MusicRadar album round-up: September 2011
Welcome to the new-look MusicRadar album round-up. From now-on we'll be bringing you a rundown of even more musician-friendly album releases, plus the best reissues, boxsets and compilations.
Click through the next few slides to check out what we're excited about in September. And don't forget to let us know what you're listening to right now.
Plus, don't forget to check out our in-depth track-by-track reviews each month - read our recent previews of Dream Theater's A Dramatic Turn Of Events, Chickenfoot III and Mastadon's The Hunter.
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Guitar, bass & drum-related albums
Pick of the month:
Laura Marling - A Creature I Don’t Know - 12 September (Virgin)
Laura Marling’s career is makes for a pleasing success story - seemingly without the need for flashy PR campaigns or massive hits she’s picked up two Mercury nominations and a Brit award. Her third album sees her expanding her guitar playing style to pick up on various folk and jazz influences.
Listen: Laura Marling - Sophia
Four more to check out:
St Vincent - Strange Mercy - 12 September (4AD)
St Vincent - aka Annie Erin Clark - is an American multi-instrumentalist singer/songwriter who has formerly played with The Polyphonic Spree, Sufjan Stevens and collaborated with Bon Iver. Strange Mercy, her third solo effort, is both her most immediate and most accomplished release so far.
Listen: St Vincent - Surgeon
The Rapture - In The Grace Of Your Love - 5 September (DFA)
The Rapture’s dance-punk classic House Of Jealous Lovers has been an indie-dancefloor mainstay ever since its release all the way back in 2003. Now the band return with their first album in five years.
Listen: The Rapture - In The Grace Of Your Love
Little Roy - Battle For Seattle - 5 September (Ark Recordings)
Jamaican reggae legend Little Roy releases an entire album of Nirvana covers. A little gimmicky perhaps, but pulled off with enough skill to go beyond sheer novelty value.
Listen: Little Roy - Come As You are
Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn Of Events - 12 September (Roadrunner Records)
The prog-metal behemoths return with their first release since the addition of new drummer Mike Magini - check out our track-by-track preview courtesy of guitarist John Petrucci to find out more, or our recent interview with keyboardist Jordan Rudess.
Listen: Dream Theater - On The Backs Of Angels
Tech & DJ-related albums
Pick of the month:
Balam Acab - Wander/Wonder - Out now (Tri Angle)
Wander/Wonder is the debut album from New York-based producer Balam Acab. The record is ten tracks of warm, atmospheric electronic music combining heavily-effected instrument samples, slowed-down hiphop beats and real-world samples. The whole thing is brilliantly produced with a very light touch and a unique style. Highly-recommended.
Listen: Balam Acab - Now Time
Four more to check out:
Björk - Biophilia - 27 September (One Little Indian)
The ever-eccentric Icelandic musician releases her first album in four years this month. Biophilia was in-part composed on an iPad, as is being released as an app containing interactive games and bonus material for each song.
Listen: Björk - Crystalline
Fabriclive 59: Four Tet - 19 September (Fabric)
Much-lauded electronic musician Four Tet heads up the latest Fabriclive release. He combines a mix of unappreciated and hard-to-find tracks, leftfield club hits and field recordings collected from the Fabric nightclub into a genuinely impressive mixtape. It also includes three unreleased Four Tet tracks - Locked, Fabric and Pyramid.
Listen: Four Tet - Locked
CANT - Dreams Come True - 12 September (Warp Records)
CANT is the solo project of Chris Taylor of excellent indie-folk band Grizzly Bear. The album see’s Taylor swap live instruments for electronic-orientated production, placing his lush vocals over tracks that sound more like classic Warp Records releases.
Listen: CANT - Answer
Terius Nash (aka The-Dream) - 1977 - Out now, free download
Under his usual recording name, The-Dream, Terius Nash is the man responsible for producing Rihanna’s Umbrella and Beyoncé’s Single Ladies. Needless-to-say he’s no small-fry producer. This album, released for free under his birth name to annoy his record company, sees him showing off his more introspective side. Stylistically it sounds like a cross between Prince and R Kelly, with thick retro synth sounds and interesting drum machine work. Plus it’s free.
Listen: Terius Nash - Wedding crasher
Reissues, special editions & compilations
Pick of the month:
Nirvana - Nevermind - 27 September (UMC)
Ok, so we’re just pointing out the obvious by telling you that Nevermind is great. And sure, much of the ‘unreleased’ material on this reissue set has been floating about for years. But without this album, much of the MusicRadar team would never have picked up a guitar, so we’ll never hear a bad word said about it.
Check-out the full tracklist for the new editions here.
Listen: Nirvana - Something In The Way (BBC Maida Vale session)
Four more to check out:
Jesus & Mary Chain - Psychocandy/Darklands - 19 September (Edsel/DMG)
The Scottish shoegaze icons first two albums are reissued this month, each complete with bonus discs of b-sides, demos and radio sessions and DVDs with live footage and TV appearances. Both still stand as properly-seminal albums of noisy, pedalboard-driven guitar music. Reissues of the band’s subsequent albums follow in the coming weeks.
Listen: Jesus & Mary Chain - Just Like Honey
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Trojan Records Story - Out now (Trojan Records/Universal)
Stalwart reggae, ska and dub label Trojan release this five-disc boxset with CDs covering the hits, artists, producers and labels that made up Trojan’s near-50-year history. Offers a pretty comprehensive look at reggae music’s impact on the UK, and many of the tracks included have never been available via CD before. The boxset also includes a 50-page book and other bonus material. Check the full list here.
Listen: Bob & Marcia - (To Be) Young, Gifted and Black
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Oh Brother Where Art Though? Soundtrack - Anniversary Edition - Out now (Universal)
Film soundtracks are so often nothing more than obvious cash-ins, so for one to be critically acclaimed enough to deserve a 10th anniversary deluxe reissue is rare treat. In fact, it’s no surprise that this album from the Coen Brothers’ 2001 movie is so loved - it was compiled by Americana icon T-Bone Burnett and features the likes of Alison Kraus, Ralph Stanley and Gillian Welch reinterpreting traditional American folk and blues songs. This deluxe edition is compiled by Burnett also, and includes unreleased tracks by the likes of John Hartford and Van Dyke Parks among others.
Listen: Alison Kraus - Down To The River To Pray
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Classic Rock Presents Chickenfoot III - 27 September (Future Publishing)
Our sister mag Classic Rock is bringing out the supergroup’s second album weeks before it arrives in record shops. The fan pack combines the album - complete with 3D packaging - with a 132-page mag packed with interviews and features about the band. Check out our exclusive track-by-track preview from Joe Satriani for an idea of what to expect.
Order Classic Rock Presents Chickenfoot III
Listen: Chickenfoot - Big Foot