It has been a busy few months of record collecting for me. After the trip down to Southern California, I had to lay off the collecting for a little bit to avoid becoming homeless. But in the last few weeks, I have been reading up on squatters’ rights and have thus been able to free up some funds to buy more records. There have been some great new releases that I was able to get my hand on as well as some staples that have finally joined my collection.
Songs: Ohia, ‘Magnolia Electric Company’
Indie darling Jason Molina is a fairly recent discovery for me. His musical catalog is fairly large and covers varying forms of country and Appalachian music in a way that is dark and brooding and oh so beautiful. With plenty of excellent projects to his name, Magnolia Electric Company is still his Magnum Opus. Stunning and often haunting songwriting, instrumentals that are long and patient without feeling drawn out or tedious, and a sound that is completely his own. I had horrible luck tracking this album down, despite it not being the rarest thing out there. Finally was able to pick one up at the ever-reliable Music Millennium.
Kneecap, ‘H.O.O.D.’
The limited edition pressing of one of my favorite Kneecap songs was another pick-up I am super stoked on. If you don’t know these guys, they are a trio of Irish rappers that rap in a combination of English and their native Gaelic. What you’re left with is a high-octane, angry, political hip-hop that sounds Irish as hell. These guys are an absolute blast and still worth a listen even if you are not normally interested in hip-hop.
Tyler Childers, ‘Snipe Hunter’
Another yee-haw record that I would describe firmly as alt-country. Definitely still sounds like a country album despite not always feeling like a country. The ringing electric guitars on Down Under don’t exactly sound like Nashville, but I can’t in good conscience say it’s not a country song. There are a ton of tracks on here that are plenty twangy, though. Poachers is a huge standout for me with its heavy thumping drums as well as Eating Big Time with its passionate vocal performance. Oneida and Nose on the Grindstone are songs that fans of Childers will be familiar with already, but they are both phenomenal renditions of songs he’s been playing for some time. This fella was picked up at the fantastic Tomorrow Records in Portland.
Television, ‘Live at the Old Waldorf San Francisco’
One of my favorite bands, one of the greatest post-punk bands ever, one of the best live albums I’ve ever heard. Tom Verlaine and company sound incredibly tight on this performance that features an awesome track listing. The performance of Foxhole is a major standout for me on here, as well as their cover of Satisfaction that closes out the album. Found this bad boy for a great price at one of the very few Portland area record stores I have not covered yet, Little Axe Records. Be on the lookout for the full review of that shop in a few weeks.