Past Releases

The Royal Arctic Institute "From Catnap to Coma"

The Royal Arctic Institute is an instrumental, post-punk, cinematic jazz quintet. Their new EP ‘From Catnap to Coma‘ was recorded by James McNew (Yo La Tengo) in the historic Neumann Leather Factory in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Members John Leon (guitar), and Lyle Hysen (drums) combine 50+ years of experience (Das Damen, Roky Erickson’s backing band, & more). The quintet is rounded out by David Motamed (bass), Lynn Wright (guitar), and Carl Baggaley (keyboard). The group self-describe their music as “post-everything.”

A Place To Bury Strangers "See Through You"

See Through You is the highly anticipated 6th album from Post-Punk Legends A Place To Bury Strangers. Outpacing even their own firmly blazed path of audio annihilation, this album repeatedly delivers the massive walls of chaos and noise that every A Place To Bury Strangers fan craves in spades. See Through You is an explosive journey which explores the listener’s limits of mind-bending madness while simultaneously offering the catchiest batch of songs in the band’s discography. It’s a nod of the cap to the art school ethos of the band’s origins, while forging a new and clear direction forward. Simply put, See Through You is an epic, instant classic.

Squirrel Flower "Planet EP (Polyvinyl)"

Distilled to perfection in Boston’s DIY scene, Squirrel Flower’s Planet EP is a rustic cognac for the soul, fruit-notes and floral scents with a warm, full feeling. Or maybe not – I’m not fancy enough for Cognac. Regardless, Ella William’s latest proves her to be one of the new innovators of that slow-paced-bummer-ish-lo-fi-indie-folk sound pioneered by artists like Phoebe Bridgers and Angel Olsen. Planet EP’s low, layered, synths float beneath her feathery, melancholic voice and just above the simplistic drum lines. Sparse guitars, harmonic vocals, and the audio equivalent of sunbeams refracted through the cloudy darkness of bedrooms at dusk. Find hope in the final crescendos of songs like “live wire”, and “ruby at dawn” (all uncapitalized at the artist’s request, lending credence to the lo-fi-ness of it all) or dive into the experimental side of the pool and check out the cover of “unravel” by Bjork – which provides a rough, reverberating change of pace to the otherwise silken release (silken like Yoo-Hoo, which I am exactly fancy enough for). 

Lady Wray "Piece Of Me (Big Crown Records)"

I can only imagine that when I tell you there’s a new Lady Wray album called Piece Of Me here for you to listen too you either said “OMG I CAN’T WAIT TO HEAR IT” or you said “Who?” because there is maybe zero reason to have ever heard Lady Wray’s sweet, sweet sounds and dislike them. Her unique ability to sound vitally modern while also steeped in the sounds of vintage soul make her an absolute standout. Her voice is killer, the band is warm and analogue-y (thanks to that Big Crown sound), and her lyrics are deceivingly sharp (like the little pinchy part on my air compressor. I went to fill my tires up the other day – thanks old man winter – and when I was done there was SO MUCH BLOOD. There’s a reason they don’t sell air compressors from the 80s anymore. UNSAFE AT ANY SPEED!). Check out the summer-y, Stevie Wonder-esque “Under The Sun” or the ballad beauty of “Thank You” or the stripped down beauty of “Melody.”