NEW RADIANT STORM KING - Drinking In The Moonlight  CD (Darla: DRL201: 708527020128)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Northampton, Mass rockers return with a characteristically smart pop/rock album in the Meat Puppets, Minutemen, Mission of Burma school(s).

HAROLD BUDD / CLIVE WRIGHT - A Song For Lost Blossoms  CD (Darla: DRL198: 708527019825)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Available 10/7/08. Darla is pleased to offer a A Song For Lost Blossoms, a new record of ambient melody and transcendental mood portals from minimalist/modernist master Harold Budd and friend guitarist/composer/producer Clive Wright. A Song For Lost Blossoms nicely builds on both artist's previous ambient work. A Song For Lost Blossoms was recorded live and in studio at different locations including the artist's homes, at The Red Cat (Disney Concert Hall), Los Angeles, and Clive Wright's Desert Sky Studio, Joshua Tree, CA. These recordings represent the very best of Harold and Clive's work together over the period 2004 to 2006. Harold Budd is recognized as "The Godfather of Ambient Music". His works are the cornerstones of the modern minimal and ambient cannon. Clive Wright is a founding member of the platinum selling pop/rock band Cock Robin and has worked as writer, producer and guitarist with Kim Carnes, Human Drama, Tears for Fears members, Montell Jordan, The Black Eyed Peas and Peter Gabriel. Budd and Wright met as residents of the beautiful and remote Southern California desert community of Joshua Tree. With only just a little imagination one can easily hear the influence of the Southern California desert environment -- the sounds of its stark beauty, serene quiet and otherworldly presence. No doubt an inspirational environment for Budd and Wright to create music of such ambiance and beauty.

CALIFORNIA ORANGES - Imperial Hearts  CD (Darla: DRL193: 708527019320)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Available 7/7/08. Our Sacramento, CA indie-pop all stars return with a gem of a pop/rock album full of hooky choruses, call and response guitars and a super tight power-pop rhythm section. A pow-pow-powerful good good feeling! Just as you'd expect from this seasoned music family. TRACK LIST: 1. Brand New Spine, 2. We've Got Time, 3. Travel Writer, 4. Anywhere USA, 5. I Still Hold On, 6. Silver Shoes, 7. Feel Better, 8. Waiting Is Slow, 9. I Told Grace, 10. Matter Of Consequence, 11. I Won't Let You Back In, 12. When I Sleep.

MY MORNING JACKET - The Tennessee Fire (2xLP)  2XLP (Darla: DRL089-1: 708527008911)  $19.99

EXCLUSIVE.  Gatefold double vinyl re-press limited to 1000. 142 gm, green and blue color vinyl 2xLP in gatefold sleeve with matte finish. Their fabulous debut album (1999). “Released to worldwide critical acclaim, The Tennessee Fire provides proof (200 proof) that heartfelt American music is alive and well and living in Kentucky. A must for anyone who loves the sound of Alt-country mixed with wide open spaces.” –ALL MUSIC GUIDE. TRACK LISTING: 1. Heartbreakin Man 2. They Ran 3. The Bear 4. Nashville To Kentucky 5. Old September Blues 6. If All Else Fails 7. It’s About Twilight Now 8. Evelyn Is Not Real 9. War Begun 10. Picture Of You 11. I Will Be There When You Die 12. The Dark 13. By My Car 14. Butch Cassidy 15. I Think I’m Going To Hell 16. Bonus track.

MY MORNING JACKET - At Dawn (2xLP)   2XLP (Darla: DRL111-1: 708527011119)  $19.99

EXCLUSIVE.  Gatefold double vinyl re-press limited to 1000. 142 gm, red and gold color vinyl 2xLP in gatefold sleeve with matte finish. Their beloved second record (2001). “At Dawn has an Ineffable magic to it from start to finish, one that leads me to scour my brain for words that could describe something that sounds so special. Anytime a pop or rock song can give you chills, that’s something. When a whole album can do it that’s something else entirely.” –POPMATTERS. TRACK LISTING: 1. At Dawn 2. Lowdown 3. The Way That He Sings 4. Death Is My Sleazy Pay 5. Hopefully 6. Bermuda Highway 7. Honest Man 8. X-mas Curtain 9. Just Because I Do 10. If It Smashes Down 11. I Needed It Most 12. Phone Went West 13. Strangulation 14. Bonus track.

PONIES IN THE SURF - See You Happy  2XCD (Darla: DRL192: 708527019221)  $12.50

EXCLUSIVE.  Available 6/9/2008. Ponies In The Surf are quietly one of a kind. Siblings and indie music aficionados Alex & Camile live in Cambridge, MA though they’re originally from Bogota, Colombia. The Ponies make pan-American pop songs with elements Samba, Beatles and the more sophisticated folk set. They're Pop Vocal traditionalists and very much akin to The Violent Femmes and Johnathan Richman in terms of song craft, subtle humor and vulnerability. The Ponies' work is uniquely comforting and highly addictive. It is served with a rare passion and grace. It evokes nostalgia for the above mentioned while remaining firmly planted in its own special, almost timeless place. These are simply great songs. The first 1000 copies of See You Happy CD come with a limited edition bonus CD featuring Ponies in The Surf covering six of their favorite all-time classics Ponies style plus two demos. "After playing in rock bands for some time, Alexander McGregor decided at some point that he simply wanted to make some music that could even appeal to his grandmother. Joined by his sister Camille, the duo plays stripped-down folkish type music that sounds like it could have been created at any point in the past 40 years yet still feels fresh." --ALMOST COOL. "These powerfully quiet traditionalists perform folk songs with a pan-American touch. It's only a shame that music this delicate and warm doesn't garner more notice." --POPMATTERS. Track list: 1. 16a 2. Walkin' In The City 3. Sweet & Low 4. My Crack-Up 5. Another Mind 6. Bad Crowd 7. What's In a Smile 8. See You Happy 9. Holes In The Walls 10. Ventricle 11. Out-There Friends 12. Once In A While 13. Johnny Rebel 14. Joao Bonus disc track list: 1. Te Extraño Tanto (Palito Ortega) 2. Nothing to Lose (Henry Mancini/Don Black) 3. Poor Jenny (F. & B. Bryant) 4. Heaven (Byrne/Harrison) 5. Te Extraño Tanto #2 (Palito Ortega) 6. A Bunch of Lonesome Heroes (L.Cohen) 7. Another Mind (Demo) 8. Holes in the Walls #2

