Constellation Records get Fragile with new 3LP sets

By Harold Shueberg on

Constellation Records get Fragile with new 3LP sets http://www.tinymixtapes.com/sites/default/files/MF01CDcover573.jpg

If I were forced (or simply asked) to list record labels that I consider to be the most consistent and loyal to the craft that they represent, along with an all-around pleasing aesthetic and a back catalog that has true staying power, Constellation would surely be placed toward the top of that list. Being one of the top-notch labels out there, the Canadian mainstay has and always will throw out excellent records, never with a singular distinct sound but always interesting to the ear and head.

That doesn’t change with the next release, or should I say releases? Musique Fragile, a running compilation of three albums from three different artists, shows the label expanding into a whole different territory of physical media. The set features full-length albums from Les Momies De Palerme, Nick Kuepfer, and Khôra, all nestled into one visually stimulating package that can be snagged on 180-gram vinyl or CD. All you package-heads are probably gonna want to swing for the vinyl run in order to grab the three 12-inch screen-printed jackets for each release that are all delicately housed in a cardboard sleeve. If it sounds fancy, it’s because it probably is. Oh, and did I also mention that this is going to be a continuing series? Well now I did.

Treat your senses to some bliss by pre-ordering yourself a copy of Musique Fragile Vol. 1. Check out a track too at the Chocolate Grinder.

• Constellation: http://cstrecords.com

Sorry all you fans of medical paraphernaila, but Clinic have canceled their upcoming UK tour

By Kid Midnight on Oct 21 2010

Apparently Clinic didn’t take the advice offered by their own name and, due to “ill health,” have been forced to cancel their upcoming UK tour that was set to start today. I hate it when I get such late notice!

In a press release, the band apologized for the inconvenience and said that the tour, in support of the band’s recently released album on Domino, Bubblegum, would be rescheduled and that refunds could be found at “the point of purchase,” but they didn’t mention what to do when your “point of purchase” was your second cousin Wesley who only sold the tickets because he got sentenced to jail-time. Thanks a lot for ruining my birthday, Clinic. Oh, and get well soon, I guess.

Canceled dates:

10.21.10 - Cardiff, UK - Swan Festival Club
10.22.10 - Manchester, UK - Deaf Institute
10.23.10 - Liverpool, UK - Static Gallery
10.25.10 - Stockton-On-Tees, UK - Georgian Theatre
10.26.10 - Glasgow, UK - Stereo
10.27.10 - Nottingham, UK - The Bodega
10.28.10 - London, UK - Village Underground
10.29.10 - Leeds, UK - The Cockpit

• Clinic: http://www.clinicvoot.org
• Domino: http://www.dominorecordco.com

Lipitor outsold the entire US recording industry in 2009; I guess people care more about their high cholesterol than listening to some sweet tunes

By Annapocalypse on Oct 21 2010

According to Lipitor’s website, the drug “is the #1 prescribed branded cholesterol-lowering medicine in the world.” So if you just read that sentence with a Five Guys bacon cheeseburger in one hand and a large chocolate shake in the other, it may be time to stop buying music and start spending money on getting yourself in shape. But, for all the rest of you who, according to Digital Music News, chose to spend 2009 lowering your cholesterol instead of buying music… really? Come on, your cholesterol isn’t going anywhere, but that limited-edition pressing of so and so’s new album pressed on neon green vinyl is selling out faster than you can say “extra mayo, please.” In all seriousness, it’s a good thing that Americans are starting to be more health-conscious. If only the recording industry were as conscious about how exactly consumers “purchase” their music these days, then perhaps they wouldn’t be in this mess.

• Lipitor: http://www.lipitor.com

RIP: Ari Up of The Slits

By Shane Mack on Oct 20 2010

From John Lydon’s website:

John and Nora have asked us to let everyone know that Nora’s daughter Arianna (aka Ari-Up) died today (Wednesday, October 20th) after a serious illness. She will be sadly missed.

Everyone at JohnLydon.com and PiLofficial.Com would like to pass on their heartfelt condolences to John, Nora and family.

• The Slits: http://www.myspace.com/theslits

RIP: Marion Brown, avant-garde jazz saxophonist

By Shane Mack on Oct 20 2010

From The Washington Post:

Avant-garde jazz saxophonist and ethnomusicologist Marion Brown passed away recently. He performed on John Coltrane’s album “Ascension” and has a deep, forward-thinking discography of his own. Brown was also a professor at schools including Amherst and Brandeis.

• Marion Brown: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marion_Brown

Message from the law: New Sic Alps album Napa Asylum on Drag City in January

By Erika H on Oct 20 2010

You may have noticed that you haven’t heard much from Sic Alps this past year. Last December, they were on top of the world — after releasing a 7-inch on Slumberland in early fall, they welcomed the holiday season on a tour alongside Magik Markers (solving the question of X-Mas gifts with a noisy 12-inch split on Yik Yak). Better yet, they began 2010 with a handful of dates supporting Sonic Youth. And then they were never heard from again… (except some shows scattered here and there since the end of their European tour in June).

But lo! These boys aren’t in your fancy corporate studio, but they are back! Drag City recently made the victorious announcement of a forthcoming LP from Sic Alps, entitled Napa Asylum. As per usual, the new tracks were recorded in a basement on an 8-track, and according to the band, detail “re-incarnation, magic, and schizophrenia” — themes always welcome from the dank underground of a bandmate’s house. The illustrious follow-up to U.S. EZ is set for release January 25. Early reports sound promising.

• Sic Alps: http://sicalps.com
• Drag City: http://www.dragcity.com

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