New Release Tuesday: January 23, 2007

Welcome back kiddos, the year is kicking off with a shotgun bang. Head over to Waterloo or End of an Ear and ask for these albums: as far as we can tell, it's hard to go wrong this week.

The Shins Wincing the Night Away (Sub Pop)

Well, they're definitely stretching, and they're definitely getting more and more familiar with the studio, as "Phantom Limb" demonstrates: James Mercer is still having trouble falling asleep, but it's not negatively affecting his song-writing capabilities. Wincing has, not surprisingly, garnered plenty of positive praise in the last few weeks, but we'll leave the formal reflection on the album for another day (later this week). Amidst a year full of internet drama of the music geek variety (omg it leaked), The Shins have perhaps suffered through more mishaps than any up-and-coming major label rock band should need to bear. A leak, a "Web Sheriff", iTunes randomly beginning to sell the album a full two weeks before the release date (selling copies for nearly 48 hours before rectifying the situation), not to mention plenty of web-based "reviews" of the leaked copy that is known to be missing tracks and sub-standard production quality compared to the official release. We doubt this will slow down ticket sales or buzz.

Stream Wincing the Night Away on MySpace
The Shins Official
"Phantom Limb" (YouTube)

Of Montreal Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? (Polyvinyl)

We need a concept album. Not just a concept album though, we need a glam rock concept album. Thank God for Kevin Barnes, the man behind Of Montreal, and his alter ego Georgie Fruit for delivering it to us. Albee references, heartbreaking odes to fashion, Histoire de l'oeil nods and truly impressive production make the album a must-have for fans, and a worthwhile spin for the hesitant. As Barnes describes his transformation into Fruit with "The Past Is a Grotesque Animal," and the epic takes its turn into newness, it becomes quite clear that this isn't just a record, it's a fairytale of the most modern sort. Kudos to Barnes & Co. for daring to create an album amidst a sea of songs.

Of Montreal Official
Of Montreal MySpace
"Heimdalsgate Like a Promethean Curse" (mp3)
Hissing Fauna Ecard

Menomena Friend / Foe (Barsuk)

Finally! We've been excited for this one, and we've not been disappointed. Menomena return with their trademark and unmistakable piano, vocal harmony and drum sound triumphantly. The album is gorgeous, full and addictive--and in stark contrast to Under an Hour--returns to the form of Menomena we're so in need of. Standing strong against an endless onslaught of bands that not only all sound like each other, but also find themselves stuck in a rut of writing the same song over and over, Menomena write songs that manage to stand out as unmistakably them (if you've heard them once, you'll never mistake them for someone else, their sound, right down to tuning and aura, isn't capable of being duplicated) and simultaneously drastically different from anything else. So, it's sort of the same, but so, so different. You get it. They're savvy, too. Despite the album's leak at the end of last year, they make the purchase a necessity: the CD art is a Craig Thompson ("Blankets") design, and has 8 possible forms. Nice, compared to the half-assed slip of paper we usually end up with after a CD purchase.

"Wet & Rusting" (Unofficial video)
"Wet & Rusting" (mp3)
Stream "Friend & Foe" @ Barsuk
Menomena MySpace

Fujiya & Miyagi Transparent Things (Dig) (Tirk)

Ok, so this was already released in the UK, but the US release should, under no circumstances, be over-looked. Say what you will about Krautrock, any band that sounds like this and lists Can as an influence is alright with us. Based in Britain, F&M make dance-able tracks that do, at times, feel a lot like late 70's German (we won't say Kraftwerk) experimental stuff, but there's also a strong electronic (British and American electronic, think Aphex Twin or late New Order) vibe. As for the name, "Miyagi was taken from the film The Karate Kid and Fujiya was the name of a record player. It just looked really nice written down. And it was the only name we came up with". Someone please tell this story to every shitty band you ever lived with the bassist for who had notebooks full of poetry he used as inspiration for band names.

Fujiya and Miyagi Official
Fujiya & Miyagi @ Tirk
Listen to "Collarbone" and more
Live footage @ YouTube

The Berg Sans Nipple Along the Quai (Team Love)

Half French, half Nebraskan, all good. The Berg Sans Nipple have recorded a fantastic album full of kalimba, glockenspiel, keyboards, broken traynor, drums, electric and acoustic piano, portable bass piano,synthesizers, trumpet, glockenspiel, drums ... and did we mention percussion? Because they're all over that. Shane Aspegren and Lori Sean Berg met as two musicians who operated primarily behind a kit, forming a friendship and then a band that caters to those listeners with sharp ears and a deep thirst for layers of sound, the collection of pop melodies staged against heavy feedback, and a myriad of influences that present without slapping you across the face. It's not a testimonial to how well-listened they are, or if it is, it's subtly done, as quiet intimations of hip-hop devotion, lullaby addiction and Brazilian dance contests shake hands in peace. For fans of Menomena, Prefuse 73, and The Books.

The Berg Sans Nipple Official
The Berg Sans Nipple MySpace
"Mystic Song" (mp3)

Field Music Tones of Town (Memphis Industries)

The Brothers Brewis (Peter and David ) have done it again: a happy, rhythmically challenging pop album that defies standards while delivering everything we've come to expect from a worthwhile Brit rock outfit: catchy riffs coupled with polyrhythms, off-time percussion hand-in-hand with reliable beats, sweet and classic bloke lyrics infused with sharp wit and sly winks. Only their sheer adorableness and "What's sex?" demeanor keep them from being likened to the God of British wit-mongrels, Jarvis Cocker. While Pulp perfected a certain brand of pop that gave sex a sneer and the industry itself a glare, Field Music emote a similar sort of handy work, only they drive the bug in another direction (the video for "House is Not a Home" has them playing in full outdoor gear, grinning like a couple of Liverpool lads they probably deserve a comparison to as well), using the wit, snark and incomparable songwriting talents for good instead of, well, Jarvis. The single "House is Not a Home" kicks off the album's probable themes of comfort and the search for stability with a guitar sound that is (perhaps accidentally) easy to mistake for George Harrison's own remarkable and distinctive style, and the song carries on in true Field Music fashion--good-natured, inquisitive and polished.

"House is Not a Home" (YouTube)
Field Music Official
Field Music MySpace
David Brewis' List @ Discollective