ISOL / ZYPCE - Sima  CD (Darla: DRL195: 708527019528)  $12.50

EXCLUSIVE.  Available 5/20/08. Digipak with 16 page booklet featuring the artist's illustrations. Isol and Zypce present Sima, their latest collaboration. Isol: singer, composer, ex-vocalist of the electronic pop band Entre Ríos, singer with the baroque group The Excuse and member of the synthpop American band Alsace Lorraine. She’s also an internationally renowned illustrator of books and printed media. For the first time, she composes the melodies in the songs and writes their lyrics on this new record. Zypce: musician, composer. In 1994 he released his CD Nuevo Muerto (New Dead) on which he and his ensemble play his own works of contemporary classical music tainted with industrial reminiscences, although these categories are in fact very dubious labels. He has also composed music for the film, dance and theatre in Argentina and abroad and has performed his experimental compositions with pianist Adriana de los Santos, among others in concert. He builds his own musical instruments and has an extremely elaborate approach to the stage factor. On this CD he composes and arranges the songs by being clearly faithful to his peculiar aesthetics though approaching a pop song format, always with very experimental results. Isol and Zypce are siblings, born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina. About Sima: 11 tracks / Voice: Isol / Instrumental arrangements: Zypce / Lyrics: Isol / Music: Isol - Zypce (except “La primera vez” and “Vos me llamás”, by Dani Umpi - Adrián Soiza) / Artistic production: Zypce (in “Vos me llamás”: Zypce-Cecinini) / Mastering: Nicolás Cecinini. Sima: f. abyss, precipice, crag, depth, chasm. Tracklist: 1. La Primera Vez, 2. Romance Fatal, 3. La Culpa, 4. Mi Formula Para Llorar, 5. Tal Vez Mejor, 6. La Calandria, 7. Palabritas Flojas, 8. Si De Verdad, 9. Doppelganger, 10. Vos Me Llamas, 11. El Dia Llego.

v/a - LITTLE DARLA HAS A TREAT FOR YOU, v.26  CD (Darla: DRL200: 708527020029)  $0.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Darla is pleased to announce the first digital only release of our world famous compilation series: v/a-Little Darla Has A Treat For You v.26. This the twenty sixth volume in the series differs from the CD releases in that the Little Darla compilation CD releases now contain tracks exclusive only to those CDs. Little Darla v.26 features 12 key album tracks from 12 forthcoming (or just released) 2008 Darla releases. Check it out on iTunes. the line up is as follows: 1. Ariel Abshire "Exclamation Love" --from the forthcoming album. Available Fall '08. Ariel is a gifted 16 year old singer/songwriter from Austin, TX. She sings like a modern Brenda Lee or Patsy Cline. Her voice is pure country, heart & soul. 2. Auburn Lull "Coasts" --from the album Begin Civil Twilight. Available April '08. Imagine The Moody Blues produced by Eno, if Slowdive originally wrote and recorded Surrealistic Pillow, or perhaps Seefeel on a good sedative/hypnotic. Fellow dream popper Ulrich Schnauss mixed this track. 3. California Oranges "I Won't Let You Back In" --from the album Imperial Hearts. Available Summer '08. Our Sacramento, CA indie-pop all stars return with a gem penned and sung by all-California girl Verna Brock with a hooky chorus, call and response guitars and a super tight power-pop rhythm section. A pow-pow-powerful good good feeling! Just as you'd expect from this seasoned music family. 4. Hammock "Mono No Aware" --from the album Maybe They Will Sing For Us Tomorrow. Available May '08. A song from their Ambient record written and recorded at the request of Riceboy Sleeps (Jonsi Birgisson of the Grammy-nominated Sigur Ros and Alex Somers of Parachutes) to accompany Riceboy Sleeps overseas debut art exhibition, held in Hot Springs, AR in August 2007. 5. Harold Budd & Clive Wright "Forever Hold My Breath" --from the forthcoming album A Song For Lost Blossoms. Available Fall '08. Harold Budd is a founding father of Ambient music. Clive Wright was guitarist for the platinum selling Cock Robin. Budd and Wright met as residents of the beautiful and remote Southern California desert community of Joshua Tree. With only just a little imagination one can easily hear the influence of the Southern California desert environment -- the sounds of its stark beauty, serene quiet and otherworldly presence. No doubt an inspirational environment for Budd and Wright to create music of such ambiance and beauty. 6. I Am Robot And Proud "The Melt" --from the forthcoming album. Available Fall '08. Uniquely complex yet simply sublime syncopated multi-instrumental rhythms and playful, repetitive, multi-dimensional melodies that energize and refresh. No one does Electronic pop like Toronto's Shaw-han Liem. 7. Isol / Zypce "La Calandria" --from the album Sima. Available June '08. Buenos Aires based brother & sister duo Isol / Zypce (Isol formerly of Electronic pop group Entre Rios) offer an enchanting album of genre bending, dada-ist, electronic pop/rock. 8. Japancakes "Disconnect The Cables (alternate version)" --an exclusive version of a song on the album The Sleepy Strange, which was reissued February '08. Athens, Georgia's Japancakes are a pan-genre group difficult to classify but easy on the ears. With pedal steel guitar and cello as lead Japancakes incorporate chamber music, country and shoegaze into a bootgaze, ambient, pop-rock, mood music that sounds like the very soul of Americana. 9. Keith Canisius "Sea Me, Feel Me (album version)" --from the album Ferris Wheel Makeout. Available February '08. Keith Canisius aka Rumskib, writes and plays shoegaze guitar with the beat programming and synthesizer assistance from Jonas Munk aka Manual. Together the two Danes create super-lush dreampop. 10. New Radiant Storm King "Islander" --from the album Drinking In The Moonlight. Available Fall '08. Northampton, Mass rockers return with a characteristically smart pop/rock album in the Meat Puppets, Minutemen, Mission of Burma school(s). 11. Ponies In The Surf "Bad Crowd" --from the album See You Happy. Available June '08. The Ponies make pan-American pop songs with elements Samba, Beatles and the more sophisticated folk set. They're Pop Vocal traditionalists and very much akin to The Violent Femmes and Johnathan Richman in terms of song craft, subtle humor and vulnerability. These are simply great songs. 12. Sweet Trip "Your World Is Eternally Complete" --from the forthcoming album. Available Fall '08. San Francisco's Sweet Trip play sophisticated yet infectiously fun shoegazey electronic post-pop with male/female vocal harmonies over often abstract, sometimes Latin and always groovy rhythms, fuzzed out Fender-in-a-blender guitar, and an occasional, unexpected Perrey & Kingsley type twist.

HAMMOCK - Maybe They Will Sing For Us Tomorrow  CD (Darla: DRL196: 708527019627)  $12.50

EXCLUSIVE.  After four well-loved and critically lauded recordings, Hammock returns with a new full-length, special release, Maybe They Will Sing for Us Tomorrow, which features eleven new songs and original artwork by Riceboy Sleeps (Jonsi Birgisson of the Grammy-nominated Sigur Ros and Alex Somers of Parachutes). At the invitation of Birgisson and Somers, Hammock gave their first-ever live performance at the after party celebration of the Riceboy Sleeps overseas debut art exhibition, held in Hot Springs, AR in August 2007. Maybe They Will Sing for Us Tomorrow is the studio recording of the original music written and played by Hammock for the occasion. “Studio performance” is a more accurate phrase, as the guitars for these songs were recorded live, just as the band performed them, later rounded out by Matt Slocum’s expansive, emotive cello. This is Hammock reduced to an essence—a core. There are no intrusions. No beats. No lyrics. Nothing to break the spell or jar the listener out of the moment. Maybe They Will Sing for Us Tomorrow has all of the vulnerability and spontaneity of a performance, yet all of the rich, cinematic beauty of a Hammock studio recording. Hammock’s self-imposed minimalism is expertly merged with their hallmark melodic songwriting, resulting in the most focused, mesmeric and deeply personal album in their catalog to date. "…music in the spirit of Japanese art—simple by form, but it's full of complexity in its tone and its timbres." --Bob Boilen, NPR, All Songs Considered “Hammock continue their ascent to godhead status among the drone-rock underground." --All Music Guide Tracks: 1. Gold Star Mothers, 2. City in the Dust on My Window, 3. This Kind of Life Keeps Breaking Your Heart, 4. Mono No Aware, 5. Three Sisters, 6. Maybe They Will Sing for Us Tomorrow, 7. Elm, 8. Razorback Drug Town, 9. Eighty-Four Thousand Hymns, 10. We Will Say Goodbye to Everyone, 11. All of Your Children Are Addicts Reviews: Babysue | Star's End Ambient Radio | Somewhere Cold | Onda Rock | Erasing Clouds | All Music Guide | The Silent Ballet

