FEBRUARY 9
AM – Future Sons & Daughters (Filter U.S. Recordings)
Arsis – Starve for the Devil (produced by Zeuss; two bonus tracks, including cover of King Diamond’s “The Lake,” featured on Nuclear Blast mail-order version [1,000 copies] and vinyl [500 copies]; Nuclear Blast)
The Besnard Lakes – “Albatross” (vinyl 12-inch; Jagjaguwar)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Albatross“
Blessure Grave – Judged by Twelve, Carried by Six (Alien8)
Kath Bloom – Thin Thin Line (Caldo Verde)
V V Brown – Travelling Like the Light (already available in U.K.; EMI)
Buzzcocks – A Different Kind of Tension; Another Music in a Different Kitchen; and Love Bites (special-edition reissues; include previously unreleased tracks; Mute)
Dark Fortress – Ylem (Century Media)
Fear Factory (with Dino Cazares back in the fold) – Mechanize (Candlelight)
Galactic – Ya-Ka-May (Anti-)
Ernest Gonzales – Been Meaning to Tell You (with mixes by Daedelus, CYNE, more; comes with book; FoF Music; 180g white vinyl released by Tall Corn Music)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Dancing in the Snow“
Hot Chip – One Life Stand (Astralwerks)
Hunx and His Punx – Gay Singles (five previously released songs and on bonus track; True Panther Sounds)
Icarus Witch – Draw Down the Moon (Cleopatra/Koch)
Killing Time – Three Steps Back (Dead City)
Massive Attack – Heligoland (marks return of Horace Andy; features guest vocals from Damon Albarn, Hope Sandoval, more; Virgin)
Meshuggah – “Alive” (DVD and CD; features live and behind-the-scenes material from band’s 2008 obZen tour; preorder packages come with tee, poster; Nuclear Blast)
Mimicking Birds – Mimicking Birds (co-produced by Modest Mouse’s Isaac Brock; Glacial Pace)
Georgia Anne Muldrow – King’s Ballad (Ubiquity)
Orphaned Land – The Never Ending Way of ORwarriOR (Century Media)
Pantha Du Prince – Black Noise (features members of Animal Collective and !!!; Rough Trade)
Pretenders – Pretenders: Live in London (from ‘09 tour; with bonus DVD; also available as a standalone Blu-ray; E1)
Schooner – Duck Kee Sessions (EP; all proceeds go to brain cancer research; Cytunes.org)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Feel Better“
Gil Scott-Heron – I’m New Here (XL)
Screaming Females – Singles (six rare songs; Don Giovanni)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “I Do“
Shellshag – Rumors in Disguise (Don Giovanni)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Resiliant Bastard“
Theodore – Hold You Like a Lover (Moon Jaw)
♥♥♥ The Watson Twins – Talking to You, Talking to Me (features members of My Morning Jacket and Everest; Vanguard)
• Bad Penny album review
You Say Party! We Say Die! – XXXX (Paper Bag)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Dark Days“
Zeus – Say Us (12-inch only; with digital download card; available in other formats on 2.23; Arts & Crafts)
FEBRUARY 10
Black Cobra – Chronomega (vinyl; limited to 1,500 copies; features rare cover of Buzzov*en’s “Behaved”; Southern Lord)
Gigi – Maintenant (features Mirah, Karl Blau, Final Fantasy’s Owen Pallett, more; Tomlab)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Strolling Past the Old Graveyard (Featuring Karl Blau)“
• Pitchfork MP3 download: “No, My Heart Will Go On“
FEBRUARY 13
Once a Pawn – Mission Accomplished (Queer Control)
• Bad Penny interview: “Inside The Label: Queer Control Records“
FEBRUARY 16
The Acacia Strain – “The Most Known Unknown” (two DVDs featuring live material and a documentary; Prosthetic)
♥♥♥ Aeternam – Disciples of the Unseen (Metal Blade)
• Bad Penny album review
ArpLine – TBA (TBA)
The Attack – Of Nostalgia and Rebellion (self-release)
Seth Augustus – To the Pouring Rain (Porto Franco)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Tiny Little Head“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Trickeries of the Great Emptiness“
♥♥♥ Barn Burner – Bangers (Metal Blade)
• Bad Penny album review
Bear Hands – What a Drag (Cantora)
• MP3 download: “What a Drag” (e-mail required)
Dum Dum Girls – “Jail La La” (7-inch; Sub Pop)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Jail La La“
Everybody Was in the French Resistance … Now – Fixin’ the Charts, Volume One (Art Brut’s Eddie Argos and the Blood Arm’s Dyan Valdes; Cooking Vinyl)
Jason Falkner – I’m OK, You’re OK (TBA)
Field Music – (Measure) (double album; Memphis Industries/ Revolver)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Measure“
Giant Drag – Swan Song EP (Roar Scratch)
The Go Find – Everybody Knows It’s Gonna Happen, Only Not Tonight (Morr)
Juliana Hatfield – Peace and Love (Ye Olde Records)
Heathen – The Evolution of Chaos (Mascot)
Heavenly – Carpe Diem (AFM)
The Hush Now – Constellations (self-release)
In Mourning – Monolith (recorded with Scar Symmetry’s Jonas Kjellgren; Pulverised)
Javelin – Number Two (available digitally at FINA-Music.com and as a hand-screened 12-inch limited to 500 copies; make-your-own-album jacket info available here; Thrill Jockey)
Fela Kuti – The ‘69 L.A. Sessions; Live With Ginger Baker; London Scene/Shakara; Roforofo Fight/+2 Singles; Open & Close/Afrodisiac; and Gentleman/Confusion (CD reissues; Knitting Factory)
Liars – “Scissor” (digital single; Mute)
Lightspeed Champion – Life Is Sweet! Nice to Meet You (Domino)
Local Natives – Gorilla Manor (Frenchkiss)
Scott Lucas & the Married Men – George Lassos the Moon (limited-edition vinyl version also available; G&P)
Mako Sica – Horizon (vinyl; limited to 250 copies; La Société Expéditionnaire)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “I’Itoi“
Charlie Alex March – Home/Hidden (features members of Stereolab, High Llamas; Lo)
Miracle Condition (features members of US Maple) – Miracle Condition (Tizona)
Moon Duo – Escape (Woodsist)
Mumford & Sons – Sigh No More (Glassnote)
Obscura (featuring members of Alabama Thunderpussy and Facedowninshit) – Retribution (Relapse)
Rykarda Parasol – For Blood and Wine (self-release)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “A Drinking Song“
Joe Pug – Messenger (Lightning Rod)
The Ravenna Colt – Slight Spell (Removador Recordings and Solutions)
Red Pens – Reasons (Grain Belt)
Dan Reeder – This New Century (Oh Boy)
The Seven Fields of Aphelion (Black Moth Super Rainbow member) – Periphery (Graveface)
Tony Sly (of No Use for a Name) – 12 Song Program (with guest appearances from Karina Denike of Dance Hall Crashers, Joey Cape of Lagwagon and more; Fat Wreck Chords)
Ben Sollee & Daniel Martin Moore – Dear Companion (portion of proceeds benefit Appalachian Voices; Sub Pop)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Something, Somewhere, Sometime“
The Souljazz Orchestra – Rising Sun (Strut)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Mamaya“
Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra – Kollaps Tradixionales (Constellation)
Tindersticks – Falling Down a Mountain (Constellation)
Truman Peyote/Many Mansions – Peaced Together (split 12-inch; Whitehaus Family)
• Pitchfork MP3 download: Truman Peyote’s “Sidewalk Sludging (Airbud)“
Jason Urick – Husbands (CD release limited to 500 copies; comes with poster; previously available on vinyl; Thrill Jockey)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “The Eternal Return“
Vivian Girls – “My Love Will Follow Me” (single; available as an iTunes digital exclusive or 7-inch; Wild World)
Wu-Tang Clan – The Return of the Wu & Friends (compilation featuring unreleased songs, classic cuts and rarities; Gold Dust)
