New Music Releases: Wilco, Brian Eno, XTC, Hawkwind, More!

Our picks this week. Click the links to order from Amazon.

Wilco’s thirteenth studio album, Cousin, was recorded in the band’s legendary Chicago studio – The Loft – over a period of two years. The ten new tracks are written by band leader Jeff Tweedy and feature musical performances by the longtime lineup of Nels Cline, Mikael Jorgensen, Glenn Kotche, John Stirratt, Pat Sansone and, of course, Tweedy on lead vocals.

After a short detour back into their country-influenced roots via last year’s Cruel Country double album, Cousin sees Wilco back in their more familiar progressive and experimental rock territory. Tweedy’s singular songwriting voice is in full evidence, with lyrics weaving across a variety of topics – from the iconoclastic to the introspective.

Adding a unique and new element to the recording process was the attachment of Welsh singer/songwriter Cate Le Bon as producer – the first time an outsider has been actively involved in a Wilco recording session for more than ten years, since Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Le Bon brought her unique musical perspective to the band’s trademark sound and provided them with an inspiring new challenge to push their musical boundaries.

‘Metallic Spheres’ by The Orb and David Gilmour, the guitar and voice of Pink Floyd, has been reimagined and remixed as ‘Metallic Spheres In Colour.’ Of this rework, producer Youth says ‘The idea for Metallic Spheres In Colour, was that Alex Paterson (founder of The Orb) could have done more on the first version, and he didn't really have the opportunity because we had a philosophy of making the music like the Blade Runner soundtrack meets Wish You Were Here. So, I asked him why don't we remix it and make it like an Orb classic? And in doing that, it's almost like a completely different album.’

Limited CD + All region Blu-ray edition. Classic 1984 XTC album newly mixed (2023) by Steven Wilson in Stereo, 5. 1 Surround & Dolby Atmos Spatial Audio mixes as part of The Surround Sound Series. CD features the complete album newly mixed in stereo + three additional tracks. Blu-ray includes the newly mixed material as featured on CD in Hi-Res Stereo, 5. 1 Surround and Dolby Atmos + 2023 stereo out-takes & instrumental mixes in Hi-Res stereo. Blu-ray also includes the original album + additional tracks in Hi-Res stereo. The complete album & more also appear in demo form (16/48 stereo reflecting the source material).

Limited deluxe 10 CD + Blu-ray edition. Includes new mixes from the original 16-track tapes of the full concerts at Liverpool Stadium, Sunderland Locarno And Brixton Sundown. 

Includes a region free Blu Ray disc of a high resolution 5. 1 surround sound mix with complete versions of 'Brainstorm', 'Time We Left This World Today' And 'You Shouldn't Do That'. 

Also includes a reproduction of the rare space Ritual Poster format tour program. Also includes a 68-page illustrated book with new essay and a reproduction of the rare Space Ritual poster format tour program, making this boxed set the definitive release and this legendary album. 

Deluxe 50th anniversary edition of the British band's legendary live album Space Ritual. Recorded on the band's UK tour of December 1972, which followed the release of the band's studio album Doremi Fasol Latido.

The live show was a continuous performance linked by poetry recitation by Robert Calvert and was a complete audio-visual experience. Featuring the dancers Stacia, Miss Renee and Tony Carrera, the concerts also featured an elaborate light show by famed lighting designer Liquid Len. 

The Space Ritual tour followed the huge success of the 'Silver Machine' single (although the song did not feature in the live set) and three concerts were captured on tape by the Pye Records mobile unit. The resulting double album was adorned with memorable artwork by designer Barney Bubbles and was a Top Ten hit in the UK upon it's release in May 1973.

Vinyl LP pressing. This 1960 session falls historically between the astounding late-1959 work Charles Mingus did for Columbia Records and his slimmed-down pianoless quartet that made the classic Mingus at Antibes. Pre Bird and the Columbia material share some common elements, most obviously the large ensemble. Mingus devoted these sessions to his pre-1940s material and other works from the prebop era, and two of the best-played works are from Ellington's pen.

Stax Christmas brings together 12 holiday classics from the legendary Stax Records, with favorites by Otis Redding (Merry Christmas Baby), Isaac Hayes (The Mistletoe and Me), The Staple Singers (Who Took the Merry Out of Christmas), Albert King (Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin’) and more. Also included is a newly unearthed version of the classic “Blue Christmas” sung by Stax recording artist Carla Thomas.

