Kevin Abernathy: Family Hour / The PInklets: The Pinklets
Two EPs from Tennessee's rocking Abernathy family (one from dad and one from daughters) that each offer sonic rewards.
Ed Whitelock
Ed Whitelock is a professor of English at Gordon State College in Barnesville, GA, just 106 miles southwest of Philomath. He is co-author, with David Janssen, of Apocalypse Jukebox: The End of the World in American Popular Music (2009) from the PopMatters imprint of Soft Skull Press.
Offa Rex: The Queen of Hearts
Think of Offa Rex as the Decemberists and UK singer Olivia Chaney jumping into a wormhole to come out the other side as Fairport Convention. It works magically in every way.
Various Artists: American Epic – The Collection
Think of American Epic: The Collection as a newly definitive survey that captures the fullness of rural American music recorded during the 1920s.
Chris Bell: Looking Forward – The Roots of Big Star
Definitive proof that there was more than one genius behind the rise of Big Star.
Banditos: Visionland
Banditos are at the fore of a new generation of Southern rock bands capable of both mining the region's deep musical heritage and nudging it forward.
Various Artists: The Rough Guide to Jug Band Blues
Full of surprises, this lively anthology explores a sometimes under-appreciated genre of early-recorded blues, highlighting its creative diversity.
Game Theory: 2 Steps From the Middle Ages
Game Theory’s 1988 release anticipated the alternative music explosion of the early '90s.
Wizz Jones / Pete Berryman / Simeon Jones: Come What May
Jones, Berryman, and Jones make it sound easy and make wonderful sounds on this inspired collection of British folk.
Pere Ubu: Drive, He Said 1994-2002
The period covered by this box set is perhaps the least understood or appreciated among Pere Ubu’s many iterations, yet these might just be their most vibrantly subversive recordings.
Corin Ashley: Broken Biscuits
An independent release filled with deep rewards for Anglophiles and power pop fans.
Moon Duo: Occult Architecture, Vol. 2
The flip side to the first volume, Occult Architecture, Vol. 2 is a brighter and suitably trippy yang to its predecessor’s yin.
Tom Armstrong: The Sky Is an Empty Eye
Another worthwhile entry in Tompkins Square’s ongoing archeology of unheralded outsider artists, Armstrong’s catchy, new age-inflected playing offers solace for late nights.