AUBURN LULL - Begin Civil Twilight  CD (Darla: DRL184: 708527018422)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Darla is proud to offer one of the most hauntingly beautiful, ethereal pop records ever created. Auburn Lull are a dream pop/space rock band from the East Lansing, Michigan area and are in fact the Michigan space rock scene's core. Begin Civil Twilight is Auburn Lull's third and best album and the first completely self-produced album by "The Lull". Imagine The Moody Blues produced by Eno, if Slowdive originally wrote and recorded Surrealistic Pillow, or perhaps Seefeel on a good sedative/hypnotic. Fellow dream popper Ulrich Schnauss mixed one track and did treatments on two others. Auburn Lull is guitarists Sean Heenan, Jason Kolb, Eli Wekenman, and drummer Jason Wiesinger. The quartet came together out of a shared affection for bands like Seefeel, Flying Saucer Attack, Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark, and the 4AD and Creation Records aesthetic. In 1997, the band released the Dual Group EP, a split release with Mahogany, which John Peel played on his BBC radio program. Their debut full-length debut Alone I Admire was initially released on local independent record label Burnt Hair in 1999, sold out, and was then reissued by Darla Records in 2002. Their second record Cast From The Platform (Darla) was released in 2004. Regions Less Parallel: Early Works And Rarities 1996-2004, which compiles band's highly collectible singles, EPs and stray compilation tracks plus two previously unreleased tracks was released by Darla in 2005. Auburn Lull are planning to tour in support of Begin Civil Twilight in 2008. TRACKLIST: 1. Light Through The Canopy 5:18, 2. Dub1 3:28, 3. Broken Heroes 4:31, 4. Grange Arcade 5:43, 5. Civil Twilight 5:11, 6. Axis Nears 3:45, 7. November's Long Shadows 4:26, 8. Stanfield Echo 4:07, 9. Coasts 4:38, 10. Geneva 1:54, 11. Arc Of An Outsider 3:58, 12. Hidden3 9:54. Reviews: Babysue | Advance Copy | Somewhere Cold (interview) | Friction NYC (Shoegaze in 2008: Five Acts not to be Missed) | Erasing Clouds | Leonard's Lair | Textura | Ron Powlus Role Model | Autres Directions | Tokafi | Music Under Fire

KEITH CANISIUS - Ferris Wheel Makeout  CD (Darla: DRL197: 70852701972)  $0.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Darla's first digital only release! amazon: click here to purchase from amazon emusic: click here to purchase from e-music CD available via Quince (Japan). Multi-instrumentalist, singer & producer Keith Canisius (main composer in RUMSKIB) puts a personal twist on classic shoegaze and dreampop with his creative playfulness and multi-layered compositions. Ferris Wheel Makeout, his solo debut, is a dizzying good dream affair stacked with strong melodies and excellent guitar work. Local friend Jonas Munk (aka Manual) helps out with drum programming and post production for the finishing touches. Altogether a mix that the shoegazers and dreampoppers out there will love, as will fans of Rumskib, Manual, Ulrich Schnauss, Cocteau Twins, MBV & Serena Maneesh. Reviews: Opuszine | Undertoner | The Donnybrook Writing Academy

JAPANCAKES - If I Could See Dallas  CD (Darla: DRL186: 708527018620)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Reissue. MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!! Japancakes' improvisational drone pop symphonies defy easy classification, stretching a single chord to its breaking point and picking up the pieces to create dense but inviting soundscapes which somehow find the common ground between the soothing wash of ambient and the propulsive energy of rock. For If I Could See Dallas, group ringleader Eric Berg and engineer Andy Baker handcrafted the disc's 11 instrumentals from snatches of studio performances, giving the songs a form and shape their live set no doubt lacks, but the cumulative effect is no less hypnotic -- for all of the record's cosmic glow, the recurring presence of steel guitar keeps the music rooted in terra firma, a paradox which makes the music that much more difficult to pinpoint in any single time or place. The evolutionary process which guides each song is almost imperceptibly subtle, their circular melodies shaded by analog synths and strings which bubble in and out of the mix -- creating music which arrives without travelling, Japancakes is that rare experiment as fascinating in practice as it is in theory. --ALL MUSIC GUIDE

JAPANCAKES - Down the Elements   CD (Darla: DRL189: 708527018927)  $9.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Reissue. MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!! Eric Berg's heady instrumental visions maintain something of an unintentional defiance that suggests that the 21st century technology is still a far-off proposition. By focusing on cello strains, droning bass and guitar lines, and insistently groovy acoustic drum patterns, it appears that he and his other Athens, GA, cohorts don't recognize the cut-and-paste, sample-centric age that most rock is now generated in. This EP, which is sandwiched between two larger efforts of equally hypnotic textures, creates moods that are far more demanding of a listener's attention than much of the ambient music produced by the synthesists the world over. The wonderfully infectious riff that propels "A.W. Sonic" somehow manages to sustain its drawing power for the majority of the track's 11-minute lifespan. "Sputnik" and the title track are the disc's straight-ahead electronic fare, but they are so skillfully arranged it's as if they'd been secretly peering in the Orb's laboratory for years. As a lower cost introduction to what Berg has begun to achieve from an experimental rock concept gone right (unlike most), Down the Elements is immensely satisfying. -- ALL MUSIC GUIDE. Originally released as an EP by Kindercore in 2000, Down The Elements clocks in at 37:58 minutes, which makes it a full length in the real world. These recordings were made at the same time as those for If I Could See Dallas. Eclectic, mostly upbeat, instrumental explorations like Trans Am meets Tangerine Dream backed with beautiful blips and burbles sure to sooth.

JAPANCAKES - The Sleepy Strange  CD (Darla: DRL191: 708527019122)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Reissue. MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!! Building on the accessible experimentation on If I Could See Dallas and the Down the Elements EP, Japancakes' aptly named second album, The Sleepy Strange, is both dreamy and earthy, complex and immediate, and challenging and soothing. Though their modus operandi -- repeating melodic phrases for hours at a time to highlight the subtle shifts in tone and rhythm -- remains the same, The Sleepy Strange is the band's most cohesive work to date, yet it keeps all of the spontaneous beauty of their previous releases. If anything, the slightly more focused sound highlights the band's strong melodies and interplay, making it one of the warmest, most inviting post-rock albums since Jim O'Rourke's Eureka, which also featured a fair amount of Japancakes' secret weapon, the pedal steel guitar. Whether it takes the lead, as on the opening waltz "The Waiting," or adding to the weightless beauty of "Disconnect the Cables"' avant soft rock, the group's masterful use of the instrument gives the music a dreamy, strangely western-tinged timelessness. The surprisingly propulsive "Soft N EZ" adds naive-sounding analog synths to fiddles and pedal steel, highlighting the group's highly inventive (and somewhat startling) mix of styles and sounds within one track. This is also Japancakes' most varied album, both musically and emotionally; "This Year's Beat" subtly shifts from brooding to assuring, while the loopy, languid title track and the dark string- and keyboard-driven finale, "Vinyl Fever," couldn't be farther apart in sound or mood. Hypnotically beautiful, The Sleepy Strange is the best representation yet of Japancakes' exciting repetitions, and one of 2001's best albums. --ALL MUSIC GUIDE. The Sleepy Strange is one of our all-time favorite records, ranking right up there with Music For Airports, Treasure, and Loveless. But Japancakes are as much part Harmonia, Pink Floyd, and Buck Owens as they are Eno, MBV, and Cocteaus. Imagine if Ravi Shankar was from Bakersfield and played pedal steel... Japancakes is an instrumental project formed in 1997 in Athens (Georgia) by Eric Berg, a big fan of Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar. Legend has it that, originally, Berg assembled this ensemble to play a Steve Reich-ian Minimalist composition made of only a single chord for one hour. The Sleepy Strange (Originally released: Kindercore, 2001) contains seven lengthy jams that were fully improvised with no rehearsals. This time the cello of Heather McIntosh and the keyboards of Todd Kelly join the pedal steel in directing the hypnotic, droning and symphonic sound. "The way it works," Berg explains, "is the guitarist will come in and lay down a track and leave. Then each member will do the same and nobody really knows what it's gonna sound like until the CD is done." And when the CD is done, the world is given a work that is at once unique, born of a casual attitude, and still stunningly beautiful and affecting. --onlineathens.com "It's certainly a distinctive sound. While it adds an undeniable (and thoroughly welcome) country-rock twang to the group's music, it also plays to our conceptions of the whole Athens, GA musician lifestyle. It is slow and lazy, but possessed of unmistakable charm and refreshing honesty. These lazy, loping riffs are the sound of music that gets up at noon. Music that eats half a left-over burrito for breakfast. Music that doesn't wear shoes. --Splendid.com

AARKTICA - Matchless Years  CD (Darla: DRL177: 708527017722)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Darla is proud to offer Matchless Years the fifth new record from Aarktica – the experimental drone rock ensemble lead by Jon DeRosa. In the summer of 2007 DeRosa moved to Southern California. On Matchless Years he bids farewell to his NYC home with a collection of reverb-soaked anthems filled with the emotive melancholia that has endeared Aarktica to indie rockers and shoegazers around the world. With lyrics drawn directly from DeRosa's own film noir life in the city, Matchless Years embraces the spirit of brethren Jesus & Mary Chain, Spiritualized, The Magnetic Fields, and even progresses a bit toward "dark disco". Jon meshes 1950's vocal pop sensibilities with Aarktica's trademark, atmospheric guitar sound. Moody aural heroin never sounded so comfortable. Produced by Charles Newman (Magnetic Fields/Stephin Merritt), Matchless Years is by far Aarktica's strongest and most accessible work to date and is sure to gain new Aarktica fans. Personnel: Jon DeRosa - vocals, guitars, bass, pump organ, glockenspiel, harmonium, gamelan bells. Aaron Spectre (Drumcorps) - drum programs, Chris Carrico (ex-Crucifer) - electric guitar, Charles Newman (Magnetic Fields, Stephin Merritt producer)- organ, keyboard, Mike Pride - drums, percussion, Seth Misterka - alto saxophone, James Duncan – trumpet, Gretta Cohn (ex-Bright Eyes/Cursive)- cello, Kendall Jane Meade (Mascott) - backing vocals, Ernie Adzentoivich - electric & upright bass. Produced by Charles Newman. Tracklisting: 1. Seventy Jane, 2. I Name You Sleep, 3. Intro to Arms, 4. Arms, 5. Summer Tabla Dub, 6. Happiness Boys, 7. Matchless, 8. Rooftop Films. PRESS: “Aarktica is cold, pure, and almost inescapably tranquil.” –PITCHFORK. “Aarktica (multi-instrumentalist Jon DeRosa with a handful of guest musicians) performs where edges aren't defined, depths aren't charted, and space, in that moment, is infinite.” –POPMATTERS. “…even at its worst …this is fascinating”. –COKE MACHINE GLOW. “DeRosa is a truly tremendous artist pushing the envelope of a unique genre.” –DELUSIONS OF ADEQUACY. Also available: AARKTICA - Bleeding Light CD (Darla: DRL155), AARKTICA - Or You Could Just Go Through Your Whole Life And Be Happy Anyway.../Bliss Out v.18 CD (Darla: DRL121), AARKTICA - Pure Tone Audiometry CD (Silber: SIL026), AARKTICA - No Solace In Sleep CD (Silber: SIL012). Reviews: Delusions Of Adequacy | Almost Cool | Exclaim! | Gearwire | Erasing Clouds | Textura | NPR | The Silent Ballet | Losing Today (Italy) | Soundvenue (Denmark) | Autres Directions (France) | QRD (interview)

JAPANCAKES - Loveless  CD (Darla: DRL188: 708527018828)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Athens, GA's experimental, instrumental, Americana group, Japancakes cover My Bloody Valentine's classic Loveless record from start to finish with pedal steel and cello in place of vocal and lead melodies -- and without any distortion. MBV’s Loveless (Creation: 1991) remains the defining record of the genre and completely unparalleled by any artist since. Japancakes don't record together like other bands. They do play together but when they record in studio they do so one at a time. Each player writes their own part and adds it to the part(s) recorded previously by fellow band members. The result of this practice is that the personality of each individual player is often better captured. Each player's individual performance is strengthened by the technique. Japancakes is Eric Berg, rhythm guitar, Nick Belli, bass, Brant Rackley, drums, John Neff, pedal steel, Heather McIntosh, cello, Andy Baker, production. RIYL: My Bloody Valentine, Shoegaze, Electronica, Americana, Tortoise, Mogwai, Sigur Ros, Hammock, Santo & Johnny. TRACKLISTING: 1. Only Shallow, 2. Loomer, 3. Touched, 4. To Here Knows When, 5. When You Sleep, 6. I Only Said, 7. Come In Alone, 8. Sometimes, 9. Blown A Wish, 10. What You Want, 11. Soon. "Just got the Japancakes - Loveless promo. JEEZUS, when someone covers one of my favorite albums of all time, I stand up and take notice. Awesome piece of work which doesn't detract from the original one bit, and has it's own soul. Yes, you know each song as you hear it, but it's different enough to make clear how talented these folks are." --Dave/Ear Rational "Whether or not you believe in covers or tributes, or whether you're one of those cynics who thinks it risks the original being marred, I say fuck off; that instead it's an honour. This is the best tribute album since The Tallywood String Quartet's tribute to OK Computer." --THE SILENT BALLET Also available: JAPANCAKES –Belmondo: Bliss Out v.19 CD (Darla: DRL-123), JAPANCAKES -Giving Machines CD (Darla: DRL185). Reviews: Prefix | Mother Jones | Pitchfork | Rolling Stone | Popmatters | Erasing Clouds | 3hive | The Silent Ballet | Opuszine | Audiversity | Left Hip | Babysue | Almost Cool | Austinist | Entertainment Weekly | All Music Guide | Tiny Mix Tapes | Flagpole | Autres Directions | Yesterday:Today:Tomorrow | Panpot | Treblezine | Press Play, Record | Online Athens | AV Club | Soundvenue | Echoes | Dreampop Theatre | Aquarium Drunkard

JAPANCAKES - Giving Machines  CD (Darla: DRL185: 708527018521)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Darla is proud to offer a beautiful new record from Japancakes - Athens, GA's incomparable instrumental Pop/Americana quintet. Giving Machines features eight new trademark blissed-out yet solid as ever compositions uniquely brought to life by Japancakes' singing pedal steel guitar, cello, keyboards, guitar, bass, and drums. There's even a cover of Cocteau Twins' "Heaven Or Las Vegas" with pedal steel taking the place of Liz Frazer's vocals. Japancakes don't record together like other bands. They do play together but when they record in studio they do so one at a time. Each player writes their own part and adds it to the part(s) recorded previously by fellow band members. The result of this practice is that the personality of each individual player is often better captured. Each player's individual performance is strengthened by the technique. Japancakes is Eric Berg, rhythm guitar, Nick Belli, bass, Brant Rackley, drums, John Neff, pedal steel, Heather McIntosh, cello, Andy Baker, production. RIYL: Dreamy, lazy, stellar, Post Rock, Shoegaze, Electronica, Americana, Tortoise, Mogwai, Sigur Ros, Hammock, Santo & Johnny. Tracklisting: 1. Double Jointed, 2. Lalita, 3. Heaven Or Las Vegas, 4. Title, 5. The Enablers, 6. Recovering Australia, 7. Tracing Maps, 8. In Memory Of Honey. Total run time 42:45. "...a roots-inspired, beautifully crafted pop instrumental record that extracts feelings and emotions better than that of most "intimate" singer-songwriters." --IN MUSIC WE TRUST Also available: JAPANCAKES –Belmondo: Bliss Out v.19 CD (Darla: DRL-123), JAPANCAKES -Loveless CD (Darla: DRL188). Reviews: Prefix (blogspot) | Babysue | All Music Guide | Echoes | Austinist | Optical Atlas | Public Radio International | Popmatters | Prefix (review) | Almost Cool | Erasing Clouds | 3hive | Flagpole | The Silent Ballet | Flagpole interview | Amplifier | Press Play, Record | Online Athens

MANUAL - Lost Days, Open Skies and Streaming Tides  2XCD (Darla: DRL165: 708527016527)  $14.00

EXCLUSIVE.  The long awaited Manual double cd Lost Days, Open Skies and Streaming Tides – a collection of rarities, remixes, covers, unreleased pieces and brand new tracks – including a new collaboration with Cocteau Twins mainman Robin Guthrie. Spanning the period from 2002, around Ascend, up to now, this is a collection that covers the entire spectrum of Jonas Munks stylings; from the minimalist drone soundscapes, to the over-the-top 1980s influenced shoegazing electronica à la his masterpiece Azure Vista, from the sweet pop-influenced gems to abstract blissed-out timeless ambient. Munk’s trademarks are all over the 19 pieces on this double disc set: the highly adventurous sense of composition that is still so unheard of in electronic music – always taking the listener on a colourful journey instead of relying on repetitions like pretty much every other electronic artist -, the mix of well-programmed beats and electronics against surreal, shimmering, heavily treated guitars, and the sunbathed 1980s romantic melancholia that has become Jonas Munk’s signature sound. It is hard to think of a more perfect introduction to Munk’s music, and for fans of his work this is simply a must! All in all, Lost Days, Open Skies and Streaming Tides includes almost an hour worth of previously unreleased music. In Jonas’ own words: “Instead of compiling every single rarity out there or every unreleased piece in the drawer, I only wanted to include the stuff that I feel is absolutely up to standard with my best work, and I feel this collection is just as important and representative of what I want to do as my most celebrated works such as Azure Vista or Ascend”. Disc 1 represents the grandiose, super-layered, mesmerizing sounds that is familiar to fans of Azure Vista, Isares and Ascend, where firm, occasionally complex, beats melts together with moist and dreamy guitars, heavenly female vocals and headspinning old-school synths. It includes one of Manuals most beloved pieces, “Summer Haze”, as well as “Blue Skied’ an Clear”, the title track from 2002’s Slowdive tribute on Morr Music. It also includes previously unreleased remixes of Port Royal, Antenne and Australian pop group Suvome, and a cover of one of Jan Hammer’s original Miami Vice themes. On top of that there is a piece Jonas composed as a jingle for a Danish radio show, “Into The Blue”, a brand new collaboration with Robin Guthrie and three previously unreleased gems. Disc 2 represents the more minimal, guitar-drone side of Manual. This aspect of Jonas Munk’s work is less celebrated, but the few who appreciates it truly treasure albums like “The North Shore” and “Bajamar” as top-notch ambient works. These pieces, based on treated guitar work, blends classic ambient with minimalist classical music and processing experiments to create very unique sounds that are surreal yet warm and organic, and maintains Jonas’ insist on the compositional element. This side of his work has been compared to Manuel Göttsching, Arvo Pärt and Brian Eno, but it hardly does justice to its unique evocative qualities. “The River”, a 23 minute ultra-minimalist piece, was composed in 2003 for a Danish release but was withdrawn due to financial reasons. “Dizzy Sun” and “Seleva” has previously been released on Darla’s compilation series and is among Munk’s finest ambient work. Besides that disc 2 includes four previously unreleased pieces. Jonas Munk remains an extremely underrated artist, and practically unknown, but this collection is proof of his unique capabilities as a composer and producer, and brilliantly showcases his one-of-a-kind sound, that flirts with shoegazing, new romantic pop, electronica, and ambient, without belonging in either category. All in all two hours of music wrapped in deluxe eight panel digipack with artwork by Jakob Skøtt. The soundtrack for the summer! Praise for Manual: From his full-lengths, his 2001 debut, Until Tomorrow, and 2002’s Ascend; to his versions on the Morr Music tribute album to Slowdive, 2002’s Blue Skied an’ Clear; to his collaborative work with Jess Kahr and Jakob Skott (a.k.a. Syntaks), Munk is blurring lines between ambience and stadium rock. The tones Munk uses, the way he manipulates them, the construction of the songs themselves, show that he has a distinct ear. We should be thankful he is sharing his aural visions with us. They’re that special. -Prefix Magazine Out on its own limb, this is about as close to sublime as one can get. -Grooves Magazine Sonically, it’s Seefeel meets Sons And Fascination era Simple Minds meets Kevin Shields meets David Sylvian; in other words it inhabits a world where boundaries blur and where sounds collide and move within and around each other to make something instantly, comfortingly recognisable yet with an abstract sense of the new. -www.tangents.co.uk A painstaking labour of love that principally takes Durutti Column and the Cocteau Twins as its key templates and weaves their chiming matrix into a celebratory carnival of lush colour coded ambient structures of the type so rarely heard these days….all at once sensual, invigorating, heart stopping and quite simply perfect. -www.losingtoday.com Think of My Bloody Valentine, but lighter than air. Or think of what Air's soundtrack to The Virgin Suicides might have been like if they spent more time at the beach. Or think about Brian Eno, if he surfed and liked drinks with exotic names and umbrellas in them. Think about Tangerine Dream: their name even more than their sound. Think about the "shoegazers" gazing at a brillant blue ocean and jamming. Or think about that great wave of keyboards on the opening track of The Cure's Disintegration, but think of it not as an impending rainstorm but as a brilliant sun, a storm of sunbeams. Then think of all these things at once, and you've got a beautiful, awe-inducing force of nature. -Erasing Cluds Magazine The sonorous rebirth of electronica written on Manual's albums is neither luck nor accident; it's artistry, creativity and poise at their apex, and we're talking about a guy barely into his twenties. His signature stereo-panned percussion, for its chiming chaos, can't distract from the spectral, oceanic guitar work central to Manual's sound: with Ascend, Jonas Munk dispatched about half the electronic music released in the last five-plus years, filling the chill-out void left in Seefeel's wake. The musings of so many of his peers feel conceptually thin and prefabricated in comparison to Manual's wandering, curious anthems.... -Pitchfork Reviews: Babysue | Almost Cool | Erasing Clouds | Opuszine | Textura | Textura interview | Barcode | The Silent Ballet | Delusions of Adequacy | Soundvenue

