New Release Tuesday: Okkervil River, Lovely Sparrows
Also out this week is the Lovely Sparrows' Bury the Cynics (Abandoned Love), a sprawling and ambitious undertaking from local songwriter Shawn Jones and his ensemble. Highlighting his classical training and subtle ear, Bury the Cynics proves to be a delightful listen, full of dark, plaintive chamber pop. For a full review, visit KUT's Texas Music Matters.
A sequel to last year's the Stage Names, Stand Ins finds the band stretching out into more energetic and urgent-sounding group. Bouncing bass lines, country-tinged swing and swaggering horns compliment Will Sheff's always dense lyricism. As is his custom, Sheff utters words that read like heady diary notes, at times seeming crushingly personal, yet remain stark mirrors held up to the entire vast world of singers, players and the chasm of characters entering and exiting their collection of scenes. It's always Act 3 in Sheff's world, there's something teetering on the edge of something else, and someone else pinpointing a realization or rolling a cigarette around between yellow fingers, silently acknowledging the bubble. In that bubble, Okkervil River sits in the Statler & Waldorf booth as well as backstage, waiting for their next curtain call. We'll be down in front, waiting for the call. Produced in Austin with Brian Beattie and featuring (most likely for the last time) Jonathan Meiburg (particularly on the duet, "Lost Coastlines," we pour something on a curb for that loss), The Stand Ins won't fail folks who loved the uncompromising Stage Names.
Aids Wolf: Cities of Glass (vinyl)
The Airborne Toxic Event: The Airborne Toxic Event
Angela Desveaux: The Mighty Ship (vinyl)
Backyard Tire Fire: The Places We Lived [vinyl]
Bart Davenport: Palaces
The Bittersweets: Goodnight, San Francisco
The Black & White Years: The Black & White Years
Bound Stems: The Family Afloat (vinyl)
Brett Anderson: Wilderness (import)
Brian "Head" Welch: Save Me From Myself
Broken West: Now or Heaven
Calexico: Carried to Dust (vinyl)
Callers: Fortune
Catie Curtis: Sweet Life
Chad VanGaalen: Soft Airplane
Christophe Beck: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Score (soundtrack)
Civet: Hell Hath No Fury
Clientele: That Night, A Forest Grew EP (import)
Colourmusic: f, monday, orange, february, venus, lunatic, 1 or 13
Common Market: Tobacco Road
D+: What is Doubt For?
Damien Jurado: Caught in the Trees (vinyl)
Daniel Johnston: 1990 (reissue)
Daniel Johnston: Artistic Vice (reissue)
Daniel Johnston: Rejected Unknown (reissue)
Dar Williams: Promised Land
Dark Romantics: Heartbreaker
Darlene Love: So Much Love: A Darlene Love Anthology 1958-1998 (import)
Dave Stewart: The Dave Stewart Songbook, Vol. 1 [vinyl]
The Dead Science: Villainaire
Don Chambers: Zebulon
Donkeys: Living on the Other Side (vinyl)
Emilliana Torrrini: Me and Armini
Eric Benet: Love & Life
The Ettes: Look at Life Again
Fujiya and Miyagi: Lightbulbs
Girls Against Boys: Venus Luxure No. 1 Baby (reissue) (vinyl)
Grayson Capps: Rott 'N' Roll (vinyl)
Greg Camp: Defektor
Growing: All The Way (vinyl)
Gym Class Heroes: The Quilt
Hal Ketchum: Father Time
Horse Feathers: House With No Home (vinyl)
I'm Not Jim: You Are All My People
Iced Earth: The Crucible Of Man (Something Wicked Part II)
Jesu: Why Are We Not Perfect EP
Joan Baez: Day After Tomorrow
Joan Osborne: Little Wild One
John Cage: 26' 1.1499'' for a String Player and 45' for a Speaker
Jonathan Richman: You Can Have A Cellphone That's OK But Not For Me 7" [vinyl]
Josh Hoge: Everything She Was
Josh Rouse: The Best of the Rykodisc Years
Jules Shear: More
Kellarissa: Flamingo
Kimya Dawson: Alphabutt (vinyl)
Lea DeLaria: The Live Smoke Session
Lemuria: First Collection
Lesser Gonzalez Alvarez: Why Is Bear Billowing
Little Teeth: Child Bearing Man
Liz Durrett: Outside Our Gates
LL Cool J: Exit 13
Locksley: Don't Make Me Wait
The Lovely Sparrows: Bury the Cynics
The Low Lows: Shining Violence
Magic Slim & the Teardrops: Midnight Blues
Maquiladora: St. Cecilia's: Ritual of Hearts and White Sands (import)
Mark Tucker: In the Sack
Maserati: Inventions Remixes (vinyl)
Mates of State: My Solo Project (reissue) [vinyl]
Matt Bauer: The Island Moved in the Storm
Meiko: Meiko
Melissa Etheridge: Greatest Hits: The Road Less Traveled (reissue)
Metallica: Death Magnetic (2-lp vinyl) (5-lp vinyl)
Michael Franti & Spearhead: All Rebel Rockers (vinyl)
Mitch Hedberg: Do You Believe in Gosh?
Mogwai: Batcat EP (vinyl)
Natalie Cole: Still Unforgettable (vinyl)
Neil Young: Live At the Fillmore East [vinyl]
Neil Young: Live at Massey Hall 1971 (with bonus CD) [vinyl]
The New Year: The New Year (vinyl)
Novillero: A Little Tradition
Of Great & Mortal Men: 43 Songs For 43 U.S. Presidents
Of Montreal: Id Engager / Alter Eagle [vinyl]
Okkervil River: The Stand Ins (vinyl)
oRSo: Ask Your Neighbor
Parenthetical Girls: Entanglements (vinyl)
Patty Loveless: Sleepless Nights
People in Planes: Beyond the Horizon
Plushgun: Plushgun [vinyl]
Pontiak: Sun on Sun (vinyl)
Portastatic: Some Small History
Rafter: Sweaty Magic EP
Rahim: Laughter
Sam Champion: Heavenly Bender
Shaky Hands: Lunglight (vinyl)
The Sound of Animals Fighting: The Ocean and the Sun
Stereophonics: Pull the Pin
Steve Wynn: Crossing Dragon Bridge
Subways: All or Nothing
Thompson Twins: Here's to Future Days (import reissue with bonus disc)
Tricky: Knowle West Boy (vinyl)
Tweak Bird: Reservations
Various Artists: The Celtic Tribute to Metallica
Various Artists: Hallam Foe (soundtrack)
Various Artists: Heroes Original Soundtrack (deluxe edition)
Various Artists: The New Rocky Horror Show
Various Artists: We Wish You a Metal Xmas...and a Headbanging New Year
Various Artists: The Women (soundtrack)
Viarosa: Send for the Sea
Woodhands: Heart Attack [vinyl]
Wovenhand: Ten Stones (vinyl)
Young Widows: Old Wounds (vinyl)
ZZ Top: Eliminator (collector's edition with bonus DVD)
