstay Jade Tree (but I suppose that was unavoidable what with the Rites Of Spring past). So those of you in the market for some folky twang or twangy strum who wouldn't mind mixing it up a little, should totally check this out. Look out for the Mighty Flashlight on tour soon with what the band hints may be a unlikely collection of accompanying musicians.
RealAudio clip: "Vehicular Dome"
RealAudio clip: "Go, on. Die. It's easy"
RealAudio clip: "Several Water Cannons"

MIIKE SNOW s/t (Downtown) cd 14.98
We usually don't pay too much attention to mainstream music mags, especially when they're pushing something as the next big thing, so we're not sure how exactly we ended up hearing this record from Miike Snow, a Swedish trio, not a person, but apologies to whoever wrote the recommendation, and whatever magazine printed it, cuz this really is fantastic. Totally quirky, super lush pop, that if we had to summarize these guys in a nutshell, we'd probably describe them as Animal Collective meets Phoenix, maybe with a little TV On The Radio mixed in (especially in the almost Peter Gabriel sounding vox), although we have seen them described as Animal Collective meets A-Ha, which might be not that far off either.
But however you describe them, the sound is amazing. Super lush, glimmering almost orchestral pop, with gorgeous vocal harmonies, buzzy synths, minimal programmed rhythms, little flurries of electronics, swirling ambience, tinkling pianos, a glistening production, and incredible hooks, the first three tracks have this record so frontloaded the rest of the songs barely stand a chance, but somehow they do manage to hold their own, which is saying a lot, just give the three sound samples a listen and you'll know exactly what we mean.
We probably haven't dug a major label mainstream pop record this much since Phoenix's Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, and you know how much we love(d) that one, so needless to say, for the pop kids this one comes highly recommended.
MPEG Stream: "Animal"
MPEG Stream: "Burial"
MPEG Stream: "Silvia"

MIJ Yodeling Astrologer (ESP-Disk) cd 14.98
Just when we thought all the weird dusty corners of strange and magical sounds had been uncovered from the vast archives of the ESP label, something new to us, shiny and unbelievably wonderful gets unearthed. MIJ is the strangely cryptic moniker of Jim Holberg, (or on second thought not so strange as we just realized, it's his name spelled backwards!) who was discovered in Washington Square Park on a hot summer day in 1969 yodeling and playing guitar by ESP label head Bernard Stoller. But this wasn't any country western or Swiss Alps yodeling, this was some freaked out high-keening spacey Martian kind of yodeling. The kind that cuts through time and space and penetrates your subconscious. Blown away by his street performance, Stoller invited Holberg into the studio the next day to record a full length album and in just three hours with an array of echo effects and a patient and agreeable engineer, the Yodeling Astrologer was born. Apparently Holberg had explained to Stoller that after being injured in an auto-accident that had fractured his skull and impaired his hearing, his perceptions became altered and he began to do things musically that he couldn't comprehend but they somehow worked, and indeed they do. With both voice and guitar reverbed to the nth degree, this is some Donovan meet Dreamies meets Curt Boetchner of The Millenium psych-folk magic. So awesome and beautiful, weird and dreamy, with well-written songs and just enough freaky yodeling that won't scare off the folks who might be put off by the concept of, well, freaky yodeling. We've been playing this nearly everyday, it's so good. So Highly Recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Two Stars"
MPEG Stream: "Grok (Martian Love Call)"
MPEG Stream: "Never Be Free"

MIJ Yodeling Astrologer (Jackpot) lp 19.98
Now available on vinyl!
Just when we thought all the weird dusty corners of strange and magical sounds had been uncovered from the vast archives of the ESP label, something new to us, shiny and unbelievably wonderful gets unearthed. MIJ is the strangely cryptic moniker of Jim Holberg, (or on second thought not so strange as we just realized, it's his name spelled backwards!) who was discovered in Washington Square Park on a hot summer day in 1969 yodeling and playing guitar by ESP label head Bernard Stoller. But this wasn't any country western or Swiss Alps yodeling, this was some freaked out high-keening spacey Martian kind of yodeling. The kind that cuts through time and space and penetrates your subconscious. Blown away by his street performance, Stoller invited Holberg into the studio the next day to record a full length album and in just three hours with an array of echo effects and a patient and agreeable engineer, the Yodeling Astrologer was born. Apparently Holberg had explained to Stoller that after being injured in an auto-accident that had fractured his skull and impaired his hearing, his perceptions became altered and he began to do things musically that he couldn't comprehend but they somehow worked, and indeed they do. With both voice and guitar reverbed to the Nth degree, this is some Donovan meet Dreamies meets Curt Boetchner of The Millenium psych-folk magic. So awesome and beautiful, weird and dreamy, with well-written songs and just enough freaky yodeling that won't scare off the folks who might be put off by the concept of, well, freaky yodeling. We've been playing this nearly everyday, it's so good. So Highly Recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Two Stars"
MPEG Stream: "Grok (Martian Love Call)"
MPEG Stream: "Never Be Free"