v/a - LITTLE DARLA HAS A TREAT FOR YOU v.25: Endless Summer 2007-08 Edition  2XCD (Darla: DRL190: 708527019023)  $9.99

EXCLUSIVE.  The World’s most popular compilation series. 2xCD. 35 tracks (32 exclusive tracks). The package/artwork layout features beautiful rare fruit photos taken by members of the California Rare Fruit Growers club. Only from Darla, the musical paradise in the garden of eden. Features work by Darla family artists and labels. AARKTICA remixed by AARON SPECTRE, ATONE, AZ-ROTATOR, CALIFORNIA ORANGES, KEITH CANISIUS (aka RUMSKIB), CDATAKILL, COOPER, CORAZON, LINDA DRAPER, FOLLOW THE TRAIN, FRANK & WALTERS, FUTURE CONDITIONAL, STAFRAENN HAKON, HELL ON WHEELS, JAPANCAKES, JATUN, JUPITER APPLE, LAND OF ILL EARTHQUAKES, LIGHTS OUT ASIA, LULLATONE, MAHOGANY remixed by ULRICH SCHNAUSS, MIAOU, MY LITTLE AIRPORT, NUURO, PONIES IN THE SURF, PORT ROYAL, BLAINE REININGER, RF & LILI DE LA MORA, SECTION 25, SPRITES, SUBMERGED, DOT TAPE DOT, TREMBLING BLUE STARS, THE VOYCES, YELLOW6. TRACKLISTING: DISC 1: 1. AARKTICA “Arms” AARON SPECTRE remix (Darla) 4:50 Vista, CA. 2. ATONE "72 Mesures et Plus" (Autres Directions In Music) 3:42 Angers, France. 3. AZ-ROTATOR “Bioconductor” (Ad Noiseam) 4:45 4. CALIFORNIA ORANGES “Travel Writer” (Darla) 3:22 Sacramento, CA. 5. KEITH CANISIUS “The Sea me, feel me” (Darla) 6:50 Odense, Denmark. 6. CDATAKILL “You Are Mine” v.2 (Ad Noiseam) 3:55 7. COOPER “Canción de Viernes” (Elefant) 3:51 Leon, Spain. 8. CORAZON “La Fiebre de Carlos” (Elefant/Fifa) 3:12 Madrid, Spain. 9. LINDA DRAPER “Shine” Alternate version (Planting Seeds) 4:32 New York, NY. 10. FOLLOW THE TRAIN “219” (Darla) 7:34 Louisville, KY. 11. FRANK & WALTERS “Hold On” Milky Way Remix (Elefant) 3:49 Cork, Ireland. 12. FUTURE CONDITIONAL “Switchboard Girl” (LTM) 4:55 London, UK. 13. STAFRAENN HAKON “Sítrónudurgur” Revised version (Resonant) 4:44 Reykjavik, Iceland. 14. JAPANCAKES “Soft n EZ” Live (Darla) 7:19 Athens, GA. 15. JUPITER APPLE “The Homeless and the Jet” (Elefant) 11:32 Rio De Janero, Brasil. DISC 2: 1. HELL ON WHEELS “Gone Too Far” (Hybris) 3:04 Stockholm, Sweden. 2. LAND OF ILL EARTHQUAKES “Acres of Fakers” demo (Elefant) 2:49 Los Angeles, CA. 3. JATUN “Ion Crush” (Other Electricities) 2:51 Portland, OR. 4. LIGHTS OUT ASIA “Lights Out, Crying Planes” (n5MD) 5:20 Milwaukee, WI. 5. LULLATONE “Sleepytime Samba” Bossa nova version (Audio Dregs Recordings) 3:22 Nagoya, Japan. 6. MAHOGANY “Supervitesse” ULRICH SCHNAUSS Remix (Darla) 5:32 Brooklyn, NY. 7. MIAOU “Memories of a Petal” (Thomason Sounds) 6:18 Kanagawa, Japan. 8. MY LITTLE AIRPORT “Coka, I’m Fine” (Elefant) 1:52 Hong Kong, China. 9. NUURO “Temper Temper” (Soundsister) 2:11 Caracas, Venezuela. 10. PONIES IN THE SURF “Ventricle” (Darla) 2:17 Cambridge, MA. 11. PORT ROYAL "Eva Green" (Resonant) 4:12 Genova, Italy. 12. BLAINE REININGER “House of Atreus” (LTM) 3:21 Athens, Greece. 13. RF & LILI DE LA MORA “Moon Balloon” (Rowing At Sea) 4:37 San Francisco / Long Beach, CA. 14. SECTION 25 “Can’t Let Go” (LTM) 5:08 Blackpool, UK. 15. SPRITES “Pac Man Fever” (Darla) 3:33 Montclair, VA. 16. SUBMERGED “Predator” (Sublight) 4:31 New York, NY. 17. .tape. “Far Away” Little Treat Mix (Other Electricities) 3:49 Gijon, Asturias, Spain. 18. TREMBLING BLUE STARS “The Moon Turns Branches to Silhouettes” (Elefant) 3:26 London, UK. 19. THE VOYCES “You Shouldn’t Be Afraid of Heaven” (Planting Seeds) 2:35 New York, NY. 20. YELLOW6 “Encase” (Resonant/Make Mine Music) 6:03 Loughborough, UK. Reviews: Textura

MY MORNING JACKET - At Dawn & Tennessee Fire Demos Package  CD (Darla: DRL156: 708527015629)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  When Darla released My Morning Jacket's epic second record At Dawn the first 2500 CD and 1000 LP came with a bonus demos disc, which was like another, little At Dawn. It has long been out of print now and we frequently receive requests for it. The beloved demos disc is available once again with the addition of previously unreleased demo versions of key tracks from My Morning Jacket’s debut record The Tennessee Fire recording sessions, plus a few other gems recorded during the term that haven't yet seen the light of day including “Lil Billy”, which was a staple of My Morning Jacket’s live set but was never recorded in a studio. If you're an MMJ fan like Darla you're in for a real treat. Track list: Track list: 1. L.O.Z. Intro, 2. The Way That He Sings (demo), 3. Hopefully (demo), 4. Bermuda Highway (demo), 5. Just Because I Do (demo), 6. Lowdown (demo), 7. At Dawn (demo), 8. I Needed It Most (demo), 9. Lead Me Father (demo), 10. Phone Went West (demo), 11. Chills (demo), 12. Heartbreakin Man (demo), 13. The Bear (demo), 14. Picture Of You (demo), 15. I Think I'm Going To Hell (demo) 16. Butch Cassidy (demo), 17. War Begun (Live WFPK), 18. Twilight (Live WFPK), 19. Lil Billy (Live Nashvegas), 20. Magic Man. Reviews: Popmatters | Drowned In Sound | Stylus | Delusions Of Adequacy | An Aquarium Drunkard | Foxy Digitalis | Prefix | Erasing Clouds | Almost Cool

ROBIN GUTHRIE & HAROLD BUDD - After The Night Falls  CD (Darla: DRL182: 708527018224)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Darla is proud to offer a pair of companion piece CDs by two Masters, Robin Guthrie and Harold Budd. After The Night Falls and Before The Day Breaks are not ambient. Both are instrumental, absolutely beautiful and as emotionally charged as any previous work from either artist. The pair of albums complement one another, each track with its twin on the companion piece, the two conceived as experiments in the dualities of music and emotion. As with all classic recordings from the Masters the listener desires repeated listening to absorb their full sonic implications. This is soulful music that allows one to find that place within where peace and perspective are achieved. It moves effortlessly to erase the chatter of modern life and inspire meditation on things important. It may help the listener better see their way forward. Robin's trademark guitar sound and Harold's signature piano sound first came together when Harold collaborated with Cocteau Twins on The Moon and the Melodies LP (4AD), 1986. The record was as strikingly beautiful as it was popular. In fact, it was the romantic recording of the decade. Every young person in the 80s made love to it. Here again Guthrie and Budd's signature sounds are absolutely made for each other; in heaven. Actually, it was Budd's long-time collaborator Brian Eno who brought Harold and Robin together. Budd's first record was 1978's Pavilion of Dreams, produced by Brian Eno. That recording helped earn Budd the unwanted title "the Godfather of Ambient Music". Budd and Eno succeeded that record in 1980 with the follow-up to Eno's Ambient 1: Music for Airports -- Ambient 2: Plateaux of the Mirror, and collaborated again to release The Pearl in 1984. The three Budd/Eno records are cornerstones in the canon of ambient music. Budd went on to collaborate with John Foxx (the founder of Ultravox), Japan's David Sylvian, Public Image bassist Jah Wobble, Be Bop Deluxe guitarist Bill Nelson, XTC's Andy Partridge, and of course Cocteau Twin Robin Guthrie. As Guitarist/Producer of seminal band Cocteau Twins, producer of absolute classic masterpieces from Chapterhouse, Lush, A.R. Kane, and Felt, Robin's influence on pop music is legendary. He wasn't part of the Shoegaze scene. He is the genre's father. His production and collaboration credits are long. After The Moon and the Melodies Robin worked with Harold on his 1988 album The White Arcades. He recently wrote his first score and soundtrack with Harold Budd for Gregg Araki's Mysterious Skin. In addition to releasing Continental (Darla), Everlasting (Darla), and Waiting for Dawn (Rocket Girl) in 2006, Robin has recently played on and mixed tracks for Manual, Mahogany, Alsace Lorraine and Ulrich Schnauss. Robin lives in France with his wife and child. Harold lives in New Mexico with his wife and child. Track list: 1. How Distant Your Heart 2. Avenue of Shapes 3. Seven Thousand Sunny Years 4. She is My Strength 5. Inside, a Golden Echo 6. Open Book 7. And Then I Turned Away 8. The Girl with the Colorful Thoughts 9. Turn Off the Sun Reviews: The Independent | Harold Budd discography | Robin Guthrie discography | XLR8R Office Top 10: May 7, 2007 | Barcode | Somewhere Cold | Echoes | Babysue | Almost Cool | Textura | Amplifier | Lost At Sea | Delusions Of Adequacy | All About Jazz | Angry Ape | Left Hip | The Silent Ballet | NPR

ROBIN GUTHRIE & HAROLD BUDD - Before The Day Breaks  CD (Darla: DRL183: 708527018323)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Darla is proud to offer a pair of companion piece CDs by two Masters, Robin Guthrie and Harold Budd. After The Night Falls and Before The Day Breaks are not ambient. Both are instrumental, absolutely beautiful and as emotionally charged as any previous work from either artist. The pair of albums complement one another, each track with its twin on the companion piece, the two conceived as experiments in the dualities of music and emotion. As with all classic recordings from the Masters the listener desires repeated listening to absorb their full sonic implications. This is soulful music that allows one to find that place within where peace and perspective are achieved. It moves effortlessly to erase the chatter of modern life and inspire meditation on things important. It may help the listener better see their way forward. Robin's trademark guitar sound and Harold's signature piano sound first came together when Harold collaborated with Cocteau Twins on The Moon and the Melodies LP (4AD), 1986. The record was as strikingly beautiful as it was popular. In fact, it was the romantic recording of the decade. Every young person in the 80s made love to it. Here again Guthrie and Budd's signature sounds are absolutely made for each other; in heaven. Actually, it was Budd's long-time collaborator Brian Eno who brought Harold and Robin together. Budd's first record was 1978's Pavilion of Dreams, produced by Brian Eno. That recording helped earn Budd the unwanted title "the Godfather of Ambient Music". Budd and Eno succeeded that record in 1980 with the follow-up to Eno's Ambient 1: Music for Airports -- Ambient 2: Plateaux of the Mirror, and collaborated again to release The Pearl in 1984. The three Budd/Eno records are cornerstones in the canon of ambient music. Budd went on to collaborate with John Foxx (the founder of Ultravox), Japan's David Sylvian, Public Image bassist Jah Wobble, Be Bop Deluxe guitarist Bill Nelson, XTC's Andy Partridge, and of course Cocteau Twin Robin Guthrie. As Guitarist/Producer of seminal band Cocteau Twins, producer of absolute classic masterpieces from Chapterhouse, Lush, A.R. Kane, and Felt, Robin's influence on pop music is legendary. He wasn't part of the Shoegaze scene. He is the genre's father. His production and collaboration credits are long. After The Moon and the Melodies Robin worked with Harold on his 1988 album The White Arcades. He recently wrote his first score and soundtrack with Harold Budd for Gregg Araki's Mysterious Skin. In addition to releasing Continental (Darla), Everlasting (Darla), and Waiting for Dawn (Rocket Girl) in 2006, Robin has recently played on and mixed tracks for Manual, Mahogany, Alsace Lorraine and Ulrich Schnauss. Robin lives in France with his wife and child. Harold lives in New Mexico with his wife and child. Track list: 1. How Close Your Soul 2. A Formless Path 3. A Minute, A Day, No More 4. She is My Weakness 5. Outside, Silence 6. Hidden Message 7. I Returned Her Glance 8. My Monochrome Vision 9. Turn on the Moon Reviews: The Independent | Harold Budd discography | Robin Guthrie discography | XLR8R Office Top Ten: May 7, 2007 | Barcode | Somewhere Cold | Echoes | Babysue | Almost Cool | Textura | Amplifier | Lost At Sea | Delusions Of Adequacy | All About Jazz | Angry Ape | Left Hip | The Silent Ballet | NPR

