We hope you all had a great Christmas and New Year, we can't wait to bring you some amazing music in 2023.
We have some great new records coming your way this month from the likes of Gaz Coombs, CVC, We Are Scientists, John Cale, Circa Waves and The Reytons as well as classic reissues from Coil, Alabama Shakes and The xx.
Coil - Queens of the Circulating Library
Due 13th January 2023
Queens Of The Circulating Library stands alongside Time Machines and Nurse With Wound’s Soliloquy For Lilith as a post-industrial pinnacle of sensory-warping long-form drone. Crafted by the distilled duo of Thighpaulsandra and John Balance, the 49-minute piece unfurls in swirling, cyclical waves, tidal as much as textural, channeling the spirit of levitational minimalism pioneered by La Monte Young. Touted as the first part in "a continually mutating series of circulating musickal compositions” upon its initial release in 2000, the album remains a compelling case study in Coil’s exceptional capacity for mutation and extremes.
The theatrical introductory monologue delivered by Thighpaulsandra’s mother – a career opera singer, in her 80’s at the time of recording – sets the stage for a grandiose ascension. Written by Balance, the text is declamatory but dreamlike, refracted through megaphone echo: “Return the book of knowledge / Return the marble index / File under "Paradox" / The forest is a college, each tree a university.” As her voice fades, the lulling synthetic infinity deepens, congealing into transient crests of volume and haze, like slow-motion surf misting in moonlight. Thighpaulsandra describes their aesthetic intention as a “bliss out,” static but shape-shifting, an amniotic drift towards an eternal vanishing point. A supreme sonic embodiment of the slogan on the sleeve of Time Machines, two years prior: "Persistence is all."
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CVC - Get Real
Due 13th January 2023
CVC (or Church Village Collective in full) hail from this sleepy village 10 miles north of Cardiff, nestling atop a hill in the Welsh valleys. CVC is comprised of singer Francesco Orsi, bassist Ben Thorne, drummer Tom Fry, keyboardist Daniel ‘Nanial’ Jones and singing guitarists David Bassey and Elliott Bradfield. It’s worth noting that the latter two, despite never having met them, are related to Welsh royalty Dame Shirley Bassey and Manic Street Preachers’ James Dean Bradfield. Maybe owing to genetics, Bassey states “I don't think I’d be able to not do this, I don’t actively choose to, I’m just drawn to it”. Their lush three-part harmonies echo the music they grew up on - contemporary pop’s building blocks: the Beatles, Neil Young and the Beach Boys - rich, melodic and pristine music that’s steeped in rock’s history. Get Real, CVC’s 11-track debut album finally appears and bring with it a touch of Laurel Canyon to the valleys. Made over four sun-baked weeks (once their time was up, Ross Orton (Arctic Monkeys) mixed the finished product) they kept it local by recording it in Bradfield’s’ living room!
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The xx - Coexist (10th Anniversary Edition)
Due13th January 2023
Ezra Collective’s new era, a venture in discovered maturity and raised stakes, will be defined by the anticipated second album. Where I’m Meant To Be is a thumping celebration of life, an affirming elevation in the Ezra Collective’s winding hybrid sound and refined collective character. The songs marry cool confidence with bright energy. Full of call-and-response conversations between their ensemble parts, a natural product of years improvising together on-stage, the album - which also features Sampa The Great, Kojey Radical, Emile Sandé, Steve McQueen, and Nao - will light up sweaty dance floors and soundtrack dinner parties in equal measure.
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Alabama Shakes - Boys & Girls
Due 13th January 2023
Rough Trade Records will commemorate the 10th anniversary of Alabama Shakes’ internationally acclaimed debut album, Boys & Girls, with a two-disc deluxe edition. Hailed as one of the best albums of 2012 by Rolling Stone and numerous other publications, Boys & Girls entered Billboard’s Independent Albums chart at No. 1. It went on to attain Platinum certification and earn the band multiple GRAMMY nominations. Lead single “Hold On" was voted the #1 Best Song of 2012 by Rolling Stone.. Repackaged in a foil-board gatefold jacket with new, unreleased photos, Boys & Girls 10 Year Anniversary Deluxe Edition contains the album’s original 11 songs plus an additional 11 tracks from the band’s explosive live performance on KCRW’s “Morning Becomes Eclectic,” which aired in the months leading up to the album’s release.
