Фирма Jagjaguwar

Artist: Oneida Label: Jagjaguwar

Artist: Minus Story Label: Jagjaguwar

Artist: Volcano Choir Label: Jagjaguwar

Artist: Diana Label: Jagjaguwar

LIGHTNING DUST - the duo comprised of Amber Webber and Josh Wells - tends to thrive in the spirit of change. 2007's self-titled debut was a hushed, intricate folk affair, while 2009's "Infinite Light" found a middle ground between SUICIDE and FLEETWOOD MAC era pop. So when they geared up to make the music that would become "Fantasy", the pair was looking for a new sonic stamp. LIGHTNING DUST's third proper full length finds its inspiration in skeletal synth pop,modern R&B beats, the films of John Carpenter and - in accordance with LIGHTNING DUST's only longstanding rule - absolute minimalism. The core of "Fantasy" lies as much in the songwriting as in its sonics, and begins with tools familiar to Webber and Wells: her acoustic guitar and his Wurlitzer piano. They worked to distill the arrangements to just the few key elements that were necessary to make the feel right, and through countless hours of labor in The Balloon Factory - their Vancouver studio - the songs found their way to a sonic palette more squarely electronic than either expected. The first product of this experiment was "Never Again" which was previously featured on a 7" in 2011 and now closes the new album. It is a menacing, almost gothic electro-pop churner, marching from an oscillating beat to an anthemic thunderstorm of synth textures. Like many of its cohorts, the song came together slowly: beginning with a barebones acoustic demo and honed through their new sonic prism, "Never Again" became not only a bouncing synth opus but a thesis statement of sorts for "Fantasy". Knowing now where they were going, the path began to take shape. The duo was keen to use a purely synthetic palette for "Fantasy", but instead of toiling away in front of a computer, Wells armed himself with an MPC 2000 - a cumbersome, outdated machine, but one that proved to be the perfect tool to keep the spirit of absolute minimalism alive in their new musical terrain. The time-honored producer's weapon of choice became Wells' entrance to the world of programming, one that empowered him to work by feel alone. Webber, meanwhile, mined the freedom she felt singing along to records as a child, and strove to write vocal melodies and sing with a more extroverted pop sensibility. The hooks are apparent, and Webber sings with a self-assurance that belies the extent to which "Fantasy" marks a new, uncharted sonic space for the band. By beginning at the end, LIGHTNING DUST has delivered an album that informs their sound in remarkable new ways. "Fantasy" is a hypnotic, exciting record, recklessly new without sacrificing the rich atmosphere that makes LIGHTNING DUST who they are. "Loaded Gun" is a robotic riot grrrl anthem, while "Agatha" stands tall as an ominous lullaby. "Fire, Flesh and Bone" recalls the best cinematic new wave ballads, while acoustic heartbreaker "Moon" makes the rest of the world disappear. And so while LIGHTNING DUST's destination was never an exact place, "Fantasy" is as vivid a place as you've ever imagined. Style: Independent