MIKA MIKO 666: E.P. + 7" + Rare (PPM) cd 13.98

MIKA MIKO C.Y.S.L.A.B.F. (Kill Rock Stars) cd 14.98
These five new no-wave / garage punk gals from L.A. kick and howl and raise quite a fevered ruckus while copping feels of Toni Basil's "Mickey" and The Knack's "My Sharona" (check out the fourth track "Jogging Song"!). Also brought to mind '90s lo-fi punk pop grrrls Frumpies, Bratmobile and Bikini Kill, not to mention their foremothers The Slits and X-Ray Spex.
MPEG Stream: "Jogging Song (He's Your Mr. Right)"
MPEG Stream: "Tighty Liberace"

MILANESE Lockout (Planet Mu) 2x12" 12.00
**SALE **SALE* *SALE**
Milanese's Extend record from back in 2006 instantly became an all time aQ favorite. A total headspinning mix of old school jungle, hip hop, ragga, grime and who knows what else. A massive block rocking, dancefloor destroying, speaker shaking dancemusic freakout. We still throw that one on all the time. Then came Adapt, which was remixes, and took Extend and twisted it up and freaked it out evern MORE. And now we have Lockout, which seems like a proper new full length, although it's jam packed with remixes and guests and multiple versions, but right out of the gate, we're totally sold. Big phat buzz synth basslines, swooping space FX, and some super tweaked helium vocals, until part way through when everything shifts, the beats flip backwards, the tempo drops to half time, and a new vocalist joins the fray, his lazy flow perfectly matching the woozy buzzy lope. The second track is more of the same, a sort of supercharged junly techno, with a dash of dubstep, and some tongu twisting rapping over the top, the whole thing peppered with weird distorted tracheaotomy croaks and warped computer vox. And it just gets weirder and weirder and better and better.
Skittery hiccupping beats wrapped around creepy looped little girl voices, huge chopped jagged shards of low end, warped stumbling big beats, some twisted Tracy Morgan like flows, clipped sirens, clouds of squelch and glitch, a bunch of awesome samples and fractured melodies, a definite Sensational / Dr. Octagon vibe all over the place, as well as a gritty sheen of buzzy grime, a couple tracks dip their toes into diva / radio hip-pop, but even those jams are plenty tweaked.
Another winner for sure, and another record from Milanese that manages to go way beyond dubstep or grime or techno or hip hop or whatever other label you can come up with that barely begins to cover whatever the fuck is going on here. Awesome.
MPEG Stream: "Baby Blue Remix Ft. RQM & Oliver Grimball"
MPEG Stream: "Disclosure Ft. Ben Sharpa"
MPEG Stream: "The End (Off Mix)"

MILE END LADIES STRING AUXILIARY, THE From Cells of Roughest Air (Bangor) cd 14.98
What do you get when three ladies from groups like Godspeed You Black Emperor and A Silver Mt. Zion come together to form a "string auxiliary"? One intense and beautiful album, that's what! With cello, viola and violin employed with full force, this is a record that maintains a compelling tension from start to finish. Almost what you would imagine Rhys Chatham, Glenn Branca or Steve Reich would come up with if they were to use a string ensemble to score a lost Hitchcock film. Suspense filled sounds played with a piercing perfection. Kind of like a more forceful version of the Rachels' with the same elegant touch but a punchier disposition. This is totally recommended! Came out a while back (last year) but we only just mangaged to get some more in, it's a Canadian import. Not sure when/if we'll be able to get more when we run out...
MPEG Stream: "Sequences of a Warm Front"
MPEG Stream: "Thunderheads and Radar"

MILEMARKER Anaesthetic (Jade Tree) cd 13.98
Chapel Hill, NC post-hardcore, synth rockers Milemarker sound as though they really want to rage but fall short on firepower. For instance, the angstful, aggressive male and female voices seem to be grasping for the Atari Teenage Riot umph that's just out of their reach. Nevertheless when they step back a bit, details like piano lines and driving rhythms shine through. This actually brought to mind Computer Cougar (especially the male vocals), The VSS or more recently The Faint.