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The Courteeners - St Jude (2022 Repress)
Due 13th January 2023
To celebrate the 15th anniversary of their debut album, ‘St Jude’, Courteeners are releasing the 15th Anniversary Edition of the iconic album on numerous physical formats on 13th January 2023. The new edition includes brand new single ‘It’ll Take More Than A Weekend Away To Fix This Mess’, which is set for release on 7th September at 5pm BST. It was written around the time of ‘St. Jude’ sessions and was unearthed and recorded recently in L.A (Lower Ancoats) and produced by Liam Fray and Joe Cross . The band will perform a 45K hometown show at Heaton Park in Manchester on 9th June 2023 to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the gig, which will drive pre-orders via pre-order for pre-sale. Courteeners huge single ‘Not Nineteen Forever’ will hit 1 million UK sales in early September and there will be a nice moment around this with a Dolby Atmos release, 4K video and disc presentation. The album originally peaked in the UK album chart at #4 in April 2008, so the aim is to surpass the previous peak position. Format Details
2LP Coloured Vinyl Grey (Indie Exclusive)
St Jude was awarded the Guardian First Album Award upon release in April 2008. The album contains three Top 40 singles, Not Nineteen Forever, What Took You So Long? and No You Didn’t, No You Don’t. It was produced by Stephen Street and has been remastered for its 15th anniversary by John Davis at Metropolis Studios, who also mastered the album back in 2008. This limited edition 2LP set will be pressed on 180g grey vinyl and features the original 12 track album remastered, plus original bonus tracks and additional rare acoustic versions.
1LP Black Vinyl (Wide Retail)
St Jude was awarded the Guardian First Album Award upon release in April 2008. The album contains three Top 40 singles, Not Nineteen Forever, What Took You So Long? and No You Didn’t, No You Don’t. It was produced by Stephen Street and has been remastered for its 15th anniversary by John Davis at Metropolis Studios, who also mastered the album back in 2008. This format is a 1LP 180g black vinyl reissue of the original 12 track album remastered.
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Billy Nomates - Cacti
Due 13th January 2023
Billy Nomates, the project of the Bristol-based songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Tor Maries releases her much anticipated second studio album, Cacti via Invada Records. Recorded at her flat and Invada Studios, Cacti is a huge step up for the artist, who received widespread critical acclaim for her eponymous 2020 debut album, with heavy airplay across BBC Radio 6 Music and support from luminaries such as Iggy Pop, Florence Welsh and Steve Albini. Though every bit as unrepentant as Billy Nomates’ debut, Cacti comes from a much more exposed place and sees Tor further develop her instinctive, inventive songwriting and production. Unafraid to wade into the traumas of the past two years and the eerie sense of apathy that lingers, alongside heartache and more political themes, the 12-track collection openly confronts uncomfortable truths, as Tor puts it, "70-80% of being bold is about being vulnerable as hell." Maries said: “Writing Cacti took just over a year. I wrote very intensely and then none at all. (This seems to be the way I work best). I picked up old drum machines, mapped out things in my kitchen with the same small micro keyboard I always use and then raided the cupboards and rooms at Invada Studios, to play and experiment with old synths, an upright piano, this weird organ thing. I hope everyone finds their own narrative in Cacti. I think it's about surviving it all.”
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Circa Waves - Never Going Under
Due 13th January 2023
Never Going Under is the band's highly anticipated fifth record, and the encapsulation of a continued upward trajectory for Circa Waves over the last decade. Becoming one of Britain's most influential and adored guitar bands, the four piece's dedication to constantly developing their sound has seen them secure increasingly high positions in the Official Album Charts, as well as amassing an army of dedicated fans. Speaking about Never Going Under, frontman Kieran Shudall says: "Never Going under speaks to that uniquely modern phenomenon of genuinely not knowing what type of world our kids are going to find themselves in in 30 years. Physically, environmentally, politically we are completely in the unknown. That scares us all but ultimately we know we can never give up on the future because how can you? The songs on the album are written differently from the previous work we've put out. They are written from the perspective of my son and also from my own current experience of the climate today. Never Going Under is a snapshot of the fear we all feel today and the resilience we will need to get through it.”
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Gaz Coombs - Turn The Car Around
Due 13th January 2023
‘Turn The Car Around’ is a record that I’ve been building up to for the last seven years,” says Coombes. It’s a record of feeling, an album that captures the ups and downs of modern life and all the small print in between. Written and recorded by Coombes in his gloriously ramshackle Oxfordshire outhouse Studio, he has emerged with the best work of his illustrious career. It’s an album that both taps into the sonic palettes and lyrical themes of its predecessors and marks the third and final part of a trilogy of records alongside 2015’s Mercury and Ivor Novello nominated sophomore album Matador and 2018’s World’s Strongest Man. At the same time it carves a bold new way forward for one of the UK’s most gifted and cherished singer-songwriters. “There’s a lot of subject matter in there that I’ve played with and maybe not managed to see through in the past. I’ve evolved and I feel like I’ve got better at what I do”. ‘Turn The Car Around’ features additional instrumentation from members of Gaz’s live band, Garo Nahoulakian, Nick Fowler and Piney Gir. The album also sees Coombes reuniting with his live band’s vocal trio ‘The Roxys’ (a nickname given to them by Nile Rodgers when they shared the bill at a Later with Jools show)to create a rich and nuanced sonic tapestry. Cameo performances appear courtesy of Willie J Healey and Ride’s Loz Colbert, and Coombes shares co-production duties with long-term collaborator Ian Davenport. As he celebrates 10 years of his lauded solo career since the release of his debut ‘Here Come the Bombs’, and riding a crest of the Supergrass reunion, the announcement of ‘Turn The Car Around’ solidifies Coombes status as one of the UK’s most interesting, enduring and effortlessly classy artists.
