crapforgenius

They've been writing for it, but the band are taking a year off while Guy Garvey helps out with the King Kong musical. (I swear I'm not making this up, Massive Attack is involved as well.) So 2014 at the earliest at this point.

As does Amazon. Usually.

I've gone through both 'Asleep in the Back' and 'Cast of Thousands' and these sound *incredible*. Especially 'Asleep in the Back' - which is my favorite Elbow LP so that might bias me a little. A nice full, full sound that you can really turn up loud and it sounds just magical. 'Leaders of the Free World' is on now and my only complaint so far is that the side splits are weird - the title track should end side 2 not start side 3, especially with the studio chatter bit at the end of "The Stops" that goes so well into it. Minor nit pick and certainly not enough of a complaint to ruin the set, just an observation. I can't recommend this set highly enough. Don't sleep on it, you'll be sad you did.

This just showed up and it is astounding. Gorgeous physical presentation and - the first side of 'Asleep in the Back', anyways - sounds amazing. It also looks great on the shelf next to the Blur box. Suede, it's your turn.

A lot of back log stuff finally showed up all at once today: Elbow box set Sylver Tongue 12"/CDS Pop Levi - Medicine orange LP I'm in heaven.

I had no idea there was one near Generation Records. That just got very dangerous.

I've seen them twice and both times have been stellar. I wanted to go to one of the intimate preview shows for this record back last month but wasn't sure if I could get the time off from work - by the time I did, the one I could go to was sold out. Oh well.

I also forgot to mention: Artichoke for pizza. Forget anywhere else, their namesake slice - a spinach/artichoke beast - is all you need. It's on E14th between 1st and 2nd. (Nowhere, the bar next door, has fantastic happy hour and a great jukebox as well.) Doughnut Plant for doughnuts is a must. The creme brulee doughnut is the best thing on this earth. There's one in the old Chelsea Hotel near 23rd, but the original - and where they make the doughnuts - is on Grand Street near the Delancy/Essex stop. You're also a few blocks from a Roasting Plant on Orchard Street if you want coffee with your doughnuts. Do. Not. Miss. This.

And I know I'm the odd man out with 'Head Music' as my favorite, but such obvious pandering to fan base demands rarely turns out well. We shall see.

'The Big Roar' is one of my favorite LPs of the past five years and their live show is absolutely KILLER - you think "Whirring" is a beast on record, it ain't nothing compared to the maelstrom of the live version - and I am loving the material we've got from the new album so far. That said, the deluxe box doesn't really look worth the price and I'm sure the bonus track from the 12" will be available elsewhere at some point. Totally in for the standard LP the day it comes out, though.

For bookkeeping purposes, I ordered during the initial $26.99 blow out price, got canceled when everyone did, reordered when they offered the voucher and got shipping notice today. Apparently, the next part of the lottery now begins - good "Zero"/bad "Zero"? Stay tuned!

S'mac on 12th between 1st and 2nd for mindblowing Mac & Cheese. (Your also not terribly far from Mondo Kim's at that point.) The Roasting Plant in Greenwich Villiage for coffee - you need nothing else. (It's also between Bleecker Street Records & Rebel Rebel - both generally overpriced but you can find good deals if you hunt.)

Suede makes me nervous - all this talk about "sounding like 'Dog Man Star' meets 'Coming Up'" and "a 'real' Suede record" makes me worry it's going to sound like they're trying too hard to capture former glories and end up being terrible. That said, I'm ready to be proven wrong. (What I'd love for them to do is continue exploring the direction they were headed with "Attitude" and the rest of the post-'A New Morning' material, but I'm not holding my breath.)

The just teased Breeders 'Last Splash' 20th Anniversary Edition 'LSXX' is going to win 2013, so they might as well cancel the rest of the year.

That's a very nice touch. Apparently Guy also picked lyrics from the album to be etched into the deadwax of each side. They've been showing them off on Twitter/Facebook/etc all week. Still waiting for the set to show. For a set that I already own every note of at least once, the wait is KILLING me.