MILES, WYMOND Earth Has Doors (Sacred Bones) 12" 13.98
Earth Has Doors is the first solo record from Fresh & Onlys guitarist Wymond Miles, and while in many respects it's sonically similar to the F&O's mothership, Miles paints a much darker musical picture, twangy and dirgey, heavily reverbed, a little bit swampy and gothic sounding, Miles' vocals are haunting, deep and dramatic, and while these songs are heavily rooted in Miles' study of eschatology, anthroposophy, and Gnostic and Hermetic symbolism, one might not necessarily hear that, even on close listening, although the sounds here are most definitely dark and mysterious, reminding us at times of Scott Walker, Woven Hand, Mark Lanegan, and other similarly dark spirited songsmiths. Miles' vocals do definitely also remind us of Fresh & Onlys frontman Tim Cohen, which makes sense, and sonically, Miles's first foray is again not that far removed from his main band, which of course means F&O's fans will definitely dig, as long as they're prepared for a bit more darkness than they're used to. But that said, Earth Has Doors is its own dark beast, with some strange production, sweeping strings, buzzing synths, proggy arrangements, tribal percussion, lots of buzz and drone, some thick spaced out effects, as well as some surprisingly catchy songs, all wreathed in a darkness that somehow only makes these songs that much more appealing. Great stuff!!
MPEG Stream: "Temples Of Magick"
MPEG Stream: "Earth Has Doors, Let Them Open"

MILGRAM Vierhundertfunzig Volt (Pandaemonium) cd 13.98
Another release from our new favorite French label, that last brought us the amazing new Hint album reviewed last time, as well as Guapo, Double Nelson (above), etc. More conventionally "post-rock" a la Don Cab, June of 44...Good stuff for fans of that style of loud, rhythmically challenging mathy stuff. Pandaemonium is almost single-handedly changing the unfairly prejudiced view that almost everyone holds of the French rock scene (Magma excepted of course).

MILIEU A Warm Wooden Hollow (Infraction) cd 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

MILK 'N' COOKIES s/t (RPM) cd 16.98

MILK CHOPPER The Secret Life of Numbers cd 9.98
Super sunshine indie pop in a very Beulah meets Pavement-esque fashion... It's San Francisco's Milk Chopper! Breezy boyish harmonies abound with a subtle bit of twang and snippets of sound samples shuffled in here and there. Quite a pleasing pop debut.
RealAudio clip: "Rubber Balls"

MILK CULT Project M-13 (0 To 1) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Wow -- one of the rare AQ Unanimous Staff Favorites. Ex-members of ye olde local band Steelpole Bathtub have put together this AMAZING Milk Cult record. Sounding nothing like Steelpole whatsoever, this is an experimental melange of dance, rock, and lounge music that's so f***ing accessible and so kickass serious fun that we sell a copy almost every time we play this in the store. It features everything from throaty French singers to earth-trembling bass to random noises and disco, plus lovely wailing guitar soloes, exotica, bird calls, you name it. The recipients of a French arts grant, Milk Cult spent a month recording "traditional Corsican singers; Buddhist chanters; Algerian folk improvisors; French folkies; industrial noisicians; rockers; jazzbos; hip hop artists; spoken word artists; electronics experimenters; a thirty-piece African orchestra; a Conch player; all of whom played along with backing tracks prepared by Milk Cult but never with each other..." The entire thing is put together so well it is seamless, and we predict you will love it. Highest recommendations for a record that really shouldn't be overlooked.