Various artists – Preservation: An Album to Benefit Preservation Hall and the Preservation Hall Music Outreach Program (Preservation Hall/ Sony RED/ MRI)
FEBRUARY 22
At the Gates – “The Flames of the End” (three-DVD digipak with live performances and documentary; U.K. release; Earache)
• trailer
Valgeir Sigurðsson – “Dreamland” soundtrack (Bedroom Community)
Yes Giantess – “The Ruins” (single; Neon Gold)
FEBRUARY 23
Alkaline Trio – This Addiction (available as an LP, a CD or a CD/DVD that includes six bonus songs and concert material; Epitaph/ Heart & Skull)
• stream: “This Addiction” (Twitter or Facebook referral required)
Balmorhea – Constellations (Western Vinyl)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Bowsprit“
Andrew Belle – The Ladder (self-released)
The Brian Jonestown Massacre (featuring ex-Spacemen 3’s Will Carruthers on bass) – Who Killed Sgt. Pepper? (a recordings LTD)
David Byrne and Fatboy Slim – Here Lies Love (with DVD, book; Todomodo/Nonesuch)
Create Avoid – Heart Remains (Pure Noise Entertainment)
Hayaino Daisuki – The Invincible Gate Mind of The Internal Fire Hell, or Did You Mean Hawaii Daisuki? (Hydra Head)
Dust From 1000 Years – Marble Memo (Moon Jaw)
Efterklang – Magic Chairs (4AD)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Modern Drift“
Eluvium – Similes (Temporary Residence Limited)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “The Motion Makes Me Last“
Fan Death – A Coin for the Well (EP; Last Gang)
Fang Island – Fang Island (Sargent House)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Daisy“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Life Coach“
High on Fire – Snakes for the Divine (E1)
• Stereogum song stream: “Frost Hammer“
Doug Keith – The Lucky Ones (The Village Label)
Elaine Lachica – I Think I Can See the Ocean (Stunning Models on Display)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Behind My Mind“
• Under the Radar MP3 download: “Bewilder“
Let’s Wrestle – In the Court of the Wrestling Let’s (Merge)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “We Are the Men You’ll Grow to Love Soon“
Lobisomem – Brightest Solids (EP; Tall Corn)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Plasma Is For Lovers“
Man/Miracle – The Shape of Things (Third Culture)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Hot Sprawl“
Holly Miranda – The Magician’s Private Library (features members of TV on the Radio and Antibalas; XL)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Waves“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Forest Green Oh Forest Green“
The Morning Benders – “Promises” (7-inch version of song previously available on iTunes; comes with unreleased B-side “Oh Annie”; song will be made available on TheMorningBenders.com for a limited time; True Panther Sounds)
Mutiny Within – Mutiny Within (Roadrunner)
N.A.M.B. – B.M.A.N. (deluxe package with 96-page booklet; Monotreme)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “L.O.N.“
The New Loud – Can’t Stop Not Knowing (EP; includes cover of Radiohead’s “2 + 2 = 5″; mixed by ex-Drive Like Jehu’s Mark Trombino; self-released)
Pelican – What We All Come to Need (deluxe-vinyl gatefold version; features three bonus songs not featured on CD version; Southern Lord)
Parenthetical Girls – Privilege: Pt. 1 – On Death & Endearments (vinyl and digital release; Slender Means Society)
• Stereogum MP3 download: “Evelyn McHale“
Past Lives – Tapestry of Webs (Suicide Squeeze)
• Stereogum MP3 download: “Deep in the Valley” (featuring Hannah Blilie of the Gossip)
Quasi – American Gong (mixed by Steve Fisk, Tucker Martine and Dave Fridmann; Kill Rock Stars)
• Bad Penny interview: “Quasi’s Sam Coomes In ‘01: ‘There Isn’t Any Point In Us Rushing’ Albums“
• Bad Penny interview transcript: “Quasi’s Sam Coomes In ‘01: ‘There Isn’t Any Point In Us Rushing’ Albums“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Repulsion“
Rage Against the Machine – “Revolution in the Head: Rage Against the Machine and the Art of Protest” (MVD Visual/ Sexy Intellectual)
Jack Rose – Luck in the Valley (Thrill Jockey)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Woodpiles on the Side of the Road“
Sambassadeur – European (Labrador)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Stranded“
Shearwater – The Golden Archipelago (Matador)
Shout Out Louds – Work (produced by Phil Ek; Merge)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Walls“
April Smith and the Great Picture Show – Songs for a Sinking Ship (self-release)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Colors“
The Strange Boys – Be Brave (In the Red)
Suffokate – No Mercy, No Forgiveness (Mediaskare)
The Superions (features Fred Schneider of the B-52’s) – The Superions (EP; 12-inch and CD versions; already available on iTunes; Happy Happy Birthday to Me)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Totally Nude Island (The Lolligags Remix)“
Rob Swift – The Architect (Ipecac)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Rabia – 2nd Movement“
Testament – The Formation of Damnation (reissue with bonus CD featuring live audio and video material; Nuclear Blast)
These Are Powers – World Class Peoples/ Candyman (EP featuring three new songs and two remixes; RVNG)
Title Tracks – It Was Easy (includes covers of Bruce Springsteen’s “Tougher Than the Rest,” the Byrds’ “She Don’t Care About Time”; Ernest Jenning)
Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabaté – Ali and Toumani (World Circuit/ Nonesuch)
Veil Veil Vanish – Change in the Neon Light (Metropolis)
Rocky Votolato – True Devotion (Barsuk)
Xasthur – 2005 Demo (two songs, totaling 16 minutes; Hydra Head)
Xiu Xiu – Dear God, I Hate Myself (features members of Deerhoof; Kill Rock Stars)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Gray Death“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Dear God, I Hate Myself“
Was (Not Was) – Pick of the Litter (1980-2010) (retrospective compilation with Iggy Pop, Wayne Kramer, more; Micro Werks)
White Hills – White Hills (available as a CD or LP; Thrill Jockey)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Dead“
White Wizzard – Over the Top (Earache)
• Bad Penny album review
Andrew W.K. – Close Calls With Brick Walls (previously available in Japan and Korea; features bonus disc of rare and unreleased material called Mother of Mankind; Steev Mike)
Wolf People – Tidings (Jagjaguwar)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “October Fires“
Zeus – Say Us (Arts & Crafts)
Various artists – Stroke: Songs for Chris Knox (limited-edition two-CD version; already available online here; features Yo La Tengo, the Mountain Goats, Lou Barlow, Jay Reatard, Bonnie “Prince” Billy, more; Merge)
FEBRUARY 26
Johnny Cash – American VI: Ain’t No Grave (final chapter in series; features covers of songs by Sheryl Crow, Kris Kristofferson, more; unreleased original song also included; produced by Rick Rubin; American/ Lost Highway)
Hands – “Hold” (single; Headphonica)
MARCH
AmpLive – Murder at the Diskotek (Child’s Play)
Casper Bangs – I Woke Up (TBA)
Dead Meadow – Three Kings (with live DVD; TBA)
Delta Mirror – Machines That Listen (Lefse)
Des Ark – TBA (Lovitt)
Faraquet – The View From This Tower (reissue; Dischord)
Free the Robots – Ctrl Alt Delete (Alpha Pup)
Doug Keith (formerly of the Gods Hate Kansas) – The Lucky Ones (The Village Label)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “The Lucky Ones“
Harvestman – Trinity (limited edition; features material used for soundtrack to horror film “H2Odio”; Neurot)
Harvestman/Minsk/U.S. Christmas – Hawkwind Triad (Hawkwind covers; Neurot)
