PAINT IT BLACK’s New Lexicon was not easy to produce, but it’s gritty, thunderous and ugly—just the way hardcore punk should be.

New Lexicon marks PAINT IT BLACK’s first recording with new drummer Jared Shavelson (Hope Conspiracy, None More Black) and boasts guest vocals from Jeff Pezatti (Naked Raygun). Still, many of the best surprises occur behind the scenes.

Rather than straining to re-create “lo-fi” in a studio, New Lexicon rings in an aggressive clarity from engineer J. Robbins’ (Modern Life is War, Against Me!). With a thick low-end up front (think Bad Brains’ Roir sessions), New Lexicon says that aggression doesn’t have to be found only in thick guitars.

From here, the album was passed on to co-producer Oktopus of the indie hip hop group Dalek. Here, the existing sounds of feedback, bass booms and cymbal crashes were twisted into haunting ambient interludes and serpentine waves trailing behind the buzz saw riffs.

With little debate, this is Paint It Black’s finest hour …or, half-hour, anyway, with 15 songs clocking in at a dizzying 30 minutes, 26 seconds.

LP available from Rivalry Records.

On their debut full length release for Jade Tree, CLOAK/DAGGER keep it fast and simple. Produced and recorded at Headbanging Kill Your Mama Music Studios by Chris Owens (Lords), We Are is a bombastic, rough around the edges approach to minimalist hardcore. Combining the jagged aggression of bands like Swiz and Black Flag with the spastic urgency of Drive Like Jehu, We Are CLOAK/DAGGER embraces a lyrically raw directness that transcends the false conceptions and misgivings of modern punk, offering up honest commentary on the balance between life both with and without excess. In the end, We Are CLOAK/DAGGER embraces the long lost art of disposability, steering away from the culture of celebratory fake aggression, into a new era of raw, incendiary punk music.

Featuring a collection of five unreleased NEW MEXICAN DISASTER SQUAD songs, Peace With Nothing is a digital-only EP to be released on June 5th that compiles three original tracks and two covers that fall close to the Orlando, Florida band's influential origins.

Vinyl will be released on Kiss of Death Records in the US and Rat Patrol Records in the UK.

Delivered over NEW MEXICAN DISASTER SQUAD's enraged brand of melodic hardcore, the three original tracks present succinct attacks on the current presidential administration and poverty, while the two covers offer a glimpse into New Mexican Disaster Squad's '80s hardcore influences (namely Government Issue and 7 Seconds.)

Cast through shades of indignant but energetic punk, Peace With Nothing serves as a culmination of the band's allegiance to a simpler time in hardcore, while still maintaining a refreshed sense of insanity, urgency and the band's crucial heritage as a vehicle for change in punk.

Piñata Breaks, Demo Takes is a digital only release that features the band's most recent Piñata 7" and a collection of demo tracks, including one previously unreleased song. These nine songs will trigger memories of favorites such as Black Flag, Circle Jerks and even Hot Snakes, but they offer an entirely new experience with raw energy that can only be rivaled by the band's live show.

This digital release is available from iTunes, eMusic, Yahoo! Music, and a host of other digital music services.

FUCKED UP's first release for Jade Tree is cloaked in shades of unconventional aesthetics, symbolic overtones and a self-proclaimed "culture of confusion." Hidden World, the band's first full length studio album, marks a turning point for the mysterious Toronto band, transcending the boundaries of punk with melody, aggression, expansive structures and enigmatic diatribes on what lies underneath the immediate, visualized world. FUCKED UP combine confrontational ideologies with deliberate misinformation to produce a brutal analysis on thought provocative punk. In a word, FUCKED UP and Hidden World is dangerous and unpredictable in a time when punk has become a manufactured commodity.

Vinyl will be available through Deranged Records

Recorded live in-studio while the band toured in support of Achilles Heel, the now digital only Tour EP 2004 (JT1120) features an assortment of PEDRO THE LION originals, in addition to three diverse covers. Tour EP 2004, originally self-released in July of 2004 by the band, culls from the extensive PEDRO THE LION back catalog, featuring new arrangements of 'Transcontinental,' 'I Am Always The One Who Calls,' and 'Slow and Steady Wins The Race,' juxtaposed against unique cover ballads from Randy Newman, Cat Power and Radiohead. The end result captures the fundamental nature of PEDRO THE LION; averting conjecture over solemn swells of emotion, coaxing the angst from everyday life, but ultimately, never losing sight of a distant hope.

The three members of YOUNG WIDOWS emerged from the dissolution of BREATHER RESIST with a new vision steeped in dