The quartet Fuubutsushi began as a COVID pandemic-era project between Chris Jusell (violin), Chaz Prymek (guitar), Matthew Sage (piano), and Patrick Shiroishi (saxophone), recording remotely from long distances and amassing a robust body of work that combines aspects of jazz, ambient, folk, and classical. They are occasionally reminiscent of post-rock at its most adventurous and at other times give off a decidedly ECM Records vibe. Columbia Deluxe is documentation of Fuubutsushi’s first and only live performance, captured at the First Baptist Church of Columbia, Missouri during the Columbia Experimental Music Festival in November 2021. The set is available July 11 on LP and digital through the label American Dreams.
When the world dishes out creative roadblocks, artists will find a way to adapt. The COVID pandemic reinforced this, as scores of musical projects emerged, with Fuubutsushi amongst the most striking. The group came together at the beginning of the pandemic, and in short order, they recorded the tetralogy Shiki (四季). With the members based in different states, it was impressive how warm and together the music sounded.
In Japanese, the word Fuubutsushi is defined as the things that remind one of a particular season. The four sections that comprise Shiki (四季), Fuubutsushi (風物詩), Setsubun (節分), Yamawarau (山笑う), and Natsukashī (懐かしい) are based on a season. The sections were initially released separately and were compiled in 2021 as a 4CD set issued by Sage’s label Cached Media.
This box set would be an impressive enough achievement, but Fuubutsushi also released the nearly 25-minute digital-only track “Good Sky Day” in 2021 on the Longform Editions label, and after a break in activity, released Meridians, a 2LP set in 2024. Earlier this year, they issued a single-sided lathe cut 7-inch, “The Harmony of Irrelevant Facts,” in a limited edition of 100 through the Whited Sepulchre label (copies are still available through Bandcamp and the Whited Sepulchre website).
Brisbane, AU | Is the F-word offensive in Queensland? The tiny record shop that faced down a culture war in court—and won: Brisbane’s Rocking Horse Records turns 50 this year—but it should also be celebrated for its role in facing down a ‘nonsense’ culture war that began with undercover cops and the Dead Kennedys. It was one of the first odd, angry shots fired in what we now know as the culture wars. On the morning of 14 February 1989, a plain-clothed officer from Queensland police’s licensing branch was sniffing around Rocking Horse Records in Brisbane. He asked the owner, Warwick Vere, if he had any rude records that might be suitable for a “
Barcelona, SP | Farewell to Discos Revolver: The legendary store announces its definitive closure this July: The emblematic vinyl store Tallers, will close its doors after more than 30 years as a reference of the Barcelona music scene. Goodbye to Discos Revolver and, therefore, goodbye to an icon of Tallers street and, therefore, goodbye to an important part of Barcelona’s recent history. Founded in December 1991, Discos Revolver will say goodbye this month with its traditional July liquidation, as announced on Facebook. The decision has come as a cold shower for thousands of customers and regular musicians, who lament that, despite the rise of vinyl and a loyal community of “diehards”, the store has failed to hold its own in the face of digitization and the dominance of platforms like Spotify, Apple Music or YouTube. Its owner, Nuria Arso, admits in an interview with El País that “the business is not what it was 25 years ago,” although it is resisting thanks to 
London, UK | Vinyl Variety: Grace Hayhurst Goes Through Some of Her Favourite London Record Shops: Musician Grace Hayhurst joins us for Vinyl Variety, sharing five of her favourite record stores in London, England, including Crypt of the Wizard, FOPP, Sounds of the Universe, Sister Ray, and Reckless Records. The world faces some cold, complex realities, and Grace Hayhurst is coming to terms with some of them on her new album The World Is Dying. This is the singer and guitarist’s debut full-length album, inspired by some of her perceptions of the world’s predicament. …As an old school musician, you better believe Hayhurst loves her vinyl. She joins us today for Vinyl Variety, sharing with us five of her favourite vinyl shops, 
Phoenix, AZ | Phoenix record store for sale after 43 years: ‘Burnt out on being a stool jockey.’ Timmy Stamper isn’t selling Tracks in Wax because the business isn’t doing well. It’s just that he’s been feeling like it might be time to see what else this world has to offer. It’s been nearly 10 years since Stamper purchased Tracks in Wax, a record store at 4741 N. Central Ave., just south of Camelback Road in Phoenix, from Julie Chiesa, the widow of Dennis Chiesa, who opened the business with his brother Don in 1982. By the time he bought it, Stamper had been working there for nearly 10 years. “There’s a lot of things that since I’ve had the store, I’ve put on hold: playing in bands, making records, vacationing, that sort of thing,” he says. “I don’t have employees, so it’s just a matter of hitting the wall and getting burnt out on being a stool jockey. It just becomes a grind after a while, like any job. And when you get burnt out, 
Maybe you had to hear it stoned. Maybe that’s it. I never heard it stoned. I never listened to any Jimi Hendrix LP stoned except 1969’s Smash Hits, which I liked because whomever it was that cherry-picked its tunes made certain they were both (1) catchy and (2) short. Smash Hits coheres, as does 1967’s Are You Experienced, which is more than can be said for the shambolic Electric Ladyland, which one critic called “the fullest realization of Jimi’s far-reaching ambitions,” but which I find both uneven and diffuse—in short, less a case of far-reaching than overreaching, and overreaching at its worst.
Hamden, CT | Replay Records closing in Hamden after more than 30 years in business: For 36 years, Doug and Mary Snyder have been slinging records out of Replay Records — a staple record shop located on Hamden’s Whitney Avenue. First opened in 1989, the shop moved from its original Whitney Avenue location to West Haven before moving back to Hamden for nearly the past two decades. Now, at the end of the month, the record store will be closing down and transitioning to online sales. “So many people have come through our doors in the last 36 years. It’s truly been a remarkable adventure for us both. We’ve always done our very best to bring you 
Rockland, ME | Private Press brings old-school records to Rockland’s Main Street: Like most Gen Xers, Justin Miller remembers his first vinyl record, The Germs. Back in the 1970s and early 1980s, before cassette tapes became overwhelmingly the popular choice for playing music, vinyl was king. Private Press, a 200-square foot space on 385 Main Street, which opened June 13, has been Miller’s dream business for some time. A private collector of vinyl records for more than 30 years, he began buying and selling records online before deciding to move the business to a brick-and-mortar location. “During the COVID-19 pandemic, I had a lot of time and dove even deeper down the well, discovering music,” he said. “As long as I’ve been interested in music, this felt like a natural progression and [the store] brings me a lot of happiness. I was working two remote jobs and resigned from one 