Hypernova – Through the Chaos (Narnack)
Medications – TBA (Dischord)
Ono – Give Me Something (Mind Train/ Twisted)
Lou Rhodes – One Good Thing (Motion Audio)
Seabear – We Built a Fire (Morr)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Lion Face Boy (Single Version)“
• album stream
Serena-Maneesh – TBA (4AD)
Standard Fare – The Noyelle Beat (Bar/None)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Fifteen“
Year Long Disaster – TBA (TBA)
Various artists – God of War: Blood & Metal (digital EP with five exclusive unreleased songs by Opeth, Trivium, more; voucher for download comes with purchase of “God of War III: Ultimate Edition” video game; Roadrunner)
MARCH 1
Mat Riviere – Follow Your Heart (Brainlove)
These Monsters – Call Me Dragon (U.K. only; Brew/Function)
• MP3 download: “Call Me Dragon“
MARCH 2
The 1959 Hat Co./Thunder Power – Hearts Intersect (split EP; co-produced by the Faint’s Joel Petersen; Slumber Party)
A Sunny Day in Glasgow – Nitetime Rainbows (EP; Mis Ojos Discos)
Athlete – Black Swan (standard edition; produced by Tom Rothrock; Original Signal)
Benjy Davis Project – Lost Souls Like Us (Rock Ridge)
The Bled – Heat Fetish (Rise)
Boy Eats Drum Machine – Hoop + Wire (Tender Loving Empire)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “ Hoop + Wire“
Bridges & Blinking Lights – Heroes, Guns & Snakes (TBA)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Lights Undercover“
Clogs (features Bryce Dessner of the National) – The Creatures in the Garden of Lady Walton (features guest appearances by Sufjan Stevens, additional members of the National, etc.; Brassland)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “On the Edge“
B. Dolan – Fallen House, Sunken City (features P.O.S. and Cadence Weapon; produced by Alias; Strange Famous)
Flogging Molly – “Live at the Greek Theatre” (recorded September 12, 2009, in Los Angeles; DVD with two CDs; SideOneDummy)
Groove Armada – Black Light (features Bryan Ferry, more; OM)
Picastro – Become Secret (Monotreme)
Emma Pollock – The Law of Large Numbers (recorded with husband and fellow former member of the Delgados, Paul Savage; also features Adem; Chemikal Underground)
Pretty Good Dance Moves TBA (EP; TBA)
The Ruby Suns – Fight Softly (Sub Pop)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Cranberry“
Sharam Jey – In My Blood (features Princess Superstar and more; King Kong)
These New Puritans – Hidden (Domino)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Orion“
Totally Bone (frontman for Dust From 1000 Years) – Marble Memo (Moon Jaw)
Twin Tigers – Grey Waves (Old Flame)
• MP3 download: free Automatic EP (e-mail required)
The Whigs – In the Dark (ATO)
• MP3 download: “Hundred/Million” and “In the Dark” (e-mail required)
Josiah Wolf (Why? multi-instrumentalist) – Jet Lag (Anticon)
• Pitchfork MP3 download: “The Trailer and the Truck“
MARCH 6
Free Energy – Stuck on Nothing (digital version only; other editions available May 4; produced by DFA’s James Murphy; Astralwerks/DFA)
MARCH 9
Abscess – Dawn of Inhumanity (Peaceville)
Acrassicauda – Only the Dead See the End of the War (EP; Vice)
• MP3 download: “Garden Of Stones“
The Besnard Lakes – The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night (Jagjaguwar)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Albatross“
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (featuring new drummer Leah Shapiro) – Beat the Devil’s Tattoo (Abstract Dragon/ Vagrant)
Broken Bells (The Shins’ James Mercer and Danger Mouse) – Broken Bells (Columbia)
Alan Charing – Stitch (In Music We Trust)
Jason Collett – Rat a Tat Tat (Arts & Crafts)
• MP3 download: “Little Tiger” (e-mail required)
• MP3 download: “Love Is a Dirty Word” (e-mail required)
Dark Tranquillity – We Are the Void (Century Media)
Emanuel and the Fear – Listen (Paper Garden)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Dear Friend“
Finntroll – Nifelvind (Century Media)
Frightened Rabbit – The Winter of Mixed Drinks (Fat Cat)
Gama Bomb - Tales From the Grave in Space (available as a vinyl limited to 1,000 copies or limited-edition CD with bonus Half Cut EP; Earache)
Goldfrapp – “Rocket” (single; includes remixes from Richard X, Tiësto, more; Mute)
Gorillaz – Plastic Beach (Parlophone)
Jimi Hendrix – Valleys of Neptune (features 12 previously unreleased tracks; Experience Hendrix LLC/ Legacy Recordings )
j.j. – nº 3 (Secretly Canadian)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Let Go“
Kartick & Gotam – Business Class Refugees (EarthSync)
The Knife (with Mt. Sims and Planningtorock – Tomorrow, in a Year (opera about Charles Darwin; two CDs; digital version dropped February 2; Mute)
Miles Kurosky (ex-Beulah singer) – The Desert of Shallow Effects (features other ex-Beulah members; Majordomo/ Shout! Factory)
Lawrence Arabia – Chant Darling (Bella Union/ Yep Roc)
Lay Low – Farewell Good Night’s Sleep (Loo)
Lemonade – Pure Moods (EP; True Panther Sounds)
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists – The Brutalist Bricks (Matador)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Even Heroes Have to Die“
Liars – Sisterworld (special edition features remixed by Thom Yorke, Melvins, Blonde Redhead, Bradford Cox, Alan Vega, more; Mute)
• MP3 download: “Sisterworld” (e-mail required)
Librarians – Present Passed (Postfact)
Mighty Tiger – Western Theater (digital only; “33 1/3″ 7-inch, out same day, comes with album digital download card; Paper Garden)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “33 1/3“
The Morning Benders – Big Echo (co-produced by Grizzly Bear’s Chris Taylor; Rough Trade)
Rifoki (Steve Aoki and Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo) – Rifoki (Dim Mak)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Sperm Donor“
Sectioned – Purulent Reality (Paragon)
The Splinters – Kick (Double Negative)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Mysterious“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Splintered Bridges“
Serj Tankian – Elect the Dead Symphony (available as a CD, CD/DVD digipak or vinyl; performance with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra held in March 2009 at the Auckland Town Hall in New Zealand; Serjical Strike/ Reprise)
Tanlines – Settings (EP; True Panther Sounds)
Titus Andronicus – The Monitor (XL)
Woodpigeon – Die Stadt Muzikanten (previously available overseas; Boompa)
Year Long Disaster – Black Magic: All Mysteries Revealed (produced by Nick Raskulinecz; Volcom)
Zola Jesus – Stridulum (EP; Sacred Bones)
MARCH 16
All Shall Perish – Awaken the Dreamers (vinyl reissue limited to 900 copies; Pure Noise)
Amp Live – Murder at the Discotech (Child’s Play)
Armored Saint – La Raza (Metal Blade)
The Delta Mirror – Machines That Listen (Lefse)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “He Was Worse Than the Needle He Gave You“
Dropkick Murphys – Live on Lansdowne, Boston MA (with DVD; also available as digipak with HD DVD and as double-gatefold vinyl with CD; last track features the Mighty Mighty Bosstones; Born & Bred)
The Dustbowl Revival – You Can’t Go Back to the Garden of Eden (self-release)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Falling Down“
Fireball Ministry – Fireball Ministry (Restricted Release)
Follow the Train – Mercury (Removador Recordings and Solutions)
Freelance Whales – Weathervanes (Frenchkiss/ Mom & Pop)
Happy Birthday – Happy Birthday (Sub Pop)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Girls FM“
Landmine Marathon – Sovereign Descent (Prosthetic)
Tom McRae – The Alphabet of Hurricanes (Cooking Vinyl)
