Date: January 29th 2010

(Mailing list info at the end of this message.)

Yo,

Couple more delightful newies, fresh off the truck.

Dig.
Dan / Tonevendor
http://www.tonevendor.com


** ATTENTION RECORD SHOPS! THIS UPDATE LISTS OUR PRICES FOR OUR DIRECT CUSTOMERS. FOR WHOLESALE PRICING LOG-IN TO THE WEBSITE WITH THE PASSWORD WE PROVIDED YOU **

--->> Too lazy to scroll through this update? Check out all the latest arrivals from the past 14 days here: http://www.tonevendor.com/catalog/fresh

** EXCLUSIVE AND/OR RECOMMENDED **

ELECTRIC POP GROUP-Seconds CD (matinee-$11.99)
Sensational sophomore album from Swedish pop heroes The Electric Pop Group! Following the success of the band’s self-released debut in 2006 and the very well received ‘Sunrise’ EP for Matinée in 2008, the band is back with ten magnificent new recordings that solidify their status as heir apparent to the pop throne once held by Matinée favorites Harper Lee and Sarah Records legends Brighter.
The new album ‘Seconds’ is a study in multilayered, shimmering pop featuring jangling electric and acoustic guitars, bass, and prominent keyboards plus rich bursts of tambourine, strings and other nice instrumentation. Among the album’s highlights, lead track ‘Not By Another’ is a melodic love song with chiming guitars, while ‘Out Of Sight’ mixes keyboards and guitars in an infectious pop hit with fantastic vocals and a soaring chorus.
One of the newest songs on the album, ‘The Way It Used To Do’ is catchy, continental pop with keyboards, jangling guitars, and an addictive chorus that recalls early Acid House Kings. Meanwhile, the band demonstrates it can also deliver modern shoegaze classics with ‘The Best of Times’ showcasing a muti-layered, hazy melancholy with hypnotic percussion.
The album also includes a new recording of ‘My Only Inspiration’, an Electric Pop Group favorite that first appeared on the ‘Matinée Hit Parade’ compilation in 2007, while ‘Into Thin Air’ features more chiming guitars and melodies-a-plenty and ‘We Never Made Up Our Minds’ is an especially beautiful, orchestral number.
An outstanding new entry to the Matinée discography, ‘Seconds’ is glistening jangle pop genius perfect for fans of Brighter, The Smiths, The Stone Roses, The Field Mice or Harper Lee.

NORTHERN PORTRAIT-Criminal Art Lovers CD (Matinee-$11.99)
Highly anticipated debut album from distinguished Danish band Northern Portrait! Following the very well received ‘Fallen Aristocracy’ and ‘Napoleon Sweetheart’ EPs in 2008, the band spent most of 2009 refining its live set with shows in the UK, Denmark, Germany and USA including performances at the prestigious San Francisco Popfest and Indietracks Festival. These shows also provided an opportunity to preview some of the songs that comprise ‘Criminal Art Lovers’ to favorable response. The resulting ten track album is a triumph for the band that should help solidify their status as one of indiepop’s most loved new bands.
Lead track ‘The Münchhausen in Me’ starts things off in decidedly jangling fashion with 12-string guitars plus autoharp and glockenspiel adding a special touch to the sound. Navigating between truth and semi-truth can be a difficult thing—sometimes fainting might be the only way out. ‘When Goodness Falls’ is an incredibly catchy song about people who are scared to remain true to themselves, and what a wonderful feeling it is to go against their will and completely, intentionally disappoint them. Musically bright, the song is the natural heir to the Smiths classic ‘This Charming Man’.
Third track ‘Crazy’ is the only previously released song on the album, although this is a slightly different mix than the one contained on the debut single. The mix of acoustic and electric Rickenbackers jangle in all the right places and the vocals suit the music perfectly. A song that has been around since the very first days of Northern Portrait, it is a modern pop classic that has been incredibly well received for good reason.
‘The Operation Worked But The Patient Died’ is the sound of Northern Portrait trying to write a British Sea Power song. With a touch of The La's and Sleeper-esque guitars, the song adds a dose of essential drama to the album. Meanwhile, superb title track ‘Criminal Art Lovers’ is a song about beatniks on picnics, busy tourists, and the comfy life…or perhaps just a not-so-good day at the office. With nice bursts of percussion, the song builds to an extraordinarily melodic ending that will have you reaching straight for the repeat button.
Side two begins with lush guitar track ‘Life Returns To Normal.’ Lyrically the song draws upon a poem about Volvo Estate cars, perhaps providing the line “my estate will take you anywhere” a clever double meaning. In any event, the song is another classic that will have you dancing by the end. This will serve you well as the album continues with ‘Murder Weapon’ keeping things sonically upbeat, even if the song is inspired by an article in British Vogue about women's sophisticated cruelty towards one other when it comes to fashion and style.
‘What Happens Next?’ is an up-tempo and energetic song about the collision of people with completely different agendas. It is one of the earliest Northern Portrait songs, initially recorded with the two tracks that would go on to serve as lead tracks for the band’s initial EPs. Returning to the same rhythm as 'When Goodness Falls', the song is a favorite of the Northern Portrait live repertoire.
With its slow build-up and rich sound, ‘That's When My Headaches Begin’ has a certain widescreen feel to it that takes the listener somewhere beyond the other tunes found on the album. Musically inspired by early Suede, the lyrics return to the theme from the Napoleon Sweetheart EP track 'In An Empty Hotel'. Ending the record on a positive note, ‘New Favourite Moment’ is a catchy, Rickenbacker dance track with an instrumental chorus, so people won’t have to learn any lyrics and can focus on twisting their bodies instead! Just try to resist…
Building on the amazing promise demonstrated by its two EPs, Northern Portrait have delivered the consummate debut album as ‘Criminal Art Lovers’ is the first certified album of the year contender for 2010.

