What do I have to do to send you home in a UFO today? Now hear me out, dear buyer here at Area 51 Motors, because I know what you’re thinking—UFO was a very good English heavy metal band that put out some very good albums back in the seventies, but nowadays they’re a big name only in places outside our solar system.

And the best of them (1977’s Lights Out) isn’t even on the lot! I sold it to a Hawkwind fan who obviously had it confused with UFO’s rather desultory foray into space rock, 1971’s UFO 2: Flying. (Hey, this UFO salesmen can’t afford to have scruples—he’s got a wife and kids!)

But here’s the thing—for a couple of years in America’s bicentennial decade UFO, thanks in large part to the fancy fretmanship of wunderkind Hun guitarist and Scorpions defector Michael Schenker, produced some tasty and surprisingly melodic heavy metal that deserved better than it got. And what we’re looking at here (feel free to give the tires a kick) is my personal favorite, 1975’s Force It. As you can tell just by looking it’s cherry. Only one previous owner, a kindly little old lady who only drove it to Black Sabbath shows on black sabbath.

If you have a bathroom plumbing fetish, the shiny stainless steel fixtures on the cover are a real turn on, and if you’re more of a traditionalist there are also a couple of the members of Throbbing Gristle going at it hot and heavy amidst all the gleaming German steel and blinding white porcelain, although the powers that be in the US MADE THEM TRANSPARENT so if you bought the album in the states you basically got shafted by puritanism. But lucky for you, the baby you’re looking at is an import!

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Rhino continues the career-spanning archival series honoring Robert Hunter’s work as a solo artist with a deluxe reissue of his 1975 studio album, Tiger Rose. While Hunter is widely revered as the primary lyricist for the Grateful Dead, this series explores the depth of his solo work, offering a renewed appreciation for his exceptional artistry. Tiger Rose (50th Anniversary Editions) will be available on March 28 from Rhino as a 2-CD (Deluxe Edition), as well as a 1-LP and digitally.

Originally released in March 1975, the Jerry Garcia-produced Tiger Rose features contributions from Garcia, Mickey Hart, and Donna Jean Godchaux. The Tiger Rose (50th Anniversary Editions) have been remastered from the original analog tapes by GRAMMY® Award-Winning Engineer David Glasser using Plangent Processes tape restoration and speed correction. The 2-CD Deluxe Edition introduces a freshly remastered version of the original album alongside nine previously unreleased alternate versions of album tracks.

In the Deluxe Edition liner notes, Jesse Jarnow (author, DJ, and cohost of the “Good Ol’ Grateful Deadcast”) deftly captures the essence of the album: “Complex and inviting, the world of Tiger Rose overflows with Hunter’s lyrical signatures, painting new corners of the already wide landscape he’d begun to map with the Dead. There are stacks of simple and beguiling images (“Dance A Hole”), cosmic advice (“One Thing To Try”), dispatches from mystical landscapes (“Rose Of Sharon”), and folkloric characters (“Wild Bill”).”

Robert Hunter’s Tiger Rose Rarities will also be available as a 1LP exclusively at select independent music retailers as a part of Record Store Day 2025 on April 12. Find your nearest participating retailer HERE.

VIA PRESS RELEASE | On April 18, 2025, Mercury Studios will release a 3LP package of the South Park 25th Anniversary Concert.

Recorded over two nights on August 9 and 10, 2022 at the famed Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado, this concert features performances from South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, along with Primus and Ween. Also included is a special performance of “Closer to The Heart” with Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson from the band Rush.

Featuring performances of fan favorites from the South Park TV series, films South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, Team America: World Police, and Cannibal! The Musical, this triple LP spans the creative life of Trey Parker and Matt Stone with help from Primus and Ween.

Previously released for April 2024’s Record Store Day as an individually numbered limited edition “Towelie Blue” 3LP package, the South Park 25th Anniversary Concert was one of the hottest titles for RSD, with copies selling out at most retailers within minutes of opening. This new version will be available to all retailers and is being pressed on black vinyl.