MILK MUSIC Beyond Living (Perennial) lp 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
We had been hearing about this for ages, local pop heroes the Ovens had been RAVING about it, as well as a million blogs, hailing these guys as the second coming. Of what you ask? Husker Du? Dinosaur Jr? The Wipers? All three is more like it, these guys offer up six songs in 21 minutes of buzzing, grungy, slightly sludgy ultra heavy indie pop, that takes that classic punk / pop sound, and adds some Torche-like heft, the guitar impossibly thick and crunchy and fuzzy, the songs hooky as hell, the vibe sorta washed out and woozy, a little druggy and laid back, the perfect mix of nineties guitar rock, eighties punk rock, and modern post punk heaviness, super emotive about-to-crack vox, and the solos, total J Mascis guitar tone, short and simple, just sort of mirroring the vocal melody, and then right back into it. Stripped down and simple, every jam a goddamn anthem, total windows down, stereo cranked, feeling young again, summer jam bliss, and fuck, if a band like the Ovens, who write catchy pop songs like it ain't nothing, lose their minds over a band, proclaiming them THE BEST EVER, well, then, you know you better figure out what the fuck is up, and what the fuck is up, is that this just might be your new favorite band.
MPEG Stream: "Fertile Ground"
MPEG Stream: "Beyond Living"

MILK MUSIC Cruise Your Illusion (Fat Possum) cd 13.98
Milk Music's Beyond Living lp was the sort of record we could barely keep in stock. The band hyped to high heaven for ages before we actually heard them, but somehow, when we finally did get an earful, it more than lived up to all that hype, an explosive hybrid of classic nineties indie rock, fuzzed out noise pop, equal parts Dinosaur Jr, Husker Du, the Wipers, and fuck, pretty much every band we've loved from the last four decades. Fuzzy and hooky and heavy, jangly and crunchy, super melodic and crazy catchy. But still pretty goddamn punk. Which is why we were pretty surprised when we discovered their new record was on Fat Possum, home to the Black Keys among others. But then they were sort of primed for mainstream success anyway. And while we're definitely digging Cruise Your Illusion, the group's sound has changed a lot. At first blush, it's way less fierce and furious, more laid back and fuzzed out. The Dinosaur vibe is huge, right down to the guitar tone, fat and buzz drenched and blown out. Not to mention the fact that once we're 3 or 4 minutes into the record we're already in full on psychedelic guitar jam territory. But you know what? It suits them, and it still sound pretty great, you just have to prepare yourself for something a little less sweat soaked and headbangable, it's more that sort of bounce up and down, nod along nineties style college rock jangle, there's definitely a big shoegaze vibe going on too, with some of the songs boasting explosive tranced out riff heavy blissouts, but for every one of those ("Cruising With God") there's another shuffly jangly groover ("Crosstown Wanderer"). We're tempted to think these guys are actually engaged in a super high concept musical hoax, but if that's the case, why are some of these songs so goddamn great!
The vocals too, way higher in the mix than last time, wavery quavery keening about-to-break sad boy indie rock vocals, reminding us again of Dinosaur, but of course also early Soul Asylum (back when they were GREAT), and in fact, there's a huge Soul Asylum / Replacements / Husker Du feel to the whole record, which is most definitely not a bad thing. We'd be surprised if folks who dug Beyond Living didn't dig this too, but in some cases, it could be borderline too jangly and indie poppy. But for folks who love that era, and that sound, there's probably not a new band doing that old sound better than these guys.
MPEG Stream: "Caged Dogs Run Wild"
MPEG Stream: "Illegal And Free"
MPEG Stream: "Cruising With God"
MPEG Stream: "I've Got A Wild Feeling"
MPEG Stream: "Runaway"