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We Are Scientists - Lobes
Due 20th January 2023
Hot on the heels of 2021’s Huffy (which reached #1 on the UK indie chart), New York indie rock legends We Are Scientists return with their 8th studio album, Lobes. Largely written at the same time as Huffy and once again self-produced, Lobes stays glued to the indie dance floor but showcases a darker, more electronic pop sound than its rock indebted predecessor. Always present though are the catchy melodies and soaring choruses which have become the band’s calling card over their near 2-decade career.
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John Cale - MERCY
Due 20th January 2023
For nearly 60 years, John Cale has been reimagining how his music is made, sounds, and even works. MERCY, Cale’s first full album in a decade, moves through true dark-night-of-the-soul electronic torment toward vulnerable love songs and hopeful considerations for the future with the help of some of music’s most curious young minds. Cale has always searched for new ways to explore old ideas of alienation, hurt, and joy; MERCY is the latest transfixing find of this unsatisfied mind.
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Ghost Woman - Anne, If
Due 20th January 2023
One could be forgiven for getting that familiar feeling when listening to the music of Ghost Woman. And that's not just because songwriter & multi-instrumentalist Evan Uschenko is deeply steeped in classic guitar-led rock & pop songwriting (more on that later), it's that the music was, by design, intended to be evocative. But not evocative, however, of any one thing; what separates the music of Ghost Woman from a great many other bands working today is his openness to non-specificity. He's not trying to impart any sort of message to the listener; instead, the hope is that one will find themselves luxuriating in nuances of how the music is delivered, and the feelings it stirs up for each individual.
For the past couple of years Ghost Woman has been Evan Uschenko's outlet for his interest in songwriting and recording, which began after a number of years spent playing as a sideman in various Canadian indie ensembles, most notably in the Michael Rault band, a group that displays a similar affinity for perfectly dialed, partially yesteryear-looking guitar pop. Following 2022's self-titled debut, issued by UK-based Full Time Hobby to great critical acclaim, Anne, If presents a slightly more expansive vision of what Ghost Woman can offer.
The sound of Anne, If is certainly in keeping with past output: the music was performed and recorded (almost) entirely by Uschenko himself on his trusty Tascam 388 tape recorder, during what he describes as a “strange new chapter” in his life, living in a large, expansive house with nothing to do except record music, watch old VHS movies, and cook meals over an open fire in the backyard. “The ability to be making sounds and recording at any time of the day had a big influence on the way I worked and what was produced,” he says.
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The Murder Capital - Gigi's Recovery
Due 20th January 2023
The Murder Capital’s second studio album Gigi’s Recovery, produced by John Congleton, will be released on January 20, 2023 via Human Season Records.
The Murder Capital’s first album ‘When I Have Fears’ had all its songs written and recorded within the first 9 months of the band knowing each other.
Now, with ‘Gigi’s Recovery’, the band had to learn to navigate their personal relationships through the relationships they harnessed with these new songs. Without knowing what these songs would sound like, the band knew what they wanted them to feel like- and worked backwards from there - “We had this slightly tongue-in-cheek mantra at the near-beginning of writing this record, it was - The evolution will not be compromised. This kept us on a course, even when we didn’t know where we were going”. And that’s exactly how The Murder Capital ended up with an album that is both totally pure and yet completely confident in its direction.
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The Reytons - What's Rock And Roll
Due 27th January 2023
The Reytons have announced their second album is set for release following their debut album that rocketed to Number 11 in the Official UK Charts, with over 20,000 sales to date Setting The Reytons apart from the competition is their fiercely independent approach to the way they work. Not exactly welcomed with open arms by the industry from the very start, the band channel their working class grit and determination to overcome every obstacle thrown at them. Aided by the masses of loyal fans, no achievement is out of reach.
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Remember these are just some of what's coming this month, you can check out the rest of November's new releases here.
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