Purchase log picks, third quarter 2023

[Jason Isbell - Southeastern (10th Anniversary Edition)

SYML, SYML
Barcelona, Absolutes

OK, I confess: I started listening to Brian Fennell because he showed up in my social media feed, and thought, “Oh, he’s really cute.” So yes, there may be a halo effect to my becoming a stan. But Fennell has had a diverse career so far. As part of the trio Barcelona, he sang powerfully in front of a driving guitars. By the time he released the self-titled debut album as SYML, that rock vocabulary expanded to include electronics. SYML and Absolutes are the best of Fennell’s early works.

Soundtrack, Star Trek Voyager: The Caretaker

I’m ambivalent about Star Trek as a whole, but do not doubt my devotion to Star Trak: Voyager. Most of that fandom was driven by a crush on Garrett Wang, but I really liked how Voyager felt grittier than other series in the franchise. Jay Chattaway’s scores for the series did their job girding what was happening onscreen, so subconsciously, I perceived there were some avant-grade gestures going on. I didn’t realize the extent till this soundtrack laid it all bare. So much so, Jerry Goldsmith’s theme song feels anachronistic next to it.

Vagabon, Sorry I Haven’t Called

This album is the first of three I’m anticipating in 2023. The others are Water Made Us by Jamila Woods and LAHAI by Sampha. I don’t get the impression Vagabon strayed too far from what made her previous album appealing, and that’s fine with me.

Explosions in the Sky, End

Seven years have passed since the previous Explosions in the Sky album, and they too have made made drastic renovations to their sound, similar to labelmate Eluvium. End actually has some conventional song structures — shocker! — and electronics figure much more heavily this time around. The album starts of strong, but it does flag in the second half.

Jason Isbell, Southeastern (10th Anniversary Edition)

I could go on about how the the live and demo versions of this breakout album provides context and whatever else reviewers prattle on about, but I am a gay man who is not above listening to music performed by an attractive guy. And Isbell is a smoke show on the updated cover of Southeastern.

The Replacements, Tim: Let It Bleed Edition

Hey, you know the guy who produced Living Colour’s debut album Vivid? He updated the mix of the Replacements’ major label debut, and it sounds pretty damn good.

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Purchase log, 2022-09-26

[Paula Cole - This Fire]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

New releases

CD
  • Andy Taylor, Man’s a Wolf to Man
  • Kylie Minogue, Tension

Catalog

Vinyl
  • Omar Apollo, Stereo

Reissues

CD
  • The Replacements, Tim: Let It Bleed Edition
Vinyl
  • Paula Cole, This Fire
  • Shakira, MTV Unplugged

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Purchase log, 2023-09-12

[The Postal Service - Everything Will Change]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

New releases

CD
  • The Postal Service, Everything Will Change

Catalog

CD
  • Fritz Kreisler, Kreisler Plays Kreisler
  • Girl in a Coma, Exits and All the Rest
  • Shriekback, Go Bang!
  • Various Artists, Ministry of Sound: The Ibiza Annual Mixed By Judge Jules and Boy George
Vinyl
  • Club Nouveau, Under a Nouveau Groove
  • The Dream Syndicate, Out of the Grey

Reissues

Vinyl
  • Prince, Graffiti Bridge

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Purchase log, 2023-08-22

[R.E.M. - Accelerate]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

Catalog

CD
  • Deer Tick, Divine Providence
  • Franz Josef Haydn, The London Symphonies (Sir Colin Davis, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra)
  • Kenny Chesney, Be As You Are: Songs from an Old Blue Chair
  • Kenny Chesney, When the Sun Goes Down
  • Murder By Death, Bitter Drink, Bitter Moon
  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, The 6 Haydn Quartets (Melos Quartet)
Vinyl
  • MF Doom, MM..Food?
  • The National, High Violet

Reissues

Vinyl
  • R.E.M., Accelerate

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Purchase log, 2023-08-01

[Sinéad O'Connor - Gospel Oak EP]

I catalog my music purchases on Collectorz and Discogs, but they don’t give me a sense of change over time. So I’m noting them here weekly as well.

Catalog

CD
  • Don Caballero, World Class Listening Problem
  • Lina, Stranger on Earth
  • Sinėad O’Connor, Gospel Oak EP
  • The Donnas, Gold Medal
  • Tiësto, In Search of Sunrise 6: Ibiza
  • Soundtrack, Star Trek Voyager: The Caretaker
  • Various Artists, Hal Wilner Presents Weird Nightmare: Meditations on Mingus

Reissues

Vinyl
  • Rufus Wainwright, Want One

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