Staff Picks
Ghost Funk Orchestra
Night Walker / Death Waltz [Indie Exclusive Limited Edition Opaque Red LP]
Vinyl: $26.98 Buy
The eponymous solo albums written, performed, and produced by Paul McCartney from 1970, 1980, and 2020. Includes 3 LPs on 180-gram audiophile vinyl with 3 limited edition photo prints and an introduction from Paul housed in a beautiful slipcase box.
COWBOY TEARS – The new album for Oliver Tree, is now available on vinyl. This body of work sees Oliver carefully crafting a “cowboy emo” aesthetic unlike anything you’ve seen or heard.Oliver decided to craft an album that was more focused and draws equally from the genres of alternative, pop and country, taking sonic inspiration from everyone from Sugar Ray to R.E.M. From the album’s opener and first single “Cowboys Don’t Cry” to the acoustic-based anthem “Freaks & Geeks” to the electronica-inspired experimentation of “Things We Used To Do,”Cowboy Tears is social commentary disguised as saccharine pop—and what’s most impressive is the way the album succeeds on both counts. “I think one of my biggest strengths as an artist is the fact that I’m able to step back and see where there are holes in the pop-culture matrix,” Oliver explains when asked about his overall vision for Cowboy Tears.
TWO ORIGINAL ALBUMS IN ONE COMMEMORATIVE LP SET. DISCO4 :: PART I (2020) plus the new album DISCO4 :: PART II, which sees HEALTH showcasing a new range and ambitiousness through collaborations with the likes of industrial rock icons Nine Inch Nails, metal institution Lamb of God, internet savant Poppy, indie rock mainstays The Neighbourhood, French techno brutalist Perturbator, and more.
3 180 Gram BLACK vinyl discs, in tri-fold gatefold jacket, with 12”x 36” 2 sided poster.
Fear Inoculum is the Grammy award winning masterpiece from Tool. Following the release of the limited edition single pressing ultra deluxe 5 disc vinyl box set, this critically acclaimed album is available now as a 3 disc 180 gram set, that features new artwork in a triple gatefold jacket and an exclusive poster.
Tool members include drummer Danny Carey, guitarist Adam Jones, bassist Justin Chancellor and vocalist Maynard James Keenan.
John Moreland doesn’t have the answers, and he’s not sure anyone does. But he’s still curious, basking in the comfort of a question, and along the way, those of us listening feel moved to ask our own. “I don’t ever want to sound like I have answers, because I don’t,” he says. “These songs are all questions. Everything I write is just trying to figure stuff out.”
Moreland is discussing his new album Birds in the Ceiling, a nine-song collection that offers the most comprehensive insight into the thoughts and sounds swimming around in his head to date. A compelling blend of acoustic folk and avant-garde pop playfulness, Birds in the Ceiling lives confidently in a space of its own, enriched by tradition but never encumbered by it. The songwriting that has stunned fans and critics alike since 2015’s High on Tulsa Heat remains potent, while the sonic evolution that unfolds on the record feels like a natural expansion of 2020’s acclaimed LP5.
The New Yorker, Pitchfork, Fresh Air, Paste, GQ, and others have embraced Moreland’s meditative songs, while performances on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, CBS This Morning, NPR Tiny Desk Concert, and more have introduced Moreland to millions. And yet, while the Tulsa-based Moreland is grateful for the respect and musical conversation he’s now having with people around the world, he is also more focused on the idea of just talking to one person––or even himself. “Through the years, I’ve felt like I’m increasingly talking to myself in my songs, more and more,” he says. “Maybe in the past, I wasn’t aware of it, but now, I am. I think doing that has helped me be less hard on myself, which makes you more generous and compassionate in general.”
That helps explain why even if Moreland is reaching out to someone else, there is no judgment. “I’m in the same boat with whoever I’m talking to,” Moreland says.
Moreland’s songs do feel intimate––like overheard conversations or solitary meditations. “I want to talk one-on-one to someone in a song,” he says. “I don’t want to address a group, really, because I think that’s when it’s easy to start pontificating––and it gets less honest.”
On Birds in the Ceiling, Moreland’s singing contributes to the feelings of hushed intimacy. Wielding a warm, sandpaper soul voice, Moreland got used to singing loudly as he began playing in bars, fighting to be heard over chattering crowds. “When I first started singing, I was very self-conscious about it,” he says. “I think I tried to affect my voice more. Singing loud could be a security blanket sometimes. On the new album, on a lot of the songs I was definitely making a conscious effort to sing quieter––almost whisper.”