One for the Team – Ghosts (Afternoon)
The Unwinding Hours (ex-Aereogramme’s Craig B and Iain Cook) – The Unwinding Hours (Chemikal Underground)
• Bad Penny album review
Von Haze – Von Haze (TBA)
Wakey!Wakey! – Almost Everything I Wish I’d Said the Last Time I Saw You … (Family/ Timber Street)
The White Stripes – Under Great White Northern Lights (limited-edition box set with live DVD and CD, exclusive 7-inch, hardcover book, silkscreen print; Third Man)
MARCH 18
All Leather (the Locust’s Justin Pearson, Some Girls’ Nathan Joyner and Maniqui Lazer’s Jung Sing) – When I Grown Up I Wanna F*** Like a Girl (Dim Mak)
MARCH 22
808 State – 808:90; ex:el; Gorgeous; and Don Solaris (deluxe remastered reissues; each comes with bonus disc of unreleased and rare songs; Salvo)
MARCH 23
Mose Allison – The Way of the World (produced by Joe Henry; Anti-)
Birdsong at Morning – Vigil (third installment in four-part series; Blue Gentian)
Brasstronaut – Mt. Chimaera (Unfamiliar)
Dead Meadow – The Three Kings (with DVD; Xemu)
• Bad Penny interview: “Dead Meadow: Tweaked ‘Kings’“
The Dillinger Escape Plan – Option Paralysis (limited-edition download cards with three unreleased remixes for sale at DEP shows; Party Smasher Inc./ Season of Mist)
Drink Up Buttercup – Born and Thrown on a Hook (Yep Roc)
Goldfrapp – Head First (Mute)
Jónsi (Sigur Rós frontman) – Go (XL)
Kleenex/Liliput – Live Recordings, TV-Clips & Roadmovies (live CD featuring Kleenex in Biel in 1979 and Liliput in Zurich in 1983; comes with DVD featuring “Roadmovie” documentary and TV performances; Kill Rock Stars)
Mux Mool – Skulltaste (Ghostly International)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Lady Linda“
Nebula/ Quest for Fire – split 7-inch (features new songs by both bands; limited to 1,000 copies; Tee Pee)
Neon Trees – Habits (Mercury)
Quadron – Quadron (Plug Research)
Radar Brothers (new lineup features bassist Be Hussey and drummer Stevie Treichel) – The Illustrated Garden (Merge)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Horses Warriors“
Serena-Maneesh – S-M 2: Abyss in B Minor (4AD)
She & Him – Volume Two (includes covers of NRBQ’s “Ridin’ in My Car” and Skeeter Davis’ “Gonna Get Along Without You”; Merge)
Six Gallery – Breakthroughs in Modern Art (Superball Music)
• Pure Volume song stream: “Built to Last“
Tahiti Boy + the Palmtree Family – Good Children Go to Heaven (Third Side)
• Stereogum MP3 download: “That Song” (featuring Tunde Adebimpe)
The Unthanks – Here’s the Tender Coming (Rough Trade)
Woodhands – Remorsecapade (Paper Bag)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Pockets“
Yukon Blonde – Yukon Blonde (Bumstead Productions Ltd.)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Wind Blows“
MARCH 25
Nada Surf – If I Had a Hi-Fi (covers album featuring songs by Depeche Mode, the Moody Blues, the Soft Pack, Kate Bush, the Go-Betweens, Arthur Russell and more; available at Nada Surf concerts; self-release)
MARCH 29
Barren Earth – Curse of the Red River (Peaceville)
MARCH 30
Annuals – Sweet Sister EP (Banter)
Dum Dum Girls – I Will Be (Sub Pop)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Jail La La“
Extra Life – Made Flesh (Loaf)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “The Ladder (Radio Edit)“
Floor – Below & Beyond discography: Riddim of Silence; Pillars of Irem; Fuck You. For Now.; Dove; Saturnine and Tears; Somewhere In Miami/ 305 Alive; Floor and Outtakes and It’s Not the Same (reissues; in-store CD editions; previously available as deluxe vinyl editions, mail-order CDs or digital downloads; Robotic Empire)
Holly Golightly and the Brokeoffs – Medicine County (includes original songs and traditional tracks like “Blood on the Saddle” and “Jack O’Diamonds”; Transdreamer)
Helloween – Unarmed – Best of 25th Anniversary (classic songs rearranged with new melodies; The End)
The Living Sisters (features the Bird and the Bees’ Inara George and Lavender Diamond’s Becky Stark) – Love to Live (Vanguard)
Raven – Walk Through Fire (includes two bonus live songs; Metal Blade)
Slow Club – Yeah, So (with bonus CD of B-sides and live recordings; album previously available in the U.K.; Moshi Moshi)
Turin Brakes – Outbursts (Cooking Vinyl)
• MP3 download: “Apocolips” (e-mail required)
APRIL
Harper Blynn – Loneliest Generation (Baby Jackal)
The Burning Hotels – Novels (TBA)
Coheed and Cambria – Year of the Black Rainbow (deluxe edition comes with novel co-written by Claudio Sanchez; Columbia)
Everest – TBA (Vapor)
Yaotl Mictlan – Dentro del Mantro Gris de Chaae (Candlelight)
Piebald – Piebald: First Ten Years – Volume 1 (two CDs; Rise)
Rikets – All American Death Cult (Burnhill Union)
Tunng – … And Then We Saw Land (Thrill Jockey)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Don’t Look Down or Back“
APRIL 6
Barren Earth (features former members of Amorphis, current members of Swallow the Sun and Kreator) – Curse of the Red River (Peaceville)
John Butler Trio – April Uprising (ATO)
Christy & Emily – No Rest (Klangbad)
Dr. Dog – Shame (produced by Rob Schnapf; Anti-)
Growing – Pumps (Vice)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Hormone“
♥♥♥ Harlem – Hippies (Matador)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Friendly Ghost“
High Places – High Places Vs. Mankind (Thrill Jockey)
Kayo Dot (with former member Terran Olson back in the fold) – Coyote (Hydra Head)
• Time Out New York song stream: “Whisper Ineffable“
The Kissaway Trail – Sleep Mountain (includes a cover of Neil Young’s “Philadelphia”; Bella Union)
Lali Puna (featuring members of the Notwist, Yellow Magic Orchestra, more;) – Our Inventions (Morr)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Remember“
Rob Laufer – Excruciating Bliss (TBA)
Laura Marling – I Speak Because I Can (produced by Ethan Johns; Astralwerks)
Mi Ami – Watersports (Thrill Jockey)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Cut Men” (non-album track)
Monster Movie – Everyone Is a Ghost (Graveface)
Murder by Death – Good Morning, Magpie (self-produced; Vagrant)
Red Sparowes – The Fear Is Excruciating, but Therein Lies the Answer (Sargent House)
Sally Seltmann (formerly New Buffalo) – Heart That’s Pounding (features guest vocals from Jens Lekman, and members of the Avalanches and Architecture in Helsinki; Arts & Crafts)
• MP3 download: “Harmony to My Heartbeat” (e-mail required)
Martin Sexton – Sugarcoating (KTR)
Elliott Smith – From a Basement on the Hill and Roman Candle (remastered reissues; Roman Candle on vinyl for the first time; Kill Rock Stars)
APRIL 13
Dosh – Tommy (with a guest appearance from Andrew Bird; Anticon)
Earl Greyhound – Suspicious Package (Hawk Race)
The Izzys – Keep Your Powder Dry (Fat Man)
JBM – Not Even in July (Partisan)
The Jamie McLean Band (Dirty Dozen Brass Band guitarist) – Completely (TBA)
• MP3 download: “Cupid’s Greatest Thief” (available on JamieMcLean.com on 2.14)
Chris Pureka – How I Learned to See in the Dark (Sad Rabbit Music/ ADA)
Rafter – Animal Feelings (Asthmatic Kitty)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Paper“
The Tallest Man on Earth – The Wild Hunt (Dead Oceans)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “King of Spain“
Trampled by Turtles – Palomino (Thirty Tigers)
Various artists – Laya Project (DVD and album; EarthSync)
APRIL 19
AC/DC – “Iron Man 2″ soundtrack (features 15 of the band’s hit songs; deluxe version comes with DVD; LP packages also available; Columbia)
APRIL 20
Sam Amidon – I See the Sign (Bedroom Community)