Definitive seven CD box set including all of 2023 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees The Spinners' original Atlantic studio albums produced by the legendary Thom Bell. 

92 Tracks (Including 25 bonus tracks consisting of single edits, non-LP sides, and The Spinners' very first Atlantic Records session). 

Includes expanded editions of the albums The Spinners (1973), Mighty Love (1974), New And Improved (1974), Pick Of The Litter (1975), Happiness Is Being With The Spinners (1976), Yesterday, Today, And Tomorrow (1977), Spinners 8 (1977), and From Here To Eternally (1979). 

Key tracks include the Grammy-nominated chart-toppers 'I'll Be Around', 'Could It Be I'm Falling in Love', 'Then Came You' with Dionne Warwick, 'Mighty Love', and 'The Rubberband Man', as well as hits such as 'They Just Can't Stop It (The Games People Play)', 'One of a Kind (Love Affair)', 'Sadie', and 'Are You Ready for Love'. 

On this ultimate celebration of the Philadelphia soul greats, every album is produced by Thom Bell, and many tracks feature the original MFSB including Norman Harris, Ronnie Baker, The Trammps' Earl Young, Bobby Eli, and The Sweethearts of Sigma! 

Deluxe booklet includes a comprehensive essay by The Second Disc's Joe Marchese drawing on new and previously unpublished quotes from The Spinners' Henry Fambrough, The Spinners' road manager Steve Allen, Atlantic Records Artist Relations Director Barbara J. Harris, and the late, great Thom Bell.

In the captivating Netflix series Top Boy, Brian Eno's transcendent music serves as a vital companion, molding the narrative's essence with it's ethereal power. 

With a masterful touch, Eno's atmospheric compositions effortlessly transport us into the gritty world of crime, friendship, and survival in East London. From delicate ambience to pulsating beats, his sonic tapestry envelops every scene, elevating the storytelling and evoking a range of emotions. 

Eno's singular ability to capture the struggle, hope, and inner strength of the characters accentuates the raw authenticity of Top Boy, leaving an indelible mark on it's viewers. 

His haunting melodies and intricately crafted soundscapes symbolize the unyielding resilience amidst chaos, making Brian Eno's music an integral and unforgettable component of this groundbreaking series. 

The 2LP Top Boy is available as a limited edition of 4000 copies on crystal clear vinyl, including printed innersleeves.

Four CD box set celebrating the new post-Jam era and the mod scene as it progressed after their break up. 

92 tracks showing the scene as an underground network and an influence on the mainstream music scene. 

With rarities on CD for the first time including singles by Wipeout, The Playn Jayn and Steve Cradock's first band The Boys. When The Jam played their last gig at The Brighton Centre on December 11 1982, it seemed to some to signify the end of the mod revival that had blossomed in 1979/80. Not every band featured here labelled themselves mods but all the recordings featured here incorporate a mod influence or spirit. 

Disc 1 starts with Paul Weller's post Jam soul/jazz/pop collective The Style Council and ex Nine Below Zero singer/guitarist Dennis Greaves' soul/pop group The Truth, takes in undergound mod bands such as Small World and The Scene and bands blending mod with garage rock and psychedelia such as The Prisoners and The Playn Jayn. 

Disc 2 continues through to the end of the decade with the 1985 mod resurgence led by The Untouchables and Makin' Time, an imagined soundtrack theme by The James Taylor Quartet, Fine Young Cannibals taking Northern style soul into the charts and ending with the Inspiral Carpets and Stone Roses looking back to the 60s and bringing a new guise of Madchester mod. 

Disc 3 commences with Paul Weller's solo return in an era when Five Thirty and The Charlatans brought mod influences into the indie scene and bands on Eddie Piller's Acid Jazz label played modern music that retained the spirit of mod and it's links to soul and jazz. 

Disc 4 mixes cult 60s inspired bands such as The Aardvarks and The Clique with Ocean Colour Scene and Kula Shaker who took mod and psychedelia back into the charts and ends with Big Boss Man providing a timeless Hammond organ led club groove for the 21st Century.





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