MILK MUSIC Cruise Your Illusion (Milk Music) lp 16.98
NOW ALSO ON SELF-RELEASED VINYL! Fat Possum cd version listed last time, thusly:
Milk Music's Beyond Living lp was the sort of record we could barely keep in stock. The band hyped to high heaven for ages before we actually heard them, but somehow, when we finally did get an earful, it more than lived up to all that hype, an explosive hybrid of classic nineties indie rock, fuzzed out noise pop, equal parts Dinosaur Jr, Husker Du, the Wipers, and fuck, pretty much every band we've loved from the last four decades. Fuzzy and hooky and heavy, jangly and crunchy, super melodic and crazy catchy. But still pretty goddamn punk. Which is why we were pretty surprised when we discovered their new record was on Fat Possum, home to the Black Keys among others. But then they were sort of primed for mainstream success anyway. And while we're definitely digging Cruise Your Illusion, the group's sound has changed a lot. At first blush, it's way less fierce and furious, more laid back and fuzzed out. The Dinosaur vibe is huge, right down to the guitar tone, fat and buzz drenched and blown out. Not to mention the fact that once we're 3 or 4 minutes into the record we're already in full on psychedelic guitar jam territory. But you know what? It suits them, and it still sound pretty great, you just have to prepare yourself for something a little less sweat soaked and headbangable, it's more that sort of bounce up and down, nod along nineties style college rock jangle, there's definitely a big shoegaze vibe going on too, with some of the songs boasting explosive tranced out riff heavy blissouts, but for every one of those ("Cruising With God") there's another shuffly jangly groover ("Crosstown Wanderer"). We're tempted to think these guys are actually engaged in a super high concept musical hoax, but if that's the case, why are some of these songs so goddamn great!
The vocals too, way higher in the mix than last time, wavery quavery keening about-to-break sad boy indie rock vocals, reminding us again of Dinosaur, but of course also early Soul Asylum (back when they were GREAT), and in fact, there's a huge Soul Asylum / Replacements / Husker Du feel to the whole record, which is most definitely not a bad thing. We'd be surprised if folks who dug Beyond Living didn't dig this too, but in some cases, it could be borderline too jangly and indie poppy. But for folks who love that era, and that sound, there's probably not a new band doing that old sound better than these guys.
MPEG Stream: "Caged Dogs Run Wild"
MPEG Stream: "Illegal And Free"
MPEG Stream: "Cruising With God"
MPEG Stream: "I've Got A Wild Feeling"
MPEG Stream: "Runaway"

MILKWOOD TAPESTRY s/t (Gear Fab) cd 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Debut album from 1969 sees itself reissued on disc. This NYC-based duo were popular for their tender ballads played out on classical and acoustic guitar and cello, with the added flourishes of maracas and harpsichord, and appropriately fey vocals. Will not only appeal to fans of the Incredible String Band, but also fans of Belle and Sebastian. An essential purchase only for those of you intrepid scholars of psychedelic esoterica.
RealAudio clip: "Wonderous Fairy Tale"
RealAudio clip: "Signs of the Invisible Chalk"

MILLENNIUM, THE Begin (Sundazed) lp 21.00

MILLENNIUM, THE Magic Time: The Millennium / Ballroom Recordings (Sundazed) cd 38.00
Here's an apparently much sought-after rarity now reissued (thanks again to the fine folks at Sundazed), that we have to confess we'd never heard of until now. But that's one of the great things about reissues, isn't it? And as reissues go, this one's a doozy: three discs of sugary, sunshiney psychedelic pop dating from 1965-1968, produced by the interrelated studio groups The Millennium, The Ballroom, Sagittarius, Summer's Children, and others (all creations of, among others, songwriter/producer Curt Boettcher, a man whose work we're told Brian Wilson was stunned by). Demos, singles, instrumentals, unreleased alternate takes, plus the full albums (Ballroom's "s/t" and The Millennium's "Begin") from these guys: it's all here. And it's all pretty great -- magical, even. Often dreamy. Well, sometimes goofy too (unfortunately reminding us of that "Drugsachusetts" Kroft Super Show parody sketch from Mr. Show!). Ok, if you're not in the mood, it'll make you vomit, but if song titles like "Dancing Dandelion", "Sunshine Today", "Milk And Honey", and "Karmic Dream Sequence" make you smile, then you'll want to have this for those special moments when today's Elephant 6 output just doesn't cut it. (And by that we mean to suggest that if you're a fan of Olivia Tremor Control or Apples in Stereo, you'll find so much to love here -- the music is as sweet as the Olivias but with a really good grit to it too.)
62 tracks total, that's almost 3 hours of material, all direct from the original analog tapes in Columbia's vaults. This massive reissue package, which includes extensive liner notes and many photos as well as those three compact discs of geniune genius '60s "Soft Pop" music, was assembled with the active cooperation of the original musicians.
RealAudio clip: THE BALLROOM "Love's Fatal Way"
RealAudio clip: THE MILLENNIUM "To Claudia On Thursday"
RealAudio clip: THE BALLROOM "Magic Time"