The Apples in Stereo – Travellers in Space and Time (first Apples studio album with new drummer John Dufilho; Yep Roc/ Simian/ Elephant 6)
Blunt Mechanic – World Record (Barsuk)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Our First Brains“
Roky Erickson – True Love Cast Out All Evil (with Okkervil River; Anti-)
Horse Feathers – Thistled Spring (Kill Rock Stars)
Inlets – Inter Arbiter (features members of Dirty Projectors, Osso; Twosyllable)
• Stereogum MP3 download: “Bright Orange Air“
Javelin – No Mas (Luaka Bop)
Kings Go Forth – The Outsiders Are Back (Luaka Bop)
Kuan – On/Standby (two EPs; TBA)
La Strada – New Home (Ernest Jenning)
Order of Ennead – An Examination of Being (Earache)
Plants and Animals – La La Land (Secret City)
• MP3 download: “Tom Cruz“
Sick of It All – Based on a True Story (Century Media)
Sweet Apple (features members of Dinosaur Jr., Cobra Verde and Witch) – Love and Desperation (Tee Pee)
APRIL 27
Hannah Georgas – This Is Good (Hidden Pony)
♥♥♥ Iggy and the Stooges – Raw Power: Legacy Edition (two CDs; second disc has unreleased 1973 concert; Columbia/Legacy)
• Bad Penny interview: “Iggy Pop: ‘I Didn’t Want To Sell Out’ The Stooges“
• Bad Penny interview transcript: “Iggy Pop, Transcript, 7.18.03: ‘I Was Shooting Dope At The RIAA Awards When It Wasn’t Chic’ “
Linfinity – Martian’s Bloom (American Myth)
Mushroom – Naked, Stoned, & Stabbed (4 Zero/ Royal Potato Family)
The Mynabirds (Laura Burhenn, formerly of Georgie James) – What We Lose in the Fire We Gain in the Flood (features members of Bright Eyes, Azure Ray, These United States, more; Saddle Creek)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Numbers Don’t Lie“
Sonoi – Sonoi (Low Transit Industries)
The Wave Pictures – If You Leave It Alone and Instant Coffee Baby (double CD; Moshi Moshi)
MAY
James Apollo – The Days (TBA)
The Law – A Measure of Wealth (TBA)
Piebald – Piebald: First Ten Years – Volume 2 (two CDs; Rise)
We All Want To – TBA (Low Transit Industries)
MAY 4
Free Energy – Stuck on Nothing (digital version dropped March 6; produced by DFA’s James Murphy; Astralwerks/DFA)
The New Pornographers – Together (features full eight-person lineup, plus appearances by members of Okkervil River, Beirut, St. Vincent and more; Matador)
Portal – Lurker at the Threshold (EP, Chrome Leaf)
The Shondes – My Dear One (Fanatic)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “My Dear One“
Soulfly – Omen (features Dillinger Escape Plan’s Greg Puciato and Prong’s Tommy Victor; Roadrunner)
Paul Weller – Wake Up the Nation (Yep Roc)
MAY 6
Kim Salmon & the Surrealists – Grand Unifying Theory (Low Transit Industries)
MAY 18
Kleenex/Liliput – Liliput (reissue; four LPs; Kill Rock Stars)
Various artists – Sing Me to Sleep (features Sigur Rós, Stars, Telekinesis, more; all proceeds go to The Valerie Fund; American Laundromat)
JUNE
Piebald – Piebald: First Ten Years – Volume 3 (two CDs; Rise)
The Super Wolfgang – TBA (Low Transit Industries)
JUNE 8
The Constellations – Southern Gothic (features Cee-Lo and Asher Roth; includes tribute to Tom Waits; Virgin)
• MP3 download: “Setback” (e-mail required)
JULY
Krieg – The Isolationist (Candlelight)
SEPTEMBER 7
The Thermals – TBA (produced by Death Cab for Cutie’s Chris Walla; Kill Rock Stars)
OCTOBER
Kataklysm – Heaven’s Venom (Nuclear Blast)
♥♥♥ = the Bad Penny recommends
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Don’t want to download all the above MP3? Go here for the Bad Penny’s choice cuts.
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Already out:
FEBRUARY 2
Aderlating/Nekrasov – Aderlating/Nekrasov (split LP limited to 300 copies; Chrome Leaf)
The Album Leaf – A Chorus of Storytellers (available on CD and LP; mixed by Sigur Rós’ Birgir Jón Birgisson; Sub Pop)
• Bad Penny album review
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Falling From the Sun“
James Apollo – How Hard a Heart of Gold Can Be (EP; TBA)
Bob Blank – The Blank Generation: Blank Tapes NYC 1975-1985 (includes an unreleased mix; Strut)
Bleed Electric – “The Last Night of 1989″/”XII Special Weapons and Tactics” (single; Altsounds.com)
Charred Walls of the Damned (Ripper Owens, producer Jason Suecof, and ex-Death/Iced Earth bassist Steve Digiorgio and drummer Richard Christy ) – Charred Walls of the Damned (digipak; comes with making-of bonus DVD; limited signed copies available with pre-order; Metal Blade)
• album stream appearing on NoiseCreep.com from 1.25-2.1
Creature With the Atom Brain – Transylvania (The End)
Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele – The Good Feeling Music of Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele (Paw Tracks)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Meet Me in the Garden“
Droids Attack – Must Destroy (Crustacean)
Footstone – Lippy (digital-only reissue; Dromedary)
The Heligoats (Chris Otepka of Troubled Hubble) – Goodness Gracious (Greyday)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Fish Sticks“
King of Prussia – The Time of Great Forgetting (digital only; Kindercore)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Waitin’ for Something“
The Knife (with Mt. Sims and Planningtorock) – Tomorrow, in a Year (opera about Charles Darwin; digital version only; CD hits stores March 9; Mute)
Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba – I Speak Fula (CD release; digital version dropped in December; Sub Pop/ Next Ambiance)
Light This City – The Hero Cycle (reissue; Prosthetic)
Julia Nunes – I Think You Know (Rude Butter)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “I Think You Know“
Oy – First Box, Then Walk (Creaked)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Snake“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Snake (Sutekh ‘Acid in My Bed’ Mix)“
Pierced Arrows – Descending Shadows (Vice)
• Brooklyn Vegan MP3 download: “Let It Rain“
Priestess – Prior to the Fire (Tee Pee)
• album stream
• Brooklyn Vegan MP3 download: “Raccoon Eyes“
• Spin.com MP3 download: “Ladykiller“
Salvador Santana (son of Carlos Santana) – Keyboard City (features collaborations with GZA, Money Mark and Del the Funky Homosapien; Quannum/ Various Music)
Shout Out Louds – “Fall Hard” (digital single; Merge)
The Soft Pack – The Soft Pack (Kemado)
These New Puritans – Hidden (Domino)
Through the Eyes of the Dead – Skepsis (Century Media)
Toro y Moi – Causers of This (Carpark)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Blessa“
Various artists – “Crazy Heart” soundtrack (deluxe edition; with new songs from Jeff Bridges and classic cuts from the Louvin Brothers, Waylon Jennings and more; co-produced by T Bone Burnett; New West)
Various artists – Next Stop … Soweto: Township Sounds From The Golden Age of Mbaqanga (Strut)
JANUARY 29
Dark Age – Acedia (AFM)
Mob Rules – Radical Peace (AFM)
Nostradameus – Illusion’s Parade (AFM)
While Heaven Wept – Sorrow Of The Angels and Of Empires Forlorn (reissues of out-of-print CDs; limited to 1,000 numbered copies; )
JANUARY 27
I’m From Barcelona – 27 Songs from Barcelona (one song per day available for free starting today at I’mFromBarcelona.com; album, inspired by Kiss’ simultaneous solo album releases in 1978, features one solo song from every member of the band; also available as triple vinyl; Mute)
JANUARY 26
Absu – Absu (deluxe edition with bonus live DVD; Candlelight)
AFCGT (A Frames and Climax Golden Twins) – AFCGT (Sub Pop)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Two Legged Dog“
Animal Collective – Campfire Songs (reissue; Paw Tracks)
Armageddon (featuring Arch Enemy guitarist Chris Amott) – Embrace the Mystery and Three (two-CD