VIA PRESS RELEASE | In 1964, one year before A Charlie Brown Christmas brought cartoonist Charles M. Schulz’s PEANUTS® to TV screens across America, the Vince Guaraldi Trio breathed life into its beloved characters through a series of now-iconic cues. Originally intended to accompany the ill-fated Schulz documentary A Boy Named Charlie Brown, the music was instead released as an album, Jazz Impressions of a Boy Named Charlie Brown, while many of the cues (most notably “Linus and Lucy”) would appear in animated specials over the following decade, as the franchise exploded in popularity.

Now, Craft Recordings celebrates the enduring, 75-year legacy of PEANUTS, with an expanded reissue of Jazz Impressions of a Boy Named Charlie Brown. Arriving April 4th on 2-CD and digital platforms in standard and hi-res audio, the collection features 11 never-before-heard outtakes, plus the original album, newly remastered from the original tapes by GRAMMY® Award-winning engineer, Paul Blakemore.

Completing the package are insightful new liner notes by Derrick Bang, the foremost PEANUTS historian and author of Vince Guaraldi at the Piano (McFarland & Company), plus essays from producer Lee Mendelson and music journalist Ralph J. Gleason—both of which appeared in the original pressing of the album. Additionally, fans can find highlights of these outtakes on the limited-edition Sky Blue color vinyl LP, Alternative Takes, available exclusively for Record Store Day 2025, on Saturday, April 12.

“It’s fascinating to compare these alternate takes with a given song’s finished arrangement: to hear how a song is crafted, along the way,” writes Derrick Bang. Indeed, fans will gain deeper insight into Guaraldi’s creative process through selections like “Pebble Beach (Take 7),” “Baseball Theme (Take 1),” and two very different versions of “Oh, Good Grief,” in which the pianist embarks on lengthy improvs.

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Released in 2021, the debut album by Chicago outfit Tobacco City attained an uncommonly rich blend of cosmic country ambiance, psychedelic tendencies, and straight-up honky-tonk verve. Roughly five years hence comes second album Horses, like its predecessor released by Scissor Tail Records, out March 7 on vinyl (limited to 500 copies) and digital. It builds on the strengths of the debut and is a treat from start to finish.

Tobacco City, USA was presented as the achievement of a band, though even at that early point the lineup hadn’t been constant and it was pretty clear that the core of the whole shebang was guitarist-vocalists Lexi Goddard and Chris Coleslaw. Horses makes this even more apparent, even as bassist-backing vocalist Eliza Weber and drummer Josh Condon return, and the list of contributors expands.

To say that Tobacco City is indebted to Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons is like saying diabetes is indebted to doughnuts. The connection is clear, but Goddard and Coleslaw make it interesting by leaning into psychedelia and particularly the more inspired aspects of post-New Weird Americana. Everyone knows (or should know) a weathered old Deadhead who will claim that Horses is exactly the way they played it back in the day, but the reality is that Tobacco City thrives on experience, learning from and not repeating the mistakes of the past to result in a more consistent expressiveness.

What’s shared with Harris and Parsons is a respect for their inspirations that results in organic warmth while eschewing shallow facsimile. Opener “Autumn” is infused with soaring harmonies and pedal steel while being anchored by a sturdy rhythm. Following, “Bougainvillea” can hint (as did Tobacco City, USA) at a honky-tonk-inclined Mazzy Star.

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TEMPE, AZ | For only the second year, the last weekend of February hosted the Extra Innings Festival in Tempe, AZ. Acting as the second weekend to the Innings Festival, Extra Innings offers fans the unique ability to celebrate baseball and music.

Honoring the start of spring training for Major League Baseball, the festival takes advantage of great weather and half of the professional baseball teams training here. Spring training kicks off during the first weekend and is in full swing by the time Extra Innings rolls around. This coverage will feature day two of the second weekend and, unfortunately, the end of the baseball-themed music experience for now. We have had the opportunity to cover the back to back festivals for years now, and it’s true what they say about time flying when you’re having fun.

The festival is indeed jam-packed with baseball, music, food, and fun. There is something there for everyone, and a very family-friendly event. Extra Innings specifically employs a more country, Americana, folk-inspired lineup, while the first weekend typically rolls out a rock ‘n’ roll event. There’s just something special about listening to country music in the sun during the month of February, effectively kicking off festival season.

The festival is held in Tempe Beach Park in Tempe, AZ. Extra Innings features two stages and only one act plays at a time. This allows fans to either hang out near one stage and enjoy the activities, secure a good spot for the next act, or walk in between stages and see a little bit of everything. On the one side, just beneath Mill/Tempe Bridge, is the headlining stage, Home Plate. Home Plate is right by the main entrance and can be seen from miles away.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Break out the parachute pants, sleeveless t-shirts, and hairspray and indulge in this nostalgic musical trip through the 1980s’ most influential albums across all genres.

In 501 Essential Albums of the ’80s, music journalist Gary Graff leads a cast of fellow music journalists in presenting the music of one of the most pivotal decades in the history of recorded music…the decade that gave us some of the most monstrous-selling albums ever and introduced more and more listeners to emergent genres like indie rock and hip-hop.

As Graff notes, “There was no shortage of albums to pick these 501 essentials, and what a challenging task that was.” He highlights that they considered multiple factors, including “merit, of course, but also impact, both artistic and commercial.” Graff and the contributors aimed to identify albums that defined the decade, selecting “some that put a stamp on the time, others whose imprint has lasted beyond that to stand as essential works in their own right, regardless of when they were released.”

With lively descriptions of the releases and nearly 600 images, this hefty, 448-page volume curates 501 albums spanning genres and subgenres—pop, rock, hip-hop, R&B, metal, country, college and indie rock, and more—and features: year-by-year organization, knowledgeable rundowns of every album featured, album art for each selection, artist imagery, record label, release date, and producer(s) for each, and soundtracks and compilation releases.

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Father John Misty continues to make a case for himself as one of the most important solo musical artists in the world. The musician formerly known as Josh Tillman has taken a long and often circuitous path to the brink of peerless musical artistry. Father John makes much of what’s on the charts these days seem like a laughable and embarrassing exercise in show business branding.

The good father is a true artiste and an eccentric and uncompromising genius. His musical grasp of songwriting and ability to deliver a vocal of such conviction and passion, as well as his tendency to draw from an endless well of musical styles are nothing short of astonishing. Any descriptions or superlatives come up short in effectively conveying his artistry.

One wonders, if only for a brief moment, if the father is such an extraordinary artist, or if today’s popular music fails so spectacularly that it elevates his art. The argument favors the good father when one imagines him being around when true musical gods roamed the earth in the ’60s and ’70s. He would have fit right in and his place would have been just as elevated among solo music artists of that era.

Unlike the overnight sensations that hit the charts and are gone from sight by their third or fourth albums, the good father has been toiling and woodshedding for years to reach his current musical summit. Hailing from Seattle, under his given name, he made eight albums between 2003 and 2010 on a slew of small record labels and two albums with Saxon Shore prior to those solo albums.

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PHOTO: STEPHEN ZEIGLER | Julia Gorton started her career as the photographer, creative director, and publisher of the No Wave fanzine Beat It!, which offered an insider’s view of the downtown New York music scene, 1976–1980.

She recently published a compilation of issues and her book, Nowhere New York offers a visceral view of the scene through her photographs, writing, and guest essays.

She was an integral member of this era and photographed the gritty and electric energy of James Chance, The Dead Boys, Devo, and Lydia Lunch plus many more all within the context of the scene as a whole.

Julia and I sat down recently and discussed when she first picked up a camera, her evolution as an artist and member of alt culture, along with her time on the downtown music scene of New York in the prime punk and No Wave era. We also discuss current perspectives on her continuing work.

Dylan Hundley is an artist and performer. She is the co-creator and lead singer of Lulu Lewis and creator of all things at Darling Black. She co-curates and hosts Salon Lulu which is a New York based multidisciplinary performance series. She is also a cast member of the iconic New York film Metropolitan.