MILLER, RHETT The Believer (Verve) cd 15.98
Oh, Rhett Miller what're you doin' to us?! You, dear AQ reader, might recall that we had a gripe with his 2002 album's cover photo (a teen magazine worthy close-up shot of his peaches'n'cream face on a green background), and we didn't even bring up the appalling cover of his early solo offering Mythologies. Shudder. This time he's all dolled up and lounging in velvets. Doin' his best Rufus Wainwright impression. Weird, but unlike Wainwright who possesses an easy jaunty elegance, Miller looks posed and unnatural. Geeeez! Alright, that's enough harshing on Miller for one afternoon, but frankly it'd be less of an issue if any of his cover art or photos to date have suited their respective albums' music OR if his solo tunes kicked as much ass as those of his full band (Old 97s) do. Instead, his solo fare is much closer to that of loads of other folks. For instance the second tune could very well be a Goo Goo Dolls cast-off (which in itself isn't all that bad, is it?). Then the very next song "Meteor Shower" sounds like it could be a re-interpretation (or in less kind words, a knock-off) of David Bowie's song "Soul Love" from Ziggy Stardust. Later in the album "I Believe She's Lying" traces a melody and strummy guitar sound that Gin Blossoms put to better use on their song "Hey Jealousy". Not surprisingly, it all sound good -- really well played and produced -- but just comes across as faceless. That said, there's certainly enough heartstring-pulling here to guarantee that you'll be hearing some of these songs in teen movies this summer...
MPEG Stream: "Meteor Shower"
MPEG Stream: "The Believer"

MILLER, RHETT The Instigator (Elektra) cd 12.98
Solo record from the lead vocalist of alt. country rockers the Old 97's. And yet another chapter in the seemingly never ending saga of a band we love getting worse and worse. While the last Old 97's record still hinted at the band they once were, this is total middle of the road, singer songwriter, adult contemporary bland pop rock. Blechh.
RealAudio clip: "Our Love"

MILLS, CHRIS Nobody's Favorite (Sugar Free) cd 9.98

MIMIR Mimyriad (Streamline) cd 14.98

MIMIR s/t (Streamline) cd 14.98

MIN BUL s/t (Universal Norway) cd 21.00
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Here's one I remember reading about in one of them rare-ass record collector books and thinking, wow, I'd like to hear that. A 1970 jazz-rock improv trio from Norway, featuring the young guitarist Terje Rypdal (later an ECM staple), balanced somewhere between psych-rock and Impulse-inspired energy jazz. Well at last it's been reissued on cd (first time ever legit reish we're told) and it is indeed damn good. Rypdal makes a good claim here to being Norway's answer to Sonny Sharrock or Ray Russell, and rips it up on some soprano sax as well as electric guitar. The six tracks here range from sheer freakout implosions to calmer, groovier stuff, with bassist Bjornar Andresen's Mingus-meets-Cream composition "Champagne of Course" being a monster highlight. Definitely a jazz record more than a rock one, but quite intense and heavy and experimental and sometimes beautiful too. And it's another NWW-list entry by the way. Recommended.
MPEG Stream: "I Cried A Million Tears Last Night"
MPEG Stream: "Champagne Of Course"

MIND SPIDERS Meltdown (Dirt Nap) cd 13.98
When we first listened to Meltdown, we found ourselves crazy obsessed with the title track, a killer slab of synth heavy drum machine driven cold wave electro, with cool squiggly Perrey And Kingsley like analog melodies over the top, the sound raw and urgent, a bit frenetic, dizzying and psychedelic and a little bit noisy too, but also atmospheric and cinematic, definitely reminding us a little of the current crop of retro-futurist synthscapers. The rest of the record, at first blush, could hardly compare, sounding more like a straight ahead garage rock. But a strange thing happened - the more we listened, it was like all the sci-fi synthy weirdness and electro-noisiness of that title track seeped into all of the others, revealing the record as something so much more, an awesomely psychedelic melange of crunchy garage punk, seventies new wave power pop, and brooding cold wave gloom pop, with some of the songs all jangly and fuzzy and garage-y, while others are more weirdly robotic and futuristic, although even the poppier jams are peppered with rad theremin like squiggly melodies and thick buzzing synths, all tangled up with super hooky classic fuzzy punky garage pop, giving them a cool retro-future-pop vibe, and making them a bit more dark and tense than your typical garage rock. Elsewhere the band craft some seriously perfect power pop, sounding like some lost Yellow Pills style B-side from the seventies, all kinetic and crunchy, big chiming jangly chords, super melodic basslines and kick ass propulsive drumming, but the strangely new wave-y vocals once again change the feel just enough to make it sound totally original (or at least as original as something so beholden to sounds past can be).
Imagine Thee Oh Sees via Gary Numan, or the Ramones if they were on Captured Tracks, or maybe even Bare Wires covering Snowy Red... this is fast becoming a new favorite.
MPEG Stream: "Meltdown"
MPEG Stream: "Skull Eyed"
MPEG Stream: "Join Us Now"
MPEG Stream: "Wait For Us"
MPEG Stream: "Beat"

