First-ever reissue of folk and experimental music icon Mike Cooper’s historic earliest recordings and PoB’s very first official Record Store Day exclusive release. Named for The Shades, the Reading, UK folk club where Mike Cooper regularly performed, and which housed prodigy Derek Hall—“a guitarist who could actually match Davey Graham both in technique and musical ideas”—this super rare EP was issued in 1965. (ON SALE)
Happy release day to Nap Eyes! The reviews of Thought Rock Fish Scale are coming in, and they are uniformly glowing, including a thoughtful 8.0 review from Pitchfork, a 4/5 from MOJO, a 4/5 from The Irish Times, and an 8/10 from Drowned in Sound. “Brimming with passion and protest… Let this record be the first step in your rehabilitation from information overload,” writes Pitchfork’s Stuart Berman.
In advance of its February 5 release, The FADER is premiering Nap Eyes’ Thought Rock Fish Scale: “The year’s first classic indie rock album. For my money, Nap Eyes are one of the best rock bands in business today, handily spanning the space between Bob Dylan and The Microphones. Nigel Chapman’s songwriting grips like the best of them. A timeless release, already.”
Thanks to the Bluegrass Situation for sharing this mesmerizing video of Nathan Bowles performing his new composition “I Miss My Dog” for Pickathon’s Lucky Barn Series. Great performance, great website, great festival–and a great reason for us to announce that Nathan will release an immersive new album with PoB later in 2016. Stay tuned for details!
Nap Eyes have announced a spring headline tour in support of their new album Thought Rock Fish Scale, which is out February 5th. Coinciding with this announcement is the release of the album’s centerpiece, “Lion In Chains.” The almost seven-minute long epic is one of several movingly ineffable moments on the album that gathers loved ones and legacies at a cautious if affectionate distance, folding them into carefully articulated but centerless koans.
Nap Eyes’ new album Thought Rock Fish Scale, is just a month away from release on February 5th. The band shared opening track “Mixer” late last year and are following it up today with “Roll It” via The FADER, who call Nigel Chapman “the kind of preternaturally smart lyricist who inspires comparison to Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, and Van Morrison, and the many odd musicians who fall between.”
2015 (Year of the Goat) in all its splendor and magnificence is out the door, and 2016 (Year of the Monkey) is right around the corner. Seems only appropriate to reflect on things that were, round-up some additional year end list recognition, and propel us into this next age with some upcoming tour dates.
To celebrate Krampus Day and our 5th anniversary, all catalog items are on sale for 20% off through Dec. 6th when you use the coupon code KRAMPUS during checkout. All physical orders will also include a free PoB Sampler CD. We’re also pleased to premiere the meditative video for Red River Dialect’s “Great Eastern Sun,” from their moving album Tender Gold and Gentle Blue. Watch it until the end to cleanse yourself of holiday doldrums and dread.
‘Tis the season for lists; here’s a foretaste of what’s to come. The Weather Station ranks as Uncut’s overall #16, and Editor John Mulvey selects it as his #3, along with James Elkington & Nathan Salsburg at #58 and Promised Land Sound at #95. American Songwriter honors Promised Land Sound at #39 on their list.
“On constant rotation in the MOJO offices was this second album from a young Nashville five-piece who appear to have studied every great country-rock LP of the 1970s and added their own special mix of eerily hypnotic riffs, cryptic lyrics, and hazy, plaintive harmonies.”