reissue sets with bonus material; original releases previously available in Japan only; Century Media)
Kevin Barker (of Vetiver) – You and Me (features Joanna Newsom, Wilco’s Pat Sansone and more; Gnomonsong)
• Bad Penny album review
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “You & Me“
Beach House – Teen Dream (Sub Pop)
• Bad Penny album review
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Norway“
Thavius Beck – Dialogue (Mush)
The Black Belles – “What Can I Do”/”Lies” (single; Third Man)
David Bowie - A Reality Tour (2003 concert recordings; two CDs; ISO/Columbia/Legacy)
• Bad Penny interview: “David Bowie Faces Reality“
• Bad Penny interview transcript: “David Bowie Transcript, 7.9.03: ‘I Am The Man Who Found Velvet Underground!’ “
Boy Genius – Staggering (self-released)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Ramona Saves the Day“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Blame Love“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Old New England“
Basia Bulat – Heart of My Own (Rough Trade)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Gold Rush“
♥♥♥ Cars and Trains – The Roots, the Remix (Fake Four Inc.)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Some Lonesome Street Corner (USF Remix)“
• FensePost MP3 download: “Intimidated by Silence“
Cave In – Planets of Old (CD EP and DVD; 12-inch came out last year; Hydra Head)
• Bad Penny interview: “Cave In: ‘The Longer We’re Around, The More People Don’t Like Us’ “
• Bad Penny album review
• album stream
• Boston Phoenix DVD clip: “Juggernaut“
Ceremony – “Someday” (7-inch single limited to 500 copies; Killer Pimp)
Citay – Dream Get Together (produced by the Fucking Champs’ Tim Green; Dead Oceans)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Mirror Kisses“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Careful With That Hat“
City Light – Burned Out Bright (self-released)
Clogs (features Bryce Dessner of the National) – Veil Waltz (EP; digital only; Brassland)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Three-Two“
Dream Evil – In the Night (Century Media)
GDP – Realistic Expectations (Division East/ Say-10)
• Fuse MP3 download: “Butter Scripts“
Gigi – Maintenant (Tomlab)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “The Old Graveyard (Featuring Karl Blau)“
Gorillaz featuring Mos Def and Bobby Womack – “Stylo” (digital single; Parlophone)
Eat Skull – “Jerusalem Mall” (single; Woodsist)
• Pitchfork MP3 download: “Don’t Leave Me on the Speaker“
Evacuate Chicago (features former members of Psychostick) – Veracity (Rock Ridge)
Joe Firstman – El Porto (Rock Ridge)
Elizabeth Fraser – Moses (12-inch EP; already available on iTunes; previously available overseas; all proceeds go to the family of Echo and the Bunnymen’s Jake Drake-Brockman, who passed away tragically in September; Rough Trade)
Fredrik – Trilogi (The Kora)
Free Energy – Stuck on Nothing (Astralwerks/DFA)
♥♥♥ Fucked Up – Couple Tracks (compilation of singles from 2002-2009; Matador)
GDP – Realistic Expectations (Division East)
Harvey Milk – Harvey Milk (Hydra Head)
• album stream
Home – Home XVII (Brah)
Ihsahn (ex-Emperor vocalist) – After (Candlelight)
Wanda Jackson – “You Know I’m No Good”/”Shakin’ All Over” (covers of songs by Amy Winehouse, and Johnny Kidd and the Pirates; single; produced by Jack White; Third Man)
The Little Death – The Little Death (brick-and-mortar version; currently available on TheLittleDeath.com; self-released)
Loney Dear – Dear John (Polyvinyl)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Airport Surroundings“
Los Campesinos! – Romance Is Boring (Arts & Crafts)
Robert A.A. Lowe & Rose Lazar – Eclipses (extended version of 2008’s Gyromancy; limited-edition double LP; comes with poster; Thrill Jockey)
Manimal – The Darkest Room (AFM)
Mnemic – Sons of the System (includes remix not features on European release; iTunes has bonus track; Nuclear Blast)
Mondo Drag – New Rituals (available as a CD, digital or vinyl limited to 500 copies; Alive Naturalsound)
• Amazon (free) MP3 download: “Light as a Feather“
My Brightest Diamond – Shark Remixes (double-CD limited to 1,500 numbered and signed copies; Asthmatic Kitty)
Native – Wrestling Moves (Sargent House)
• album stream
Scout Niblett – The Calcination of Scout Niblett (Drag City)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “The Calcination of Scout Niblett“
Nocando – Jimmy the Lock (Alpha Pup)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Hurry Up and Wait“
♥♥♥ Oh No Ono – Eggs (Friendly Fire)
• Bad Penny album review
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Helplessly Young“
Oy – “Snake” (single with four remixes; Creaked)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Snake (Sutekh ‘Acid in My Bed’ Mix)“
Patrick & Eugene – Altogether Now (Birds Bees Flowers Trees) (Tummy Touch Music Group)
• Bad Penny album review
• YouTube clip: “The Birds and the Bees” music video
• YouTube clip: “Don’t Stop” music video
• YouTube clip: “Bet You Look Good” music video
Pit Er Pat – The Flexible Entertainer (Thrill Jockey)
Retribution Gospel Choir – 2 (Sub Pop)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Hide It Away“
Lucy Schwartz – Help Me! Help Me! (EP; co-produced by Mitchell Froom; TBA)
The Silent League – … But You’ve Always Been the Caretaker (comes with bonus disc that features remixes, a cover of Alicia Keys’ “No One” and more; Something in Construction)
• Pitchfork MP3 download: “Yours Truly, 2095“
Slow Six – Tomorrow Becomes You (Western Vinyl)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “The Night You Left New York“
Soundpool – “But It’s So” (7-inch single; Killer Pimp)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “But It’s So“
Taking Dawn – Time to Burn (Roadrunner)
J. Tillman – “Wild Honey Never Stolen” (limited-edition 7-inch; Western Vinyl)
• Relix stream: “Wild Honey Never Stolen“
• Relix live session
VoicesVoices – Origins (Manimal Vinyl)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Flulyk Visions (Radio Edit)“
• Fader MP3 download: “Origins“
Various artists – Joan of Arc Presents: Don’t Mind Control (limited-edition compilation featuring 18 songs by JoA collaborators including Owen, Euphone and Cale Parks; Polyvinyl)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Friend in Common“
JANUARY 25
Aspera – Ripples (InsideOutMusic)
Broken Links – Resisting Movement and the Almost Advisory (EP; self-released)
Cult of Luna – Cult of Luna and The Beyond (limited-edition double-gatefold vinyl; Earache)
Jaga Jazzist – One Armed Bandit (Ninja Tune)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “One Armed Bandit” (e-mail required)
♥♥♥ Shining – Blackjazz (Indie Recordings/ The End)
• Bad Penny album review
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Fisheye (Edit)“
The Victorian English Gentlemens Club – “Bored in Belgium” (single; available as a download or 7-inch; This Is Fake DIY)
• song stream: “Bored in Belgium“
JANUARY 19
Bigbang – Edendale (already available outside U.S.; Oglio)
Cold War Kids – Behave Yourself (EP; Downtown)
Convulse – World Without God (reissue; Relapse)
Adrian Crowley – Season of the Sparks (Chemikal Underground)
Devolved – Calculated (Unique Leader)
♥♥♥ Dinowalrus – % (Kanine)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Electric Car, Gas Guitar“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Bead“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Nuke Duke ‘Em (Mae Shi Remix)“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Nuke Duke ‘Em“