MIND SPIDERS Meltdown (Dirt Nap) lp 15.98
When we first listened to Meltdown, we found ourselves crazy obsessed with the title track, a killer slab of synth heavy drum machine driven cold wave electro, with cool squiggly Perrey And Kingsley like analog melodies over the top, the sound raw and urgent, a bit frenetic, dizzying and psychedelic and a little bit noisy too, but also atmospheric and cinematic, definitely reminding us a little of the current crop of retro-futurist synthscapers. The rest of the record, at first blush, could hardly compare, sounding more like a straight ahead garage rock. But a strange thing happened - the more we listened, it was like all the sci-fi synthy weirdness and electro-noisiness of that title track seeped into all of the others, revealing the record as something so much more, an awesomely psychedelic melange of crunchy garage punk, seventies new wave power pop, and brooding cold wave gloom pop, with some of the songs all jangly and fuzzy and garage-y, while others are more weirdly robotic and futuristic, although even the poppier jams are peppered with rad theremin like squiggly melodies and thick buzzing synths, all tangled up with super hooky classic fuzzy punky garage pop, giving them a cool retro-future-pop vibe, and making them a bit more dark and tense than your typical garage rock. Elsewhere the band craft some seriously perfect power pop, sounding like some lost Yellow Pills style B-side from the seventies, all kinetic and crunchy, big chiming jangly chords, super melodic basslines and kick ass propulsive drumming, but the strangely new wave-y vocals once again change the feel just enough to make it sound totally original (or at least as original as something so beholden to sounds past can be).
Imagine Thee Oh Sees via Gary Numan, or the Ramones if they were on Captured Tracks, or maybe even Bare Wires covering Snowy Red... this is fast becoming a new favorite.
MPEG Stream: "Meltdown"
MPEG Stream: "Skull Eyed"
MPEG Stream: "Join Us Now"
MPEG Stream: "Wait For Us"
MPEG Stream: "Beat"

MINDERS, THE Down In The Fall (Spin Art) cd 9.98
Wow. A quite wonderful surprise from The Minders, the two gal / one guy trio hailing from Portland, Oregon. 5 songs (plus 2 video tracks), each an individually perfect piece of classic British-Invasion-style pop a la the Kinks. Past affiliated with the underground pop collective Elephant 6 and having released one-off comp tracks and singles, and one full length, for a variety of labels, The Minders are obsessed with the past yet their music sounds totally fresh and unpretentious. From the Kinks-like opener "Young and With It" to the doleful piano-led "Time Machines", which sounds like the soundtrack to a 'twenties silent film, this is real honest to god beautifully written music you can sink your teeth into that doesn't copy the past so much as it is inspired by it. Recommended.
RealAudio clip: "Young and With It"

MINDERS, THE Golden Street (Spin Art) cd 16.98
Of all the pop bands that've been coming more and more to people's attention in the past few years, bands that specialize in reinterpreting the proudly pop roots planted by the Beatles, Kinks, Beach Boys, etc., Portland's The Minders are, in my humble opinion, head and shoulders above the rest of the pack. Like the Olivia Tremor Control and Apples in Stereo, The Minders' version of toothy pop is so well-executed that what in lesser hands might get dismissed as retro pretentiousness instead seems really fresh. With female and male vocals, careful, exact instrumentation, and hooks galore, this particular Minders record reminds us of all the bands mentioned above, plus the Velvets, Big Star, and at times even T-Rex. Nice.
RealAudio clip: "Hand on Heart"
RealAudio clip: "Right as Rain"

MINDERS, THE Hooray for Tuesday (Spin Art / Elephant6) cd 12.98
Sweet, strong pop very reminiscent of the Kinks and the Beatles on the wondrous Elephant 6 label, home of Olivia Tremor Control, Apples in Stereo, Neutral Milk Hotel.

MINDERS, THE Hooray for Tuesday (Little Army/Elephant6) 7" 3.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Sweet, strong pop very reminiscent of the Kinks and the Beatles on the wondrous Elephant 6 label, home of Olivia Tremor Control, Apples in Stereo, Neutral Milk Hotel.