RUMSKIB - s/t  CD (Darla: DRL164: 708527016428)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Darla is proud to release the debut record by Danish nu-gaze group Rumskib. Rumskib is the Odense, Denmark duo of Keith Canisius (Guitarist, Vocalist, Composer, Producer) and Tine Louise Kortermand (Singer). Keith produced the debut record with Jonas Munk (Manual), who programmed the beats, made the electronic sounds, and played synthesizer. Rumskib's debut record begins with a Simple Minds New Gold Dream style intro. A rough & repetitive MBV Loveless style guitar line kicks in. Next an aggressive baggy beat begins to pump making Rumskib sound nearly like Curve. Then a very lovely surprise: A very pretty, Lush style guitar change comes and simultaneously the wall of sound vocal harmonies begin -- like Emma, Miki... and Bjork! There's no denying Rumskib are derivative, however, Rumskib has such command of all the genre's key sound elements and their own pop songs are so damn good the band gloriously claim the new shoegaze sound as their own. Rumskib's sound is at once modern and classic, blending a strong love for early 90s shoegazer bands such as Chapterhouse and Lush with the sensibilities of grand Scandinavian 80s pop such as A-Ha and Roxette, all flavored with harsh noise-rock guitars and crunchy micro-programmed beats. Sometimes their sound is up-tempo, almost danceable like The Cardigans meet St. Etienne. At other times their sound is thick, heavy, and romantic recalling The Cocteau Twins or Simple Minds. Rumskib manage to be both surrealist and accessible; complex but straight forward. Vocalist Tine Louise creates harmonies so beautiful one would think they came from some mysterious wonderland (or Victorialand?) and Keith Canisius' lyrical call & response guitar playing is intelligent and evocative. Combine all this with well crafted compositions and Jonas Munk's trademark head-spinning, multi-layered sound sculptures, and you've got a work of undeniable beauty. Track list: 01. Hearts On fire, 02. Springtime, 03. Dreampoppers Tribute, 04. Where Are The Flowers, 05. Ferris Wheel Blackout, 06. Think Eyes Away, 07. You're My Japan, 08. Sneak, 09. Crucial Love Games, 10. Ovation Outsiders, 11. Girl Afraid, 12. Love At First Sight. "This is great stuff indeed. Her voice sounds amazing and it´s such good melodies" --ULRICH SCHNAUSS ""Re-evokes my dancing feet with the fragrance of Liz Fraser insanity there on top.. humm..There' s some serious celebration going on in Scandinavia now." --SERENA MANEESH ""Springtime" kills, kills again, and then kills some more. And then bathes in in the blood of its own awesomeness." --JATUN Reviews: Angry Ape interview | Press Play Record | Opuszine | Erasing Clouds | The Speed of Silence | Breakfast of Champions Thursday, WMBR | No Ripcord | Built on a Weak Spot | It's A Trap! | Kultunaut | Artificially Important | Textura | Almost Cool | Delusions Of Adequacy | Stylus | Chain DLK | Foxy Digitalis | Geiger (Danish) | Press Play Records interview | Treblezine

ALSACE LORRAINE - Dark One  CD (Darla: DRL178: 708527017821)  $12.00

EXCLUSIVE.  Alsace Lorraine is the Uber Dream Pop of Paul Francke and friends. On Dark One Alsace Lorraine sound even more romantic, thoughtful, sensuous, and smart than ever; adding a bit of folky Americana and narcotic Dub to their sound. Our favorite vocalist on Earth, Argentinean Singer/Artist Isol (Entre Rios) joined Alsace Lorraine to sing on six of the album’s 13 tracks, plus on both remixes of course. Isol sings here in English for the very first time! Isol also helped Paul brainstorm the construction of the lyrics and music. Caitlin Brice, who sang on the first Alsace Lorraine record, sings backing vocals here on one track. Dark One features fantastic remixes by Ian Catt (St. Etienne) and Robin Guthrie (Cocteau Twins). The result of Paul & Isol’s work together is a unique blending of Astrud Gilberto, St. Etienne, Eurythmics, Pale Saints, Magnetic Fields, Lee Scratch Perry, a Latinesque Hope Sandoval, and perhaps at times a whisper of Nancy & Lee. Work on the sophomore album Dark One began at Paul’s home studio on the south side of Chicago and was completed in Campbeltown, Kintyre, Scotland. Between those points, Paul worked on the record in a divinity school dormitory in Alexandria, VA. Isol's exotic, sensual vocals were recorded in her bedroom studio in Buenos Aires. Paul and Isol will definitely make more beautiful music together. There are plans for Ian Catt to produce the next record for Darla, and to include work by Hewson Chen (Vitesse, the New Lines), who played on the first album. Track list: 1. As We Fight, 2. Dulce et Decorum, 3. Call for Papers, 4. The Tall Grass, 5. Lost Province, 6. One Day, Far Off, If the World Forgot, 7. The Senile Rings, 8. Claire, 9. Stormy Sky (Skate or Die), 10. Burden Down, 11. Go From My Window (Flooded Interstate), 12. No Stars, 13. Call for Papers (Ian Catt mix), 14. The Gravel Dew, 15. The Tall Grass (Robin Guthrie mix). "I love this album! See, this is exactly the kind of stuff I want to listen to when spring starts coming around." --MANUAL “Much of the most moving, long-lasting music succeeds at capturing a certain feeling of transcendence . . . the sense of newness found when hovering between sleep and awakeness, when seeing a breathtaking sunset or while kissing someone for the first time. If all too many musicians seek this sort of dreamlike state of freedom through new-age ambient swirls or retro-hippie jamming, Alsace Lorraine manage to grasp it within the confines of the three-minute pop song. It's quite a feat, and their debut album Through Small Windows is filled with gorgeous, comforting pop songs that carry with them the aura of being something truly special.” --POPMATTERS Reviews: Erasing Clouds interview | Erasing Clouds review | Opuszine | Shake Your Fist | Babysue |