Produced by Matt Pence and Moreland, Birds in the Ceiling is dynamic: a folk record that refuses to stay in its lane. It’s the second album for Pence with Moreland, who sees the former––a Denton, Texas-based engineer, producer, and drummer––as an ideal musical partner. “We have a lot of the same influences, and I have been really influenced by his bands,” Moreland says. “It feels really effortless.”
Letting things just be what they are is a powerful guiding force for Moreland, determining not just how he interacts with others, but how he treats himself. “When you remove boundaries and instead of holding back parts of yourself––when you say, ‘Okay, I’m going to put all of me into this,’” Moreland says, "You end up making music that nobody else could make.”
Birds in the Ceiling is available at local record stores on CD, Vinyl, and an Indie-Exclusive Blue Vinyl on July 22.
There is currently NO release date for this title, A date should be updated shortly.
Sonny Clark, one of the finest pianists and composers of the hard cop era, arrived fully formed on his supremely swinging 1957 Blue Note debut, Dial "S" for Sonny. Clark assembled a top-flight sextet for the occasion with Art Farmer (trumpet), Chris Fuller (trombone), Hank Mobley (tenor saxophone), Wilbur Ware (bass), and Louis Hayes (drums). Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series is all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original master tapes, and pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Optimal.
Formed in the imagination of a 7-year-old beabadoobee and carried with her ever since Beatopia is a fantastical yet deeply personal world that houses her most impressive work to date. Marking a huge progression, in 14 songs she traverses fuzzy rock, classic singer/songwriter, psychedelia, Midwest emo, and outright pop whilst remaining undeniably herself throughout.
The Linda Lindas
Growing Up [Indie Exclusive Limited Edition Clear w/ Blue-Pink Splatter LP]
Vinyl: $27.99 Buy
A product of generations of underground music in L.A. and beyond, The Linda Lindas’ debut, Growing Up, channels classic punk, post punk, power pop, new wave, and other surprises into timelessly catchy and cool songs sung by all four members—each with her own style and energy. A handful of cuts have already been previewed at shows and enthusiastically approved by diehard followers in the pit at L.A.’s DIY punk institution The Smell and Head in the Cloud festival goers at The Rose Bowl alike. The Linda Lindas are stoked to unleash Growing Up.
The Linda Lindas first played together as members of a pickup new wave cover band of kids assembled by Kristin Kontrol (Dum Dum Girls) for Girlschool LA in 2018 and then formed their own garage punk group just for fun. Sisters Mila de la Garza (drummer, now 11) and Lucia de la Garza (guitar, 14), cousin Eloise Wong (bass, 13), and family friend Bela Salazar (guitar, 17) developed their chops as regulars at all-ages matinees in Chinatown, where they played with original L.A. punks like The Dils, Phranc, and Alley Cats; went on to open for riot grrrl legends Bikini Kill and architect Alice Bag as well as DIY heavyweights Best Coast and Bleached; and were eventually featured in Amy Poehler’s movie Moxie.
When the pandemic put a pause on shows, The Linda Lindas went on to self-release a four-song EP, make their own videos and grow a following beyond Los Angeles. But they never expected or could have even dreamed that their performance of “Racist, Sexist Boy” for the Los Angeles Public Library in May 2021 would take them from punk shows to TV shows.
A month later, when the school year ended and summer began, The Linda Lindas got to work on their first full-length LP. Having written a mountain of new material individually while sheltering in place and attending class virtually, the band was more than ready to enter the studio where Mila and Lucia’s dad (and Eloise’s uncle and Bela’s “uncle”) Carlos de la Garza oversaw recording and production. The Grammy-winning producer’s work includes Paramore, Bad Religion, Best Coast, and Bleached.

CAKE’s second studio album Fashion Nugget, originally released in 1996, reissued on 180 gram black vinyl. Remastered audio of the 14-track album includes hits "The Distance," “Frank Sinatra,” and "I Will Survive".
