PROMISED LAND - 'YES YOU CAN (LIVE AT THIRD MAN)'

Formats

• TMR207 - 7"

Details

Third Man is proud to present the first vinyl release from one of our favorite local bands recorded live in our blue room as openers for Seasick Steve this past October. Promised Land are one of the most promising (see what we did there?) bands in Nashville right now. They're all youthful scruff and bluff and they crank out tunes that would be right at home in Link Wray's 3 Track Shack or hanging with the specters of long lost 45s that haunt Nashville's overflowing legend filled cemeteries. Pay attention y'all, there's big things coming from this gang. In third man live sleeve.

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COOL GHOULS - 'S/T'

Formats

• EMP016 - LP

  655035018614

Details

First things first: COOL GHOULS are not a retro act. If you seek musical salvation in the form of mop-topped mannequins with vintage riffs and hand-me-down rags, please stop reading. Yes, the Cool Ghouls borrowed their name from George Clinton's Funkadelic-era pre-show banter. Yes, they dwell penniless in the storied hills of culturally resurgent San Francisco. But these boys have their feet firmly planted in the soil of the now. They look not backwards for approving nods of hipster forebears, but rather skyward, hoping that the ?supernatural forces? they yodel for, guide them to all corners of a half-deserving world. Truth be told, this being their first official release, they may even be a bit na?ve in their dogged pursuit of the true-blue, home-spun, rock and roll lifestyle. If one were to ascribe to them a 60's-reverent description, as one often does in the case of San Francisco bands, one would most likely find an artistic kinship with some the most inimitable, idiosyncratic, yet unmistakably influential bands of the retro-fitting oeuvre. The Troggs, The Monks, Sir Douglas Quintet come to mind immediately. (Save your Kinks and Rolling Stones references.) Like the aforementioned, the Ghouls are natural heirs to the folkloric lineage which precedes them, adding dashes of weirdness where needed. And despite their mid-fi leanings and natural fit within the current pantheon of San Francisco rock ?n roll bands (Thee Oh Sees, Ty Segall), theirs is a timeless record, which will hopefully transcend the descriptors (garage, psych, etc.) that will undoubtedly plague it in the blogosfear. The reason being?they write good SONGS. These young men have honed their three-headed vocal attack in front of ambitious and unexpected chord progressions, an unrelenting rhythm section, and a keen ear for harmony. Theirs is a trifecta of songwriting styles, ranging from the raspy, rambling psychedelic soul of longhair PAT MCDONALD ("Grace"), to the high yonder twang of bassist PAT THOMAS ("Natural Life"), to the boisterous, fever-pitched, perfect pop of lead guitarist RYAN WONG. Despite the seeming disparity between styles, the Ghouls make it work. Theirs is a truly democratic song-making process, wherein all members are eager to contribute their most zealous performances. Hence, the debut record, an adventurous, colorful romp seen through the eyes of old-souled youths, feels wholly coherent and intentional. The self-assuredness of their songwriting is evident. And no, the Ghouls are not afraid to wear their influences on their sleeves; this is partly what makes the record so digestible. It doesn't claim to be anything other than what it is; a record for now, a record for then, and a record for forever.??Tim Cohen

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THE STABS - 'DIRT'

