New Releases Tuesday (10/18)

Animal Collective - Feels (Fat Cat) Amazon.com sez: Feels is the band's seventh album to date - their sophomore effort for Fat Cat - and sees them again kicking off from their previous release to explore another different direction. Where Sung Tongs was largely acoustic-based and the product of just two members of the Collective (Avey Tare and Panda), Feels is in contrast a full group effort (also including Geologist and Deakin). Moving further away from the suggestion of folkish affinities; it is electrified, rhythmically more urgent, and overall a considerable denser work.

Boards of Canada - The Campfire Headphase (Warp)
Damn! It's already been 3 years since Geogaddi was released? I still crank up that record on a fairly regular basis like I just bought it a few months ago. ("1969" sill kicks my ass!) When you make albums as good as these guys, 3 years in-between records goes by quick.

John Cale - Black Acetate (Astralwerks)
New solo record from legendary producer and Velvet Underground alumnus. The Beeb sez: Like a cross-section of his whole career layered with the funkiest contemporary electronica, Black Acetate is, in turns, startling, edgy, doomy and filled with rock 'n' roll thrills that really do hark back to his best work on Island records (Sold Motel, Turn The Lights On)...
What's most amazing is the fact that both his voice and his muse seem to be in tip top form. As he says on ''Brotherman'': 'I've got reams of this shit.'

Depeche Mode - Playing the Angel (Mute)
Thanks to the help of producer Mark Bell (of LFO and Bjork fame), I thought Mode's 2001 Exciter release amazingly kept the band sounding fresh and musically relevant some 20 years into their career. Unfortunately Bell isn't back this time around and my initial thoughts are that this may be a step back for Depeche Mode... sort of like how The Cure unsuccessfully tried to recapture their Disintegration glory days with Bloodflowers. Even the cover art is derivative of vintage 80's Mode. That being said, I do really like the lead single, "Precious."

ALSO...

Lightning Bolt - Hypermagic Mountain (Load)
Silver Jews - Tanglewood Numbers (Drag City)