We’ve picked up some new releases from other labels in the last week. I’ll post the full list a bit later, but for now, here’s a quick shout-out to a new CD-only release from Noble Task Records:

Garland of Hours – Lucidia

This is a 7-song release from Garland of Hours, fronted by Amy Domingues. Amy’s got a pretty interesting history as a working musician in DC (aside from just being one of the better people on planet mud-ball earth). Her work as a cellist is featured on quite a few of the records currently found in your collection, Fugazi, Faraquet, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Bob Mould, Jets to Brazil, Dead Meadow, and Mary Timony (I’m really just scratching the surface). She’s sort of the go-to person for cello work when people make records around here, but I’m always interested to hear her approach to song-writing. This is the 3rd Garland of Hours release, and as per usual, she continues her tradition of shaking things up with a rotating cast of musicians. For this one Amy recruited Stefan Bauschmid on drums, while Mary Timony plays guitar on 3 of the 7 songs.

Fans of our beloved Lungfish may want to check out song #6, “The Evidence.” Garland of Hours took it all the way back to Pass and Stow for their Lungfish cover.
(That being said, my jam on this record is the opening track: “Wive Me.” It’s the perfect opener – sets the tone for the whole album.)

Thanks for reading.

-Ryan

Trixie Films directors Brendan Canty (Fugazi) and Christoph Green are looking for backing via a Kickstarter campaign for their upcoming film, The Liberation -- a documentary about two students who are going through the culinary job training program at DC Central Kitchen.

"DC Central Kitchen, two blocks from the US Capitol building, and in the basement of one of the largest shelters in America, is a revolutionary culinary training program that actively goes out searching for the people that need their help the most. People who have hit rock bottom, and are truly ready to turn their lives around. Over 14 weeks, DC Central Kitchen teaches them how to get along with others, how to get along with themselves, and how to cut and cook, serve and cater, and ultimately gain access to the nicest restaurants in DC."

"Full employment is the goal of the program, but along the way there are plenty who don't make it. Drug tests, old habits and, self destruction are always the elephant in the room."

"Join us as we follow 2 or 3 people through this program. It will change the way you view your city."

"I know it has done so for us." --Brendan Canty and Christoph Green

Directors Christoph Green and Brendan Canty are the founders of Trixie Film (www.trixiefilm.com), a Washington DC based production company. They have produced a long list of music-related films for artists such as Pearl Jam, Death Cab for Cutie, The Decemberists, The Shins and Wilco. Most recently, they have released Water on the Road; Eddie Vedder Live (2011). In 2009 they released the award-winning film “Ashes of American Flags” which played in theaters across the United States and in Europe. Trixie also continues to produce the critically acclaimed Burn to Shine series which documents American local music scenes.

The Lungfish band as a singular entity continues its slumber. But members Daniel Higgs and Asa Osborne continue to record and perform, perhaps more than ever, both as solo performers and together in Skull Defekts. Higgs latest solo LP release, Beyond & Between, is now available via Barcelona and La Castanya records and is being distributed exclusively in the States by Dischord. The album features Higgs on vocals and banjo, accompanied by percussionist Marc Clos.

Asa's latest Zomes release, Improvisations -- recorded entirely on cassette tape, is being released on January 24th on Thrill Jockey and will be available from Dischord (we are accepting pre-orders now). Both albums are available on LP with MP3 download cards inclosed.

Minutes are a band from Kalamazoo, MI that feature ex-members of Trocar and Dischord's Ryan Nelson (Soccer Team, Beauty Pill, Most Secret Method). The band's Self-titled 12 LP is now available in a limited edition of 300.

Ryan, who is now back running Dischord's mail-order department, has written a more expansive blog post about these and several other new releases that you can find on our Stuff We Sell page.

Daniel Higgs – Beyond & Between
Zomes – Improvisations
Minutes – Self-titled LP
My Fictions – I Want Nothing
Weak Teeth – What a Plague You Are

For more information about each release, read on …

Daniel Higgs
Daniel Higgs traveled to Spain in May of 2011 to record this 7-song album in beautiful Sant Feliu de Guíxols. Fans of Daniel Higgs’ other works will not be disappointed. On this release, titled Beyond & Between, Higgs provided the cover art, sang and played banjo, and he was accompanied by Marc Clos on the vibraphone, marimba, flexatone, drum, tamborello, tamtam, gong, tar, bendir, timpani and vocals.

Zomes
Zomes is the solo work of Asa Osborne, guitarist of the much-beloved Lungfish. The songs on this record, titled Improvisations and released on Thrill Jockey, were self-recorded in 2010 and originally released on cassette only. For all those new to Zomes, I recommend listening loudly; this isn't background music. When Asa performs live, the music is at full volume, and I think the idea is to let the hypnotic/meditative sounds of Zomes wash over you completely.

