Another Midweek Mixed Bag

From time to time my desktop starts getting full of MP3's we dig but that don't quite fit anywhere else. In an attempt at paring down the pile to a point where my wallpaper is once again viewable I like to throw handfuls of them at you at once. But come on, you already know the drill.

When the best (if not only) supergroup from the great white north aren't putting out New Pornographers albums, it's collective members are flooding the marketplace with quality solo projects. And while she doesn't have the golden pipes of Neko Case, or the pure pop genius of A.C. Newman, there is still a place for the Kathryn Calders of the world. Due out August 10, Are You My Mother, not surprisingly features cameos from several of her fellow Pornographers.

New York's Sabbath Assembly are set to release a concept album in which they cover songs from the infamous 60's-70's cult The Process Church of the Final Judgement, who worshiped both Satan and Christ. The updated pyschedelic, choral take on these songs is haunting to say the least. Lyrics like "The Lord Satan, our souls inspire/With gift of love, our new desire," make it a wonderfully uncomfortable listen. I fully anticipate hearing one of their songs during the opening credits of a future Tarantino flick.

Looks like the nonstop touring of Screaming Females is starting to pay off, as they were asked to go on the road with Dinosaur Jr., Throwing Muses, Dead Weather and Arctic Monkeys in the last year alone. Their latest full length, Castle Talk, will see the light of day on Sept. 14 via Don Giovanni Records.

Just a short drive down 35 you'll find Austin's Zoltars who do the heavy mix of reverb and retro tunes that we've been digging so much lately. (See: Woven Bones, The Numerators). Only these guys put a spin on the genre that makes it slightly more danceable, and loads easier to sing along with. We've been trying to talk the boys into playing in town, and hopefully they'll take us up on the offer sooner rather than later.

The only reason I bring up Sunvisor is to point out that there is yet ANOTHER chillwave band who have worked the word 'sun' into their name. Add them to the growing list.

I'm glad to see that The Melvins are still around, and even happier that after all this time they have never let up. Their new album appears to apologetically rock just as hard as the group ever have. Album opener "The Water Glass" begins with some heavy riffage and then breaks down into a full on drum cadence midway through. But the real charm of the song is the entire second half where the group shouts out rock-n-roll phrases to a millitary cadence call. It's somewhat humorous, I suppose, but brutal nonetheless, and makes me happier than I've felt listening to music in months.

Villagers recently released the gorgeous Becoming a Jackal 7" to promote the upcoming release of their newest LP on Domino Records. It's so good, in fact, I am utterly shocked it came from Ireland. Just sayin'.

MP3: Kathryn Calder - Slip Away
MP3: Sabbath Assembly - We Give Our Lives
MP3: Screaming Females - Arm Over Arm
MP3: The Zoltars - Party at the Batcave
MP3: Sunvisors - Sky Dive
MP3: Melvins - The Water Glass
MP3: Melvins - Evil New War God
MP3: Villagers - Becoming a Jackal

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