New Release Tuesday – 1/22/13

Ben Gibbard and Jimmy Tamborello of the Postal Service

JAN. 22, 2013

MUSIC NEWS

The Postal Service 2013
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the release of Ben Gibbard and Jimmy Tamborello's synth-pop project, the Postal Service's, one and only album. Give Up is not only its label, Sub Pop's, second-highest selling album (Nirvana's Bleach is the highest.), it's also one of my favorite albums of all time. In commemoration of the anniversary, Sub Pop plans to release a deluxe edition of Give Up, and a tour – including an appearance at Coachella – is rumored to be in the works.

MUSIC RELEASES

Bad Religion – True North (Epitaph)
It's been about 34 years since they formed and this is the band's16th studio album, yet Bad Religion are still as relevant as ever. True North is chock full of their trademark biting yet eloquent lyrics, and songs like "Robin Hood in Reverse" and "Land of Endless Greed" are sure to get mosh pits going. They play s sold-out show at the Echo tomorrow night, but at 3 p.m. (PST) today you can watch a short live set and Q&A being broadcast from KROQ's Red Bull Sound Space via their website.

Big Harp – Chain Letters (Saddle Creek)
I've seen Stefanie Drootin-Senseney perform with Bright Eyes, She & Him and the Good Life – the band she was playing with when she met future husband and Big Harp musical partner, Chris Senseney. Her vibrant energy is undeniable on stage and no less palpable on Chain Letters, while his sensual, sonorous voice drips lyrical stories. See them at a free in-store tonight at Origami Vinyl or Friday night at Hotel Café.

FIDLAR – Self-titled (Mom & Pop)
One of the year's most anticipated albums, the L.A. quartet's self-titled debut explodes with frenetic screams, howls and screeches underlined and accentuated with infectious basslines and drum beats to get any crowd moving. Since 2009, FIDLAR has cultivated their sound, relentlessly touring with the likes of Black Lips, OFF!, Japanther and the Hives and releasing two EPs. Catch them at the LA Fort in Downtown tonight or at Amoeba for a free in-store on Thursday.

He's My Brother, She's My Sister – Nobody Dances in This Town (Park the Van)
Hands down one of the hottest new acts in Los Angeles, the fivesome – headed by sibling vocalists Robert and Rachel Kolar and featuring tap-dancing drummer Lauren Brown – is completely unique. From foot-stomping blues and cabaret, clap-along folk and all-out glam rock, He's My Brother, She's My Sister does it all – and they do it all very well. Trust me, you're going to love them.

The Joy Formidable – Wolf's Law (Atlantic)
The Welsh trio broke out in 2011 with "Whirring" off The Big Roar and decided to hunker down in a tiny town in Maine to write a follow-up, resulting in Wolf's Law. Boasting tracks like "Maw Maw," "This Ladder Is Ours" and "Bats," the Joy Formidable is poised to make turn even more heads with this release.

The Night Marchers – Allez Allez (Swami)
With a pedigree that includes the likes of Hot Snakes, Rocket from the Crypt, Drive Like Jehu and Beehive and the Barracudas, the Night Marchers return with a sophomore effort that pulsates with a seething energy. Allez Allez kicks off with the blues-heavy "Tropical Depression," gets in-your-face during "Loud, Dumb and Mean," reflective in "Pain" and snarling with "Fisting the Fan Base."

Pillowfight – Self-titled (Bulk) 

Whether it's his work with Handsome Boy Modeling School, Detron 3030, Gorillaz or Head Automatica, Dan the Automator is one of my favorite producers. Pair his prowess with the sultry lead vocals of hip-hop violinist Emily Wells, Kid Koala on the 1s and 2s and Lateef the Truthspeaker contributing backing vocals, and you have a bona fide supergroup in Pillowfight. Their self-titled debut's tracks will have you head-nodding, while it's artwork by David Choe will have you oohing and aahing.

Also available – Aaron Neville's My True Story; Adam Ant's Adam Ant Is the BlueBlack Hussar in Marrying the Gunner's Daughter; Alasdair Roberts & Friends' A Wonder Working Stone; Arbouretum's Coming Out of the Fog; Camper Van Beethoven's La Costa Perdida; Carrie Rodriguez's Give Me All You Got; Foxygen's We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic; Gary Allan's Set You Free; The Growlers' Hung at Heart; Guided By Voices' Down By the Racetrack; Hilly Eye's Reasons to Live; Jeffrey Novak's Baron in the Trees; The Lone Bellow's Self-titled; Love and Death's Between Here & Lost; Nightlands' Oak Island; Nosaj Thing's Home; Otep's Hydra; Petra Haden's Petra Goes to the Movies; Poppy Ackroyd's Escapement; Ra Ra Riot's Beta Love; Randy Houser's How Country Feels; Say Anything's All My Friends Are Enemies: Early Rarities; The Shadowboxers' Red Room; Shugo Tokumaru's In Focus?; Speck Mountain's Badwater; This Town Needs Guns' 13.0.0.0.0; Toro Y Moi's Anything in Return; Trapt's Reborn; Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown's Wild Child; The Used's Vulnerable (II); Widowspeak's Almanac

DVD RELEASES

Film – Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña star as L.A. cops in David Ayer's edgy End of Watch; For a Good Time, Call… stars Ari Graynor, Lauren Miller and Justin Long; Patton Oswalt and Johnny Knoxville in Nature Calls; John Krasinski and Olivia Thirlby in Nobody Walks; Precious' Lee Daniels adapts Pete Dexter's The Paperboy with a cast that includes Nicole Kidman, John Cusack, Matthew McConaughey, David Oyelowo and Zac Efron; Searching for Sugar Man is the story of '70s rock icon Rodriguez

TV – Kendra: Season 4; The Men Who Built America; Scarecrow & Mrs. King: Complete Fourth Season

Also available – Death Race 3: Inferno; Fat Kid Rules the World; Hansel & Gretel: Warriors of Witchcraft; Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai; Keep the Lights On; Officer Down; Pina (Criterion Collection); Tai Chi Zero