Artist: Lightning Dust Label: JAGJAGUWAR

The cover of Brooklyn-based SMALL BLACK's second LP, "Limits of Desire", features a photo of a man and a woman embracing on either side of a ladder, completely naked, divided by its triangular arc. They're close, but they can't get any closer. It's a moving depiction of connectivity and interaction in the 21st century and it serves as a sort of source code for the record. "Limits of Desire" is Small Black's most accomplished album yet. It's a crystalline realization of a sound they've been building toward since their self-titled EP in 2009. Now a full-time four piece, Josh Hayden Kolenik (keys, vocals), Ryan Heyner (guitar, keys, vocals), Juan Pieczanski (bass, guitar) and Jeff Curtin (drums, percussion), the band have moved way beyond the hazy home recorded sound of their previous releases toward a full-fledged, but still self-produced, clear approach. Where 2010's "New Chain" was a lesson in maximalist pop, "Limits of Desire" finds the band trimming their sound to the essentials, yet hitting new and unexpected heights with the addition of live drums, electric guitar and trumpet to the existing SMALL BLACK palette. Tonally the songs sweep and glide over lush keys, bolstered by lyrics that illustrate the semi-abstract moments of lost opportunities and misread signs, hinted at by the cover image. The title track whirls softly, and channels luminaries TEARS FOR FEARS and THE BLUE NILE, anchored by Pieczanski's punchy bass as Kolenik sings: "Other lives droned/ far from the grass where I lay/ each eye stared out the opposite way." As much as the record is about looking for deeper connections, it's also about avoiding real life, if only for a moment-getting out of your own head just long enough to calm down and find perspective. "Free At Dawn" and "No Stranger" do what fans have come to love SMALL BLACK for, only better. They're smart pop bangers tinged with a specific brand of melancholy that slowly build to night-affirming climaxes. While "Breathless" ups the tempo, over synth stabs, with lyrics that tackle apathy and uncertainty with catchy grace: "I'm standing in tomorrow's way/ future's fine/least it seems okay." It paints a concise portrait of a generation struggling with unlimited freedom and malaise. The band builds on a rich history of synth pop by making a thoroughly modern album, on both the front and back end. One that seeks out cohesion, connection and calm in a world that won't sit still. "Limits of Desire" doesn't attempt to provide any solutions, but coming to terms with not finding the answers feels infinitely more fruitful. Style: Indie-Pop

The cover of Brooklyn-based SMALL BLACK's second LP, "Limits of Desire", features a photo of a man and a woman embracing on either side of a ladder, completely naked, divided by its triangular arc. They're close, but they can't get any closer. It's a moving depiction of connectivity and interaction in the 21st century and it serves as a sort of source code for the record. "Limits of Desire" is Small Black's most accomplished album yet. It's a crystalline realization of a sound they've been building toward since their self-titled EP in 2009. Now a full-time four piece, Josh Hayden Kolenik (keys, vocals), Ryan Heyner (guitar, keys, vocals), Juan Pieczanski (bass, guitar) and Jeff Curtin (drums, percussion), the band have moved way beyond the hazy home recorded sound of their previous releases toward a full-fledged, but still self-produced, clear approach. Where 2010's "New Chain" was a lesson in maximalist pop, "Limits of Desire" finds the band trimming their sound to the essentials, yet hitting new and unexpected heights with the addition of live drums, electric guitar and trumpet to the existing SMALL BLACK palette. Tonally the songs sweep and glide over lush keys, bolstered by lyrics that illustrate the semi-abstract moments of lost opportunities and misread signs, hinted at by the cover image. The title track whirls softly, and channels luminaries TEARS FOR FEARS and THE BLUE NILE, anchored by Pieczanski's punchy bass as Kolenik sings: "Other lives droned/ far from the grass where I lay/ each eye stared out the opposite way." As much as the record is about looking for deeper connections, it's also about avoiding real life, if only for a moment-getting out of your own head just long enough to calm down and find perspective. "Free At Dawn" and "No Stranger" do what fans have come to love SMALL BLACK for, only better. They're smart pop bangers tinged with a specific brand of melancholy that slowly build to night-affirming climaxes. While "Breathless" ups the tempo, over synth stabs, with lyrics that tackle apathy and uncertainty with catchy grace: "I'm standing in tomorrow's way/ future's fine/least it seems okay." It paints a concise portrait of a generation struggling with unlimited freedom and malaise. The band builds on a rich history of synth pop by making a thoroughly modern album, on both the front and back end. One that seeks out cohesion, connection and calm in a world that won't sit still. "Limits of Desire" doesn't attempt to provide any solutions, but coming to terms with not finding the answers feels infinitely more fruitful. CD, Album

Recorded in a beautiful and isolated house in the Yorkshire Dales, "Fain" is the sound of a band at the peak of their creative powers. It's an honest and natural album that allows its stories, its melodies, its themes and structures to breathe. The album Style: Rock

Recorded in a beautiful and isolated house in the Yorkshire Dales, "Fain" is the sound of a band at the peak of their creative powers. It's an honest and natural album that allows its stories, its melodies, its themes and structures to breathe. The album Style: Rock