Editors – In This Light and on This Evening (Fader)
Eels – End Times (Vagrant)
El May – El May (500 hand-screened copies available at ElMayForever.com; TBA)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Don’t You” (featuring Nada Surf’s Matthew Caws and the Blow’s Khaela Maricich)
The Gilded Palace of Sin – You Break Our Hearts, We’ll Tear Yours Out (Central Control)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Nautilus (Drumxxxt Remix)”
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Rosa Salvaje (edit)“
• YouTube clip: “Rosa Salvaje” music video
• YouTube clip: “Rose Salvaje” live
• YouTube clip: “Bones of the Saints” live
• YouTube clip: “Mean Old Jack” live
Gobotron (Manchester Orchestra guitarist Robert McDowell) – On Your Mark, Get Set … (digital release; Favorite Gentlemen)
Zoey Van Goey – The Cage Was Unlocked All Along (Chemikal Underground)
Good Shoes – No Hope, No Future (digital version comes out January 26; Brille)
• MP3 download: “Under Control” (e-mail required)
Johnny Action Figure – Good Eye (self-release)
Dawn Landes – Sweet Heart Rodeo (Cooking Vinyl)
• Stereogum MP3 download: “Young Girl“
Lindstrøm with Christabelle – Real Life Is No Cool (Smalltown Supersound)
Major Stars – Return to Form (Drag City)
MillionYoung – Be So True (EP; Arcade Sound Ltd)
• MP3 download: Sunndreamm EP (e-mail required)
My Own Grave – Unleash (reissue; comes with Progression Through Deterioration demo from 2004, and covers of Slayer’s “War Ensemble” and Krabathor’s “Orthodox”; Pulverised)
Scout Niblett – The Calcination of Scout Niblett (Drag City)
Puerto Rico Flowers – 4 (12-inch EP; Fan Death)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Let’s Make Friends“
The Red Krayola with Art & Language – Five American Portraits (Drag City)
RJD2 – The Colossus (RJ’s Electrical Connections)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Games You Can Win (featuring Kenna)“
Ruby Isle – Night Shot: The Remixes (Kindercore)
Six Feet Under – Graveyard Classics 3 (Metal Blade)
Sons of Azrael – Scouting the Boneyard (Metal Blade)
Spoon – Transference (Merge)
Cortney Tidwell – Boys (Removador Recordings and Solutions)
Valkyrja – Contamination (Metal Blade)
Virulence – If This Isn’t a Dream … 1985-1989 (remastered-CD anthology also featuring demos, live recordings, more; Southern Lord)
Vulture Whale – Bamboo You (EP; physical release; Skybucket)
• MP3 download: digital version of album (e-mail required)
Various artists – Keb Darge & Paul Weller Present: Lost & Found Real R’N'B & Soul (BBE)
Various artists – “Crazy Heart” soundtrack (with new songs from Jeff Bridges and classic cuts from the Louvin Brothers, Waylon Jennings and more; co-produced by T Bone Burnett; deluxe edition due February 2; New West)
JANUARY 15
Mnemic – Sons of the System (Nuclear Blast)
• album stream (expires 1.15)
• Rage – “Into the Light”/”Purified” (single; Nuclear Blast)
JANUARY 12
Abigail Williams – In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns (deluxe edition with five bonus tracks; Candlelight)
Active Child – “She Was a Vision” (7-inch single; U.K. only; Transparent)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “She Was a Vision“
Tony Allen – Secret Agent (World Circuit/ Nonesuch)
Olöf Arnalds – Við og Við (One Little Indian)
• “Dig for Fire” TV documentary, featured on enhanced-CD version of album
• video of Arnalds covering “That Lucky Old Sun,” popularized by Johnny Cash
At Vance (features members of Thunderstone and Axxis) – Ride the Sky (includes a cover of Free’s “Wishing Well”; AFM)
Athlete – Black Swan (deluxe edition, featuring bonus CD, documentary and downloads; only available at Athlete-US.com; proper release arrives 3.2; produced by Tom Rothrock; Original Signal Recordings)
Blockhead – The Music Scene (Ninja Tune)
• Fader MP3 download: “Which One of You Jerks Drank My Arnold Palmer“
Jason Boesel (Bright Eyes and Rilo Kiley drummer) – Hustler’s Son (features members of Band of Horses, the Heartbreakers and Mystic Valley Band; Team Love)
• AOL album stream (expires 1.17.10)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “French Kissing“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Hand of God“
• Daytrotter Session (includes three unreleased and unplugged versions of Hustler’s Son songs)
Billy Bragg – Life’s a Riot with Spy vs. Spy; Brewing Up With Billy Bragg; Talking With the Taxman About Poetry; Workers Playtime; Don’t Try This at Home; William Bloke; England, Half English; Reaching to the Converted; The Internationale/Live & Dubious EP; and Must I Paint You a Picture?: The Essential Billy Bragg (digital reissues; bonus tracks and B-sides included; Yep Roc)
Brainstorm – Memorial Roots (AFM)
Nick Cave and Warren Ellis – “The Road” soundtrack (CD; digital version dropped in November; Mute)
• Bad Penny interview: “Nick Cave: Saint Nicholas And The Nocturnal Muse“
Claustrofobia – I See Red (Candlelight)
Elvis Costello and the Attractions – Live at Hollywood High (reissue with 11 previously unreleased songs; Hip-O/UMe)
Exodus – “Shovel Headed Tour Machine: Live at Wacken & Other Assorted Atrocities” (two DVDs, one CD; Nuclear Blast)
• trailer
• live-in-studio stream
T-Model Ford – The Ladies Man (digital version and CD; also available as an orange vinyl limited to 500 copies; Alive Naturalsound)
Glass Rock – Tall Firs Meet Soft Location LP (includes download card; Ecstatic Peace)
Ingested – Surpassing the Boundaries of Human Suffering (Candlelight)
Norah Jones – Chasing Pirates Remix EP (features Mike D, Adrock, Santigold, Beck and more; digital and vinyl only; Blue Note)
Miles Kurosky (ex-Beulah singer) – TBA (EP; available exclusively on iTunes; Majordomo/ Shout! Factory)
The Lost Fingers – Lost in the 80s (covers album featuring “Billie Jean,” “Tainted Love” and more; Tandem/Distribution Select)
The Morning Benders – “Promises” (iTunes single; available as 7-inch on February 23; Rough Trade)
OK Go – Of the Blue Colour of the Sky (produced by David Fridmann; Capitol)
Paradox (with new guitarist Gus Drax of Biomechanical) – Riot Squad (AFM)
Rauelsson – La Siembra, la Espera y la Cosecha (180g vinyl; Hush)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Debutantes“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “El Río de los Nudos“
• free Debutantes EP here (suggested donation)
Charles Rumback and Charles Gorzcynski – A Square White Lie (482)
The Rural Alberta Advantage – “Drain the Blood” (7-inch vinyl and digital single; Saddle Creek)
The Scruffs – Conquest (Scruffsville)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Conquer Me“
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “Treasure Girls“
Seven Saturdays (formerly Firs) – Seven Saturdays (EP; self-released)
• Stereogum MP3 download: “Secret Things“
Shlohmo – Shlomoshun Deluxe (FoF Music)
• Bad Penny MP3 download: “7am“
• SoundCloud MP3 download: “Hot Boxing the Cockpit“
Vampire Weekend – Contra (XL)
• Bad Penny album review
Neil Young – Dreamin’ Man (live version of Harvest Moon; vinyl version only; already available in other formats; Reprise)
JANUARY 10
Various artists – Dengue Fever Presents Electric Cambodia (available on CD and vinyl; proceeds go to Cambodian Living Arts; Minky)
JANUARY 5
♥♥♥ Baroness – Blue Record (deluxe gatefold three-LP and ultimate gatefold three-LP reissue; Relapse)
Buzzov*en – Violence From the Vault (digipak reissue; Relapse)
Ben Davis – Charge It Up! (Lovitt)
Memoryhouse – To the Lighthouse (EP; available for free download here; Arcade Sound Ltd.)