Formats

• HOMELESS3 - LP

Details

Vinyl LP only, includes download code. After forming nearly ten years ago, Melbourne band, The Stabs, didn't so much burst onto any scene, they burst dramatically all over several. Despite the band's best intentions, they quickly developed a notoriety for violence, both musical and literal. Driven by a perfectionism that they felt was lost on their audience, shows often exploded into a masochistic orgy of self-destruction. The band's frustration at their own perceived shortcomings causing damage to equipment and eardrums, whilst audience members cheered in the false assumption that The Stabs were intentionally about the spectacle of discordance, implosion, self-loathing, ataxia, drug abuse, and danger music. Heroically, the members of the band staid the course, desperate to prove that their musical vision was sound (double entendre intended). Within a few years, the band managed to turn their reputation from disastrous train wreck to world-class exponents of a uniquely Australian form of rock music, that curious entanglement of punk, blues, noise, and swamp pioneered by bands such as The Scientists, Birthday Party, and Lubricated Goat. Having made their point on stages across Australia, The Stabs took to the world stage from 2006, playing throughout the United States alongside Mudhoney, Lubricated Goat and numerous other acts, even once appearing in Taiwan on a festival stage headlined by Placebo and Tricky. They were Mick Harvey's pick for the inaugural ATP at Mt Buller. Unbeaten and undiminished, The Stabs impressed all-comers with their tight devotion to ear-splitting intensity... And songs. Unlike many groups which have preceded and followed, this band have always been a songs-based act. Underneath quivering slabs of feedback, the gut-wrenching rumble of bass, and punishing percussion, an almost incongruous pop sensibility still manages to emerge. With the release on vinyl of The Stabs first two full-length albums, this is what listeners can expect. Equal parts sonic bliss and aural castigation. Putting their days of wanton chaos and self-sabotage far behind them, and with the assistance of Homeless Records, 2006?s "Dirt" and 2009's "Dead Wood" are available for the first time on The Stabs preferred format, black vinyl. With this double release, The Stabs are proud to announce that they are not dead (once again, double entendre intended). The Stabs have done their penance, now it?s up to you - punish yourself!

Tracks

1. The Woods / The Rain (3:31) 2. Never Going Home (2:16) 3. Black Widow (5:57) 4. Six Foot Rodent (4:17) 5. The City (3:36) 6. Don?t Remember Much (2:33) 7. Digging (2:14) 8. Patriot Song (6:09)

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THE STABS - 'DEAD WOOD'

Formats

• HOMELESS4 - LP

Details

Really excited to be working with HOMELESS Records out of Melbourne? heres the first fruits of our labour?. After forming nearly ten years ago, Melbourne band, The Stabs, didn't so much burst onto any scene, they burst dramatically all over several. Despite the band's best intentions, they quickly developed a notoriety for violence, both musical and literal. Driven by a perfectionism that they felt was lost on their audience, shows often exploded into a masochistic orgy of self-destruction. The band's frustration at their own perceived shortcomings causing damage to equipment and eardrums, whilst audience members cheered in the false assumption that The Stabs were intentionally about the spectacle of discordance, implosion, self-loathing, ataxia, drug abuse, and danger music. Heroically, the members of the band staid the course, desperate to prove that their musical vision was sound (double entendre intended). Within a few years, the band managed to turn their reputation from disastrous train wreck to world-class exponents of a uniquely Australian form of rock music, that curious entanglement of punk, blues, noise, and swamp pioneered by bands such as Scientists, Birthday Party, and Lubricated Goat. Having made their point on stages across Australia, The Stabs took to the world stage from 2006, playing throughout the United States alongside Mudhoney, Lubricated Goat and numerous other acts, even once appearing in Taiwan on a festival stage headlined by Placebo and Tricky. They were Mick Harvey's pick for the inaugural ATP at Mt Buller. Unbeaten and undiminished, The Stabs impressed all-comers with their tight devotion to ear-splitting intensity... And songs. Unlike many groups which have preceded and followed, this band have always been a songs-based act. Underneath quivering slabs of feedback, the gut-wrenching rumble of bass, and punishing percussion, an almost incongruous pop sensibility still manages to emerge. With the release on vinyl of The Stabs first two full-length albums, this is what listeners can expect. Equal parts sonic bliss and aural castigation. Putting their days of wanton chaos and self-sabotage far behind them, and with the assistance of Homeless Records, 2006?s "Dirt" and 2009's "Dead Wood" are available for the first time on The Stabs preferred format, black vinyl. With this double release, The Stabs are proud to announce that they are not dead (once again, double entendre intended). The Stabs have done their penance, now it?s up to you - punish yourself!

Tracks

1. Dead Wood (3:38) 2. Split Lips (3:16) 3. No Hoper (4:07) 4. Ain?t That The News (3:06)

5. Yellow Blues (3:36) 6. Funeral Waltz (3:40) 7. The Hated One (2:29) 8. Family Trust (3:57)

9. Cabin Fever (5:00) 10. Blues In F# (3:45)

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