THE BESNARD LAKES' "Until in Excess, Imperceptible UFO" had its humble beginnings in mid-2011 and was completed over the course of a year. Ever mindful and attentive to the most subtle and nuanced details, founding band members Jace Lasek and Olga Goreas produced, recorded and mixed at the stalwart Breakglass Studios in Montreal with long time band mates Kevin Laing and Richard White. Eventually mastered by the renowned Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound, this fourth album by THE BESNARD LAKES' features heavyweight additions by MOONFACE's Spencer Krug and Mike Bigelow, THE BARR BROTHERS' Sarah Page, the always enchanting Monica Guenter and the return of FIFTH STRING LIBERATION SINGERS' Choir. The story of the album unfolds its introspection on the endurance of the human spirit during prophetic times as told by a spy or two, maybe more. Each of the eight tracks on the album takes off, coasts, and lands smoothly, with a jubilant slowburn of its own momentum for the benefit of the larger picture. THE BESNARD LAKES create a distinct and dreamy headspace, an enigmatic and somehow familiar placelessness. It happens in such a way that both the close and casual listener find themselves immersed in the generous sonic vision, one moment as timeless as the next. "A magnificently oceanic meld of Beach Boys harmonies,My Bloody Valentine tidal waves and Phil Spector girl-group siren songs shot through with soaring guitar." - Rolling Stone "Right now no one is making music this grand, this big, this moving with so much assurance." - Chicago Tribune "Nothing short of beautiful."- NME Style: Independent

Artist: Besnard Lakes Label: Jagjaguwar

There's no tomorrow / Set a place at the table" If every story is a story about love, what of suffering, surrender, and redemption? Life says they're in there too. Along with traffic jams and dishes, jobs and sunsets and spilling all the red wine on the floor. All of it. "Naomi", the fourth record from Northwestern mystics THE CAVE SINGERS, is a totem to these things: the every-, any-, all- ways always of life. Written over the span of ten months and recorded in one, it bears a new and more expansive production style that captures the live performance energy the band has developed over the past five years. The disc was engineered and produced at Avast Studios in Seattle by Phil Ek (FLEET FOXES, BUILT TO SPILL, THE SHINS, MODEST MOUSE). Each song on the album functions like a chapter in a bigger story, addressing themes of the past, exhuming the memories under moonlight. There are songs Style: Independent

There's no tomorrow / Set a place at the table" If every story is a story about love, what of suffering, surrender, and redemption? Life says they're in there too. Along with traffic jams and dishes, jobs and sunsets and spilling all the red wine on the floor. All of it. "Naomi", the fourth record from Northwestern mystics THE CAVE SINGERS, is a totem to these things: the every-, any-, all- ways always of life. Written over the span of ten months and recorded in one, it bears a new and more expansive production style that captures the live performance energy the band has developed over the past five years. The disc was engineered and produced at Avast Studios in Seattle by Phil Ek (FLEET FOXES, BUILT TO SPILL, THE SHINS, MODEST MOUSE). Each song on the album functions like a chapter in a bigger story, addressing themes of the past, exhuming the memories under moonlight. There are songs Style: Independent

Artist: Julie Doiron Label: Jagjaguwar (Cargo Records)

"II builds on the break-beat, junk-shop charm the 32-year-old multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Ruban Nielson came to be renowned for following Unknown Mortal Orchestra's self-titled 2011 debut, and signals the solidification of the band's position as Record Label: Jagjaguwar Style: Psychedelic Rock

Artist: Unknown Mortal Orchestra Label: Jagjaguwar

Artist: Foxygen Label: Jagjaguwar

Artist: Foxygen Label: Jagjaguwar

MERCHANDISE are a trio from Tampa, FL. Having formed in 2008, the band has evolved steadily yet remained the same core group of collaborators playing music that generally falls under the vague umbrella of "post-punk." It's members have toured the country for years and years, playing storage units and basements around the country in bands such as CULT RITUAL and NEON BLUD. "Children of Desire," the band's second formal LP, is also their most fully-realized statement to date. Entirely self-recorded and self-produced in the band's Tampa home, the record sees the band expanding their sonic palette in a unique and assured way. Uptempo pop numbers and dance-friendly post-punk tracks blend seemlessly with explorations into maudlin balladry, krautrock texture, and lots of noise. ,Here, it's merely a reminder that, for Merchandise, the bright lights are most definitely on." - PITCHFORK.com Style: Independent