The Octagon – Warm Love and Cool Dreams Forever (Serious Business)
Toxic Holocaust – Evil Never Dies and Hell on Earth (reissues; Relapse)
DECEMBER 29
The Flaming Lips and Stardeath and White Dwarfs with Henry Rollins and Peaches – The Dark Side of the Moon (Warner Bros.)
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If you have additions, subtractions and/or corrections to share, drop me a holler. And please don’t reproduce this without asking first. It took, like, a long time to make. -Kurt Orzeck
The Truth
Permohonan maaf saya beberapa waktu lalu ternyata menimbulkan reaksi yang beragam. Ada yang pro, namun lebih banyak yang kontra :) Intinya, saya dianggap tidak transparan karena tidak menjelaskan duduk permasalahannya di tulisan tersebut. Bahkan ada yang menuduh saya sengaja menutup-nutupi dan berusaha lari dari tanggung jawab. Saya memang sengaja mendiamkan saja dugaan-dugaan tersebut karena bagi saya ada yang lebih penting daripada sekedar memberikan klarifikasi, yaitu menyelesaikan masalah (dan calon masalah) yang ada itu sendiri.
Alasan lain adalah saya sudah pernah secara langsung menjelaskan permasalahan yang ada kepada orang-orang yang berhubungan dengan masalah tersebut sekitar 1.5 bulan lalu melalui live conference. Sehingga kurang pas aja kalau tiba-tiba saya bercerita panjang lebar di blog ini tentang suatu masalah kepada orang-orang yang tidak berhubungan langsung. Ditambah lagi, masalah tersebut berkaitan dengan suatu layanan yang dari awal tidak dibuka untuk umum (hanya bagi member CosaAranda.Biz saja), sehingga lingkup permasalahannya (termasuk orang-orang yang terlibat) sangat jelas.
Nah, pada saat kebanyakan kemudian sibuk mengartikan lain tindakan yang saya pilih, saya juga sibuk bergerilya menyelesaikan masalah tersebut. Baik dengan yang sudah terlanjur merasakan pahitnya, maupun dengan yang merasa sama sekali tidak ada masalah.
Namun gelombang reaksi yang makin keras dari dunia blogosfer menimbulkan banyak saran kepada saya untuk segera menjelaskan apa yang sebenarnya terjadi. Termasuk dari mas Zalukhu sendiri, sebagai salah satu yang merasakan pahitnya masalah yang terjadi. Selain itu, juga sudah mulai ada oknum-oknum yang sengaja memanfaatkan keadaan ini untuk lebih memanaskan situasi dan mengadu domba saya, mas Zalukhu, dan juga blogger-blogger yang lain.
Lalu, sebenarnya masalah apa sih yang terjadi?
Begini. Beberapa bulan lalu, saya berencana untuk membuka sebuah layanan web hosting yang murah tapi fitur berlimpah. Karena tidak ingin biaya yang dibebankan kepada pengguna nantinya membengkak, saya memilih untuk menggunakan server hosting (dedicated) yang harganya (sangat) terjangkau (dapetnya di forum DigitalPoint). Dan karena saya juga ingin belajar tentang sistem manajemen web hosting, maka saya memilih untuk tidak memperkerjakan admin dan mencoba menangani sendiri server hosting tersebut.
Pada awalnya semua lancar. Semua teman-teman dari CosaAranda.Biz yang mencoba server tersebut memberikan 4 acungan jempol atas perfomancenya. Saya pun kemudian membuka pendaftaran akun hosting tersebut khusus untuk member CosaAranda.Biz saja.
Masalah mulai timbul di bulan berikutnya.
Pemilik server tiba-tiba mematikan banyak fitur tanpa pemberitahuan terlebih dahulu. Termasuk hak untuk memasang situs file sharing, situs bokep, dan sebagainya. Padahal saat membeli, keberadaan fitur-fitur tersebut termasuk salah satu pertimbangan saya, dan saya juga terlanjur memposisikan layanan web hosting saya sebagai web hosting yang bersahabat dengan situs file sharing.
Ini disusul dengan kasus ter-suspend-nya akun Paypal saya yang tidak hanya mengakibatkan hilangnya lisensi atas hak sewa program billing web hosting yang saya gunakan, namun juga mengacaukan proses update CosaAranda.Biz dan hancurnya layanan money exchange saya.
Setelah itu semuanya seperti mimpi buruk.
Server hosting yang terus-menerus di DDOS. Pihak pemilik server yang justru mempersulit proses migrasi. Dan sebagainya. Dan sebagainya.
Satu dua pelanggan mulai gerah dan mempertanyakan kondisi server web hosting tersebut. Di sini kembali terjadi keanehan karena hampir setiap ada yang komplain, setelah saya cek ternyata gak ada masalah. Kesalahan saya, karena saya kekurangan waktu, saya tidak melakukan cross-check dengan pelanggan yang bertanya dan mengasumsikan bahwa masalah yang ada sudah teratasi.
Kenyataannya memang ada beberapa akun hosting di server tersebut yang tidak mengalami masalah sama sekali. Sayangnya itu hanya sebagian kecil saja.
Kisah selanjutnya mungkin sudah banyak yang tahu. Berita tentang layanan ini mencuat dan menjadi konsumsi publik. Dan bola pun bergulir sampai menyerempet hal-hal yang sama sekali tidak berhubungan. Saya sendiri sampai kagum melihat perkembangannya :)
Kembali ke penjelasan di awal tulisan, saat ini saya sudah berusaha menyelesaikan segala urusan yang berhubungan dengan layanan web hosting tersebut. Memang 1.5 bulan lalu saya sudah memberikan penjelasan, dengan sedikit berharap bahwa masalah-masalah teknis yang ada pada server tersebut bisa segera teratasi. Namun kenyataannya tidak. Oleh karena pengembalian dana (refund) adalah jalan satu-satunya. Dan hingga saat artikel ini ditulis, sudah 90% pengguna layanan web hosting yang saya kembalikan dananya. Sisanya adalah mereka-mereka yang belum menjawab / belum menanggapi email tawaran refund yang saya kirimkan.
Saya tahu bahwa refund dan permohonan maaf tidak akan mengembalikan kerugian yang (mungkin) dialami oleh pengguna layanan web hosting yang saya miliki tersebut, namun semua yang terjadi adalah di luar kehendak dan kontrol saya, sehingga sekali lagi hanya dua hal itu yang bisa saya berikan.
Semoga penjelasan ini cukup jelas dan dapat menghentikan segala prasangka yang ada. Termasuk mengakhiri semua konflik yang ada dan mengembalikan suasana dunia blogosphere kita kembali menjadi damai dan tentram.
Oh iya, berhubung banyak yang menyinggung soal CosaAranda.Biz, perlu saya informasikan bahwa semua permasalahan yang berhubungan dengan layanan tersebut (yang disebabkan oleh disuspendnya akun Paypal saya) sudah pernah saya jelaskan dalam sebuah sesi live conference bagi seluruh anggota CosaAranda.Biz. Dalam pertemuan tersebut juga sudah didiskusikan alternatif solusi terbaik, paling tidak hingga akun Paypal saya dikembalikan.
Yang jelas, dalam kondisi seluruh dana CosaAranda.Biz tidak di tangan saya (semua ada di dalam akun Paypal saya yang tersuspend) dan sekarang layanan tersebut saya jalankan murni dengan menggunakan dana pribadi, CosaAranda.Biz sudah aktif kembali dan tidak pernah vakum dalam memberikan produk yang berhubungan dengan bisnis internet (meskipun untuk sementara waktu jumlah dan jenis produknya disesuaikan dengan kondisi keuangan pribadi saya :) ). Forum diskusi juga sudah kembali dibuka dan rencana pemberian video tutorial / workshop akan segera diimplementasikan.
Akhir kata, semoga penjelasan ini bisa menjadi akhir dari sebuah konflik yang sempat terjadi dan bukan menjadi pemicu dari konflik yang baru :)