On the list of ill-fated bands, Moby Grape rank rather high, mainly because the San Francisco-based outfit actually fulfilled the promise of their early singles on a debut album whose disappointing sales proved a momentum killer from which there was no recovery. But additional worthy music was recorded by the group along with solo records, including the eponymous debut by the Grape’s bassist and vocalist. Originally released in 1972 by Warner-Reprise, a new edition of Bob Mosley, “reworked, remastered, and re-released” by John DeNicola, is out now exclusively on compact disc via the producer’s Omad Records.

Don’t lose hope vinyl mavens; according to Omad’s website, an LP reissue of this set isn’t out of the question. Giving the CD a review now can’t hurt in raising the likelihood that a run on wax will end up happening. But upon consideration, it feels appropriate that Bob Mosley is available only on CD, as the format has played a major role in righting Moby Grape’s posthumous standing.

There was a time when Moby Grape were predominantly written about in dismissive terms, diminished as a footnote and too often derided as a byproduct of record company hype. Of course, real heads knew the scoop and could provide opinions to the contrary of this bogue consensus, but the albums were out of print and used copies weren’t easy to find.

Enter Vintage: The Very Best of Moby Grape, a 2CD compilation assembled by Columbia Legacy in 1993, just in time for folks who were becoming disenchanted with the deluge of grunge and alt-rock and were choosing to dig back into the past for inspiration. Vintage didn’t just come out of nowhere, as a couple years prior Oar, the masterful 1969 solo album by Grape member Alexander “Skip” Spence, was reissued by Sony Special Products, also only on CD (although Sundazed eventually pressed a vinyl edition in 2000).

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TEMPE, AZ | For only the second year, Extra Innings Music Festival followed the spring training baseball inspired weekend, Innings Festival. Celebrating the combined love of baseball and music, Innings Festival has been held in Tempe, AZ since 2018. Just last year, they added a second weekend.

Spring training for Major League Baseball starts the same weekend as Innings Festival and is in full swing—literally—by the second weekend for Extra Innings Festival. Just as the name implies, it’s just like extra innings of a baseball game. It follows the same setup and features as the first weekend, just extra excitement.

As a result of desert weather, half of Major League Baseball teams train here in the spring, while the other half train in Florida. The weather is reason enough to visit Arizona in February, but now fans are treated to two different music festivals. While Innings typically rolls out a more rock ‘n’ roll inspired lineup, Extra Innings features a more Country and Americana lineup. This weekend especially featured some new faces in the music scene while capping off the days with legends of the game.

The festival grounds are held in Tempe Beach Park that Tempe Town Lake runs alongside. The grounds feature two stages that are held on opposite sides. Right beneath Tempe Bridge sits Home Plate. Home Plate is almost designed like a baseball diamond with refreshments lining the left side and bleacher seating lining the right hand side.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Wewantsounds is delighted to release Dibango 82 an unreleased live recording by Manu Dibango taped in Marseille, Dec 1982. The electrifying live performance features the African legend alongside his stellar 8-piece group, blending funk, jazz, and African rhythms.

Highlights include “Africa Boogie” and “Waka Juju.” This album released in partnership with INA and Soul Makossa, Dibango’s label captures the African legend at the top of his game. Remastered from the original tapes with liner notes (Eng/Fr) by Graeme Ewens and concert organiser Christian Ducasse, both present at the gig, it features a front cover shot by key African Paris-based photographer Bill Akwa Bétotè

Manu Dibango, who passed away five years ago at 86, is one of the most celebrated African musicians alongside Fela, Miriam Makeba, and Youssou N’dour. In a career spanning six decades, Dibango revolutionised African music and had a worldwide hit in the process in the form “Soul Makossa” in 1972. This live album, recorded during a French tour in 1982 came at a critical time when France, after the election of Francois Mitterrand, was embracing its multi-ethnic sensitivity. Through the rise of FM radios such as Radio Nova, an offshoot of cult magazine Actuel, the French music scene suddenly got much more opened. The “Sono Mondiale” as Nova would call World music, was born.

Organised by French producer Martin Meissonnier, the sold-out tour created a stir in France bringing together two legends, Manu Dibango and his group plus iconic jazz traveller Don Cherry, which Meissonnier had closely worked with in the late ’70s (Cherry doesn’t appear on this set but will soon in a 2nd volume.)

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