PALE SUNDAY-Shooting Star EP CD (Matinee-$6.99)
Fantastic new single from adored Brazilian indiepop heroes Pale Sunday! The band debuted on Matinée in 2003 with the incredibly popular single ‘A Weekend with Jane’ and made loads of new friends with their 2005 album ‘Summertime?’ The first new recordings from the band in over four years, the exclusive new ‘Shooting Star’ EP proves the band still has the gift of writing modern indiepop classics with superb melodies and sing-along choruses.
The title track is an infectious pop hit with jangling guitars, an especially strong melody and nice harmonies. It’s a catchy burst of summertime any time of the year. ‘Are You Scared To Get Happy?’ proves the band has more than a few shoegaze records in their record collection, layering in fuzzy Teenage Fanclub-esque guitar parts and building to a multilayered orchestral ending with strings and more harmonies. ‘Before I Found You’ is shimmering pop at its best with more jangling guitar goodness, perfect melodies, handclaps, and tambourines, while ‘Unknown Half’ mixes multiple guitars with keyboards and other nice instrumentation to conclude the EP.
With four instantly memorable songs, ‘Shooting Star’ is a dazzling new release for Matinée and a very welcome return for Pale Sunday! Limited to 1000 copies in custom minijacket.

SPC ECO-SPC ECO 3-D (Japanese Version) CD (Quince-$13.99)
Dean Garcia (Curve) returns with SPC ECO, a nu-gaze outfit whose singer is none other than Dean’s daughter Rose Berlin. “SPC ECO 3-D” is their first album and features Rose’s angelic vocals, heavy bass grooves, twinkling keyboards, guitar noise, and British styled electro beats. Joey Levenson (So Young) provides guitar fx, and the resulting amalgam is a colorful and shimmering shoegaze music of sugary pop goodness. The Japanese edition of the album includes three bonus tracks: two remixes plus “Silver Clouds,” an exclusive track featuring Andy Bell (Ride/Oasis).


** LES COMPACT DISQUES **

ALBUM LEAF-A Chorus of Storytellers CD (Sub Pop-$12.99)
A Chorus of Storytellers was recorded by Ryan Hadlock in the frosty month of February 2009 at Bear Creek Studio just outside of Seattle. It was mixed in the decidedly warmer month of June in Reykjavik, Iceland by Birgir Jon Birgisson. Those paying attention will notice that this is nearly the same way their last album Into the Blue Again was recorded. There is, however, one fundamental difference between this and every other album The Album Leaf has ever recorded. For the first time in five albums, The Album Leaf recorded as a whole band. In the past, almost every instrument was performed by principal songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Jimmy LaValle. This time the whole band was invited to participate and the result is their best record yet.

BEACH HOUSE-Teen Dream CD+DVD (Sub Pop-$14.99)
Recorded in upstate New York, in a converted church called Dreamland with producer/engineer Chris Coady (who has worked with TV on the Radio, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Blonde Redhead, and a bunch of others) Teen Dream is the third album from the Baltimore-based duo Beach House, and their Sub Pop debut. The new album gives voice to a full universe of unbridled imagination, and the manifestation of Teen Dream has been a welcomed and all-consuming obsession for Beach House the past 9-12 months. Both the CD and LP formats of Teen Dream will arrive packaged with a companion DVD featuring a video for each song on the album, each by a different director.