Death Grips are angry. It's unclear why. But on their major-label debut, the Sacramento noise group's monomaniacal desire to rain down fiery destruction on the powers-that-be is crystal-clear, even if nothing else is on The Money Store, even if nothing else-- where the hell this album came from; who plays which instrument; what the lead singer is yelling about; and what on earth this band of insurgents is doing signing an Epic Records contract with L.A. Reid-- makes much sense at all. - Pitchfork 8.7
Pearl Jam delivers the Tour Edition of their 11th studio album, 2020's critically acclaimed #1 Rock Album and Billboard 200 Top 10 album, Gigaton, featuring 11 live songs including: "Dance Of The Clairvoyants", "Superblood Wolfmoon", "Retrograde" and more. Gigaton (Tour Edition) includes the original vinyl LP with an 11 track live CD recorded during various 2021 performances. The Gigaton Tour continues its European leg through July and then the band will hit Canada and the East Coast this Fall!
Robin Pecknold brings light to the bleakest of winters with Fleet Foxes’ ‘A Very Lonely Solstice,’ a 13-track career spanning collection recorded in December 2020, at Brooklyn, NY’s St. Ann & the Holy Trinity Church.
Now being released for the first time on vinyl, CD and digital formats, ‘A Very Lonely Solstice’ captures a poignant moment in time. The recording was originally broadcasted as a live-stream event on the winter solstice of 2020, just days after New York declared a state of emergency tightening restrictions again in response to increasing COVID-19 cases. Pecknold describes the set as “me by myself on the longest night of the year... honoring the loneliness of 2020 with a nylon string and some songs new and old.” Fans worldwide tuned in while quarantined at home, finding solace and a sense of community in a period of extreme isolation.
Much of ‘A Very Lonely Solstice’ showcases a solo focus on Pecknold who offers up acoustic arrangements of fan-favorite songs spanning Fleet Foxes’ catalog. Selections cover all four of the band’s studio albums, including their 2008 self-titled debut album (“Tiger Mountain Peasant Song”) to 2011’s Helplessness Blues (“Blue Spotted Tail”) and 2017’s Crack-Up (“If You Need To, Keep Time On Me”), all the way to their latest release, Shore. Resistance Revival Chorus joins Pecknold on Shore tracks “Wading In Waist-High Water” and “Can I Believe You.” Also featured: a cover of Nina Simone’s “In The Morning” and a rearrangement of the traditional “Silver Dagger.”
Kanye West delivers a Deluxe Edition of the record-shattering Donda, featuring 4 bonus tracks plus fan-favorite verses from Andre 3k, Kid Cudi and more. This release, from one of “the most influential pop stars of the 21st century,” was his 10th #1 album on the Billboard 200, racking up over 1 billion streams in the first 10 days. Originally previewed at 3 historic livestream events, the global phenomenon topped charts in 11 countries and set an Apple Music record of #1s in 152 countries. 4 LP.
Coheed & Cambria
Vaxis II: A Window of the Waking Mind [Indie Exclusive Limited Edition Transparent Sea Blue 2LP]
Vinyl: $39.98 Buy
Vaxis II: A Window of the Waking Mind welcomes us back to “The Amory Wars” as the 2nd installment of the new five-part “Vaxis” arc about a couple on the run from tyrannical forces and their mysterious new addition.
Converge
Bloodmoon: I [Indie Exclusive Limited Edition Black / Navy / Neon Purple Mix LP]
Vinyl: $27.98 Buy
“We wanted to do something grander than the typical four-piece Converge music.”
That’s CONVERGE vocalist Jacob Bannon talking about the seed of inspiration that eventually bloomed into BLOODMOON:I, the new collaborative album created by the legendary hardcore band alongside dark songstress Chelsea Wolfe, her bandmate/writing partner Ben Chisholm and Cave In vocalist/guitarist Steve Brodsky.
What began as a mutual admiration society between festival bands has grown into a collaborative project featuring the indie music scene’s finest song writers. Harrowing and atmospheric, triumphant and melodious, BLOODMOON:I is CONVERGE as you’ve never heard them before. Produced by Kurt Ballou at his God City Studio.
“It’s hard to find new ways to be creative, but I think we’ve been good at sort of forcing ourselves to do that,” Ballou says. “And this project is no exception. Getting Steve and Chelsea and Ben to contribute with us, we were kind of playing musical Cupid with all of them. But we had a feeling that if we got this group of people together, something powerful would come out of it.”
Indie Exclusive Baby Pink LP. Limited Edtiion.