MINDFLAYER Expedition To The Hairier Peaks (Corleone) cd 11.98
3rd album (right?) from this band of Rhode Island noise dance nutters... really great, like their others, and dig that D&D module referencing/punning title!!

MINDFLAYER It's Always 1999 (Load) cd 13.98
First an album on Bulb (last year's Take Your Skin Off), now an album on Load? Must be some trash-fi, heavy-duty freakishness... Indeed it is: it's Mindflayer, those squidheaded noisniks from Rhode Island who just wanna party! Party like it's you-know-when. The electro-noise-dance duo of Mr. Brinkmann (Mr. Brinkmann, natch) and Mr. Chippendale (Lightning Bolt) are back with another bunch of zappity zap zap for your overstimulated earholes, all pounding tin can drums, cheapass electronics, and distorted distortion distorting. Approach with caution, partygoers.
MPEG Stream: "Rgamnimals"
MPEG Stream: "5 Minutes Of Sporadic Beats"

MINDFLAYER Take Your Skin Off (Bulb) cd 14.98
Uh oh. A Bulb release. That usually equals aggravating, though sometimes inspired, silly arty noise stuff. And that's what this is. Rhode Island's Mindflayer is named after a particularily fearsome D&D monster -- which of course earns 'em points with Allan, as long as they live up to the name, which they do! Band members Time (drums, vocals) and Space (synth, backup vocals) are pseudonyms for folks better known, respectively, as Brian Chippendale (drummer extraordinaire for the amazing Lightning Bolt), and Mr. Brinkmann (of Forcefield and, uh, Mr. Brinkmann fame).
In Mindflayer these two don squid heads (at least on the cover) and get down to some feedback-filled, uber noisy dancefloor terrorism, asking the musical question, "Are You Fucked Up?" (track six). Pounding rhythmic battery, distorted electronics and vocals...it's like a malevolent, metallic Christine 23 Onna, or early Quintron maybe. Imagine listening in on a desperate, low fi 911 phone call from a defective synthesizer held hostage by drugged out industrial rock hippies...
Yep, yet another indulgent Bulb release, but a good one -- so watch out, earholes.
MPEG Stream: "Head Of State On A Plate"
MPEG Stream: "Drop Bass Not Bombs"

MINDFLAYER / DEEP JEW split (Not Not Fun) 7" 6.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.

MINERAL End Serenading (Crank!) cd 11.98
Emo! People have been waiting for this record for ages! Really intense but not really loud or rocking. A lot like Karate and Sunny Day Real Estate...

MINERVA, MARIA Cabaret Cixous (Not Not Fun) cd 13.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Maria Minerva is the latest shining star in the Not Not Fun hypnogogic pantheon, chanelling the dreamy slow disco of Nite Jewel through the breezy post-punk tropical sounds of Brenda Ray and Translucence-era Poly Styrene. It's often been a hallmark of recent artists to use the cheesier sounds of vintage synths and drum machines to get in touch with some ironic nostalgia for the recent past, and Minerva is doing her best to ward us off with some intentionally terrible cover art and font choices. But luckily the music wins us over with its warm exuberance and its blithe but mind-warping embrace. Reverb-soaked and dreamy with a slow motion submerged romanticism that is near impossible to disentangle from its gleaming charms.
MPEG Stream: "These Days"
MPEG Stream: "Luvcool"
MPEG Stream: "I Luv Ctrl"
MPEG Stream: "Ruff Trade"

MINERVA, MARIA Cabaret Cixous (Not Not Fun) lp 14.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Maria Minerva is the latest shining star in the Not Not Fun hypnogogic pantheon, chanelling the dreamy slow disco of Nite Jewel through the breezy post-punk tropical sounds of Brenda Ray and Translucence-era Poly Styrene. It's often been a hallmark of recent artists to use the cheesier sounds of vintage synths and drum machines to get in touch with some ironic nostalgia for the recent past, and Minerva is doing her best to ward us off with some intentionally terrible cover art and font choices. But luckily the music wins us over with its warm exuberance and its blithe but mind-warping embrace. Reverb-soaked and dreamy with a slow motion submerged romanticism that is near impossible to disentangle from its gleaming charms.
MPEG Stream: "These Days"
MPEG Stream: "Luvcool"
MPEG Stream: "I Luv Ctrl"
MPEG Stream: "Ruff Trade"