BRIM LISKI-s/t CD (Latenight Weeknight-$7.99)
This is Brim Liski. Happy depression. Electronic doom painted over with shimmering vocal layers and symphonic guitar tones. Dark, limitless night music perfect for driving down an endless moon drenched highway. Comprised of various underground producers in the US and The Netherlands, the project started in late 2008 and slowly but surely became an organic musical hydra. The debut release finds itself spanning eras of dark musical passages, polyrhythmic dance beats and deep, moving basslines all in which are inspired by the recent death of love, while also influenced by the blinding light of new beginnings.

MAÑANA-Interruptions CD (Quince-$13.99)
With 'Interruptions', Swiss 5-piece Mañana take us on an eclectic journey through their very own universe, thriving on contrasts and experiments. Their powerful, stirring and epic soundscapes can occasionally be referenced to influences like Mew and Sigur Ros. The driving drumbeats serve as a solid basis on which the keyboards and guitars can develop their unique spaces and the freedom to spin out of control at the right moment. And in the middle of this is Manuel Bürkli's powerful yet fragile voice as the focal point of their music. Produced by Ken Thomas (Sigur Ros, M83, Bjork).
"Mañana's music does a lot to you. It triggers things in your head and deep inside, in your heart. 'Make A Tiger' is outstanding proof of that — a song that sends you on a far-away trip, yet never leaves you alone. This touches me, and there's no higher compliment I could pay to music." - Markus Kavka, VJ and Producer, MTV Networks Germany

MIXTAPES & CELLMATES-Rox CD (Quince-$13.99)
Stockholm combo Mixtapes & Cellmates return with “Rox,” their highly anticipated second album. Previous albums and EPs were compared with The Radio Dept and Postal Service. The band is now a 5 piece with a new drummer and three lead singers. While the rock elements of guitar feedback, up-down rhythms, and judicious keyboard usage hint at the influence of Primal Scream’s “Give Out But Don’t Give Up”, the group’s distinct melodies and fantastic song writing are intact and better than ever. “Rox” was engineered by Johan Gustafsson (Last Days of April) and recorded at Studio Grondahl. The Japanese edition of Rox features two exclusive bonus tracks: “Summer” and “Apoidea.”

RETRIBUTION GOSPEL CHOIR-2 CD (Sub Pop-$12.99)
Retribution Gospel Choir is a rock trio founded in 2007. The group features Alan Sparhawk on guitar and vocals, Steve Garrington on bass and Eric Pollard on drums and vocals. Alan also fronts the band Low with his wife, Mimi Parker, and Steve also plays bass in Low. 2 is Retribution Gospel Choir's 2nd full-length and Sub Pop debut! Eric Swanson recorded these performances at Sacred Heart Studio in Duluth, Minnesota, and Matt Beckley mixed the recordings at Faux Rock in Sherman Oaks, California.

VARIOUS ARTISTS-The Matinee Grand Prix CD ($Matinee-$11.99)
Brilliant new collection of songs from Matinée’s truly international coterie of popstars. The disc kicks off with a firm favorite from Denmark’s Northern Portrait entitled ‘Stirling Moss’ which establishes a car racing theme rather nicely. Scottish popkids Strawberry Whiplash answer the challenge with new smash ‘Boy In The Bubble Car,’ while Australian legends The Lucksmiths deliver their swansong recording with the predictably stunning ‘Get-to-bed Birds.’
Sweden’s The Electric Pop Group is represented with perhaps their strongest song to date ‘Believers,’ while Clay Hips—American expats living in Germany and Ireland—don’t disappoint channeling their inner Pet Shop Boys with ‘Disappointed.’ The album’s centerpoint sees the return of England’s mighty Tender Trap after four years with the new classic ‘Danger Overboard,’ and Australia has its second contender with the very welcome return of Simpático and new favorite ‘Australian Idle.’
Finland’s Cats on Fire begin the year with a fantastic new song called ‘The Hague,’ while Scotland is back in fine form with Bubblegum Lemonade and ‘Cuts Like A Dream.’ Finally, American hipsters Math and Physics Club break a two-year silence with a great new song called ‘I Keep To Myself,’ and Australia’s The Guild League soundtrack the final lap of the compilation with the lovely ‘Bookmark.’
Demonstrating the continuing strength of the label’s roster, this timeless collection is a vital release for the Matinée faithful and a fantastic introduction to some of the best indie bands of today.



** YE OLDE TYME VINYL **

-- The following few titles are described in the CD section above --

ALBUM LEAF-A Chorus of Storytellers LP (Sub Pop-$14.99)
BEACH HOUSE-Teen Dream 2xLP+DVD (Sub Pop-$17.99)
RETRIBUTION GOSPEL CHOIR-2 LP (Sub Pop-$14.99)

AVI BUFFALO-What's In It For 7" (Sub Pop-$5.99)
"What's in It For?" b/w "Jessica" is the debut release from Long Beach, California's Avi Buffalo. And, one or both of these songs will appear on the Avi Buffalo full-length release Sub Pop will be putting out sometime in the spring of 2010.