The new Joy Formidable in January. Reissue wise, the 'Regretfully Yours' LP that was supposed to be out by now. Thinking about it, the Joy Formidable was originally supposed to be out in Q4 2012 as well. So early-2013 is just a continuation of 2012 so far.

http://imgur.com/a/EaLce Some pictures of the LP set I found lying around the internet. It appears they've split up "Thru The Eyes of Ruby" and "Stumbeline" over a side split - I understand the original LP didn't have them together, but if you're going to format it to match the original sequence, shouldn't you put the split where it originally occurred? (The tape flips between "Stumbeline" and "XYU".) Sure it throws off the side balance but it's a way better listening experience, which I thought was the point.

Man, I knew ordering an insane price drop from Amazon.ca had the potential to be a clusterfuck, but this is just ridiculous. Lesson learned: never, ever pre-order from them if it's something I'm actually concerned about getting my hands on.

I completely agree about 'Sky Full of Holes' - such a fantastic return after the dreadful 'Traffic & Weather', which I still just can't listen to. Definitely catch them live if you can - I saw them for the fourth time (once for each album bar 'T&W') and they're probably better live than they ever have been...and they were always fantastic. I had tickets to see them again a few weeks back but it was right after the hurricane and transportation was still screwed up so I didn't have a really good way to get to the venue.

I saw them on near the end of 2002 when they were road testing material for the at-the-time in the works third album. They did "Stacy's Mom" as an encore track and I remember thinking that it was going to make a fun b-side but it was certainly the weakest of the new songs played that night. (I don't remember everything else, but I know "Mexican Wine", "Hackensack" and "Bright Future In Sales" were also played - I still think "Bright Future In Sales" should have been a single.) It also rubbed me a bit the wrong way because they never wanted to release their version of "Baby, One More Time" even as a b-side because of the novelty factor, yet four years later they release an even bigger novelty song as a single. That said, it probably saved their career and is likely the reason they're still around today. And, without it being blasted everywhere every five minutes, it's kind of fun to listen to every now and again. But it certainly isn't the track that their body of work should be judged by. Anyways, these first two LPs are absolutely essential - the first slightly more than the second, but the first also doesn't have "Denise".

I don't think I've ever seen the "Radiation Vibe" video. If the self-titled comes out and there's an issue with 'Utopia Parkway', I'ma gonna be pissed. I've also got an original self-titled and have been DYING for 'Utopia Parkway' since it came out in 1999. Yes, I've waited 13 years I can wait a little longer, but knowing it's on the horizon but keeps getting pushed back is *killing* me.

I used to be pretty thorough about adding releases that weren't there/cleaning up releases with correct information. However, the process is incredibly arduous - especially for adding something that's not already there - and they're super nit-picky about things - fair enough, I suppose - so I just wait for someone to do it for me with new releases or don't bother if I come across something that isn't already listed. That said, it's my favorite site I've found for cataloging a collection, making various notations on personal items, etc. The wantlist e-mails every day have gotten me into trouble more than once.

Superdeluxeedition is reporting a new 2xLP pressing of Pulp's 'His N Hers' out on December 10 in the UK. The main album on the first LP and the bonus tracks from the 2006 Deluxe Edition on the second. Kind of an odd choice as neither the 'Different Class' or 'This Is Hardcore' reissues went that route. Anyways, it's listed on Amazon.com but as currently unavailable. Amazon.co.uk has it listed for the outrageous price of £33.72. Hopefully it comes down because that's just nonsense.

I maintain that they should have made a numbered edition of this gigantic CD box - 5000 or 15000, the originally announced run numbers of the original 3xLP would be a nice touch - for those that want it and make a box similar to what we already have without all the bells and whistles for the rest of us that don't. I would guess they would have to come out ahead that way as sticker shock wouldn't have completely scared some people away. (Whoops, grabbed the wrong quote. It was supposed to be in regards to Sean's earlier comment.)

http://www.theskinny.co.uk/music/records/303629-the_smashing_pumpkins_mellon_collie_the_infinite_sadness_deluxe_edition A review of the CD set. My favorite bit is the last paragraph: "With a DVD of period concert footage, a Mellon Collie decoupage set and a lush book of expanded artwork rounding out the set, it's clear that EMI have pushed the boat out for this reissue – and it comes at a price. Then again, it feels like a perversely Pumpkins-like move to aim the reissue of the band's most commercially successful album so squarely at the hardcore fan." Spot on.