Minutes
It feels a bit awkward to bring up my own band here, but this is a new release, we carry it, and I really do want people to know it’s out in the world, so I’ll try to make this quick and painless:
Minutes just self-released a self-titled LP that is limited to only 300 copies. It’s available through the Dischord site for 11 bucks. It’s a rock record. We (the band, that is) really like it, and we hope you will, too.
(Just as with the Soccer Team records and the Minutes 7 inch, some recording nerds out there may find it interesting to know that this record was made using a Tascam 388. Full disclosure … we used a Tascam 424 cassette recorder as well.)

My Fictions
This is a five-song 10 inch from My Fictions, titled I Want Nothing and released by Flannel Gurl Records. It’s fast-paced hardcore from Lowell, MA. Lots of remarkably precise drumming and guitar parts on this one. According to the liner notes, their guitarist, Tyler Bradley, recorded, mixed and mastered this album, while the layout was done by their bassist, Bryan Carifio. It’s pretty great to see a band do so much behind-the-scenes work for their own release; it usually means a lot of love went into the process. Keep in mind that this record spins at 45 RPMs. I made the mistake of listening at 33 at first, and … well … let’s just say I heard a very different record.

Weak Teeth
This is another release from Flannel Gurl Records, and this particular album is by a band from Providence, RI, called Weak Teeth. The album is titled What a Plague You Are , and like My Fictions, Weak Teeth play some pretty fast-paced hardcore. Lots of parts, lost of precision. Along with song-writing, it's apparent that Weak Teeth spent some quality time on their song titles and liner notes, so make sure you spend some of your own time with the album insert. I get the feeling they’d be offended if you referred to their songs as “track 1” or “that 3rd song on side A” (the latter of which is actually the gem on the record). Also, don’t let the typical 12 inch format fool ya’… This one spins at 45 RPMs as well.

Thanks for reading.

-Ryan

Scream, featuring the original line-up of Pete Stahl, Franz Stahl, Skeeter Thompson, and Kent Stax --and joined by newcomer Clint Walsh, will be touring in Europe for the first time in over 20 years. In the 1980s Scream were one of the first American punk bands to tour extensively in Europe and along with a handful of other bands helped open many of the underground touring circuits that punk bands rely on to this day. The tour begins on January 19th in Amsterdam and will cover select dates in Spain, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and Austria.

See Scream's Dischord page here: www.dischord.com/band/scream
Go to Scream's website here: www.screamdc.com

The Fugazi Live Series web archive site kicked off with a bang on December 1st and we've been very encouraged by the positive feedback it has received. In keeping with our plan, we uploaded an additional 25 concert downloads on January 1st and we'll continue doing this each month until we reach our goal of making every Fugazi concert recording in our collection available.

The following concerts have been added to the site and are now available to download:

05/02/1990 Memphis, TN USA, Antennae Club
08/14/1991 Winnipeg, MB Canada, Duncan Arena
05/14/1992 Manchester, England, Irish Centre Ardri Hall
05/31/1992 Barcelona, Spain, Zeleste 2
06/16/1992 Munich, Germany, Theaterfabrik
07/25/1992 Washington, DC USA, US Capitol Plaza Supreme Court
02/13/1993 Orlando, FL USA, Edge
02/20/1993 Greensboro, NC USA, Trim Shop
11/20/1994 Silver Spring, MD USA, Long Branch Community Center
04/03/1995 New York City, NY USA, Irving Plaza
04/09/1995 Burlington, VT USA, Memorial Hall
06/20/1995 Rome, Italy, Forte Prenestino
07/04/1995 Hamburg, Germany, Fabrik
07/05/1995 Nijmegen, Netherlands, Doornroosje
11/08/1995 Los Angeles, CA USA, Shrine Auditorium
04/11/1996 Nashville, TN USA, 328 Performance
11/27/1998 Louisville, KY USA, Highland Hall
03/02/1999 Springfield, OR USA, McKensie Ballroom
04/27/1999 Reykjavik, Iceland, National Radio Building
01/18/2000 Fort Lauderdale, FL, Chili Pepper
09/30/2000 Umea, Sweden, Galaxen
10/08/2000 Lund, Sweden, Mejeriet
10/10/2000 Helsinki, Finland, Nosturi
04/20/2001 Indianapolis, IN USA, Knights of Columbus Hall
04/20/2002 Boston, MA USA, Mass Art Gymnasium

Read/View more about the Live Series in press clippings from the following: The New York Times, The Washington Post, Pitchfork Media, and Wired Magazine, BBC Online, NPR Online, SPIN.com.