DAVID BOWIE-Hunky Dory 180g LP (Simply Vinyl-$19.99)
Hunky Dory finds Bowie camping it up outrageously through a mixture of cabaret piano, coquettish lyrics and soaring vocals. "After the freakish hard rock of The Man Who Sold the World, David Bowie returned to singer/songwriter territory on Hunky Dory. Not only did the album boast more folky songs ("Song for Bob Dylan," "The Bewlay Brothers"), but he again flirted with Anthony Newley-esque dancehall music ("Kooks," "Fill Your Heart"), seemingly leaving heavy metal behind. As a result, Hunky Dory is a kaleidoscopic array of pop styles, tied together only by Bowie's sense of vision: a sweeping, cinematic mélange of high and low art, ambiguous sexuality, kitsch, and class. Mick Ronson's guitar is pushed to the back, leaving Rick Wakeman's cabaret piano to dominate the sound of the album. The subdued support accentuates the depth of Bowie's material, whether it's the revamped Tin Pan Alley of "Changes," the Neil Young homage "Quicksand," the soaring "Life on Mars?," the rolling, v
aguely homosexual anthem "Oh! You Pretty Things," or the dark acoustic rocker "Andy Warhol." On the surface, such a wide range of styles and sounds would make an album incoherent, but Bowie's improved songwriting and determined sense of style instead made Hunky Dory a touchstone for reinterpreting pop's traditions into fresh, postmodern pop music." - AMG

DAVID BOWIE-Ziggy Stardust 180g LP (Simply Vinyl-$19.99)
"Borrowing heavily from Marc Bolan's glam rock and the future shock of A Clockwork Orange, David Bowie reached back to the heavy rock of The Man Who Sold the World for The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Constructed as a loose concept album about an androgynous alien rock star named Ziggy Stardust, the story falls apart quickly, yet Bowie's fractured, paranoid lyrics are evocative of a decadent, decaying future, and the music echoes an apocalyptic, nuclear dread. Fleshing out the off-kilter metallic mix with fatter guitars, genuine pop songs, string sections, keyboards, and a cinematic flourish, Ziggy Stardust is a glitzy array of riffs, hooks, melodrama, and style and the logical culmination of glam. Mick Ronson plays with a maverick flair that invigorates rockers like "Suffragette City," "Moonage Daydream," and "Hang Onto Yourself," while "Lady Stardust," "Five Years," and "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" have a grand sense of staged drama previously unheard
of in rock & roll. And that self-conscious sense of theater is part of the reason why Ziggy Stardust sounds so foreign. Bowie succeeds not in spite of his pretensions but because of them, and Ziggy Stardust — familiar in structure, but alien in performance — is the first time his vision and execution met in such a grand, sweeping fashion." - AMG

NIRVANA-Bleach DELUXE 2xLP (Sub Pop-$26.99)
Marking the 20th Anniversary of Nirvana's debut album, Sub Pop will re-issue the Platinum Certified Bleach on November 3, 2009. This expanded CD/double-LP will include a never-before-released live performance, and special packaging.
Originally recorded over three sessions with producer Jack Endino at Seattle's Reciprocal Recording Studios in December 1988 and January 1989, Bleach was released in June of '89 and remains unequivocally/unsurprisingly Sub Pop's very favorite Nirvana full-length. The album initially sold 40,000 copies, but was brought into the international spotlight following the release and worldwide success of their 1991 sophomore effort, Nevermind. Subsequently Bleach went on to sell 1.7 million copies in the US alone, according to Nielsen SoundScan. This 20th Anniversary Edition has been re-mastered from the original tapes at Sterling Sound in a session overseen by producer Jack Endino.
This edition will include an unreleased live recording of a complete February 9th, 1990 show at the Pine Street Theatre in Portland, Oregon. The show features performances of "Love Buzz," "About a Girl" and a cover of The Vaselines' song "Molly's Lips" and has been re-mixed from the original tapes by Endino (complete track listing below). A 52-page CD /16-page LP booklet which includes candid photos of the band not previously released to the public will also be included in this deluxe edition.
A notice to Vinyl-buyers: this is a very weighty collection of records and images and nice packaging. ADDITIONAL SHIPPING RATES WILL APPLY!!


** RESTOCKS **

Bunches of Sub Pop goodies and more!

And a lot more re-stocks on the website!

*****************


Check out our entire catalog online with SECURE credit card ordering:

http://www.tonevendor.com

tonevendor
14 e. university ave,
suite #206
gainesville, fl 32601 usa
*****************

www.myspace.com/tonevendor1
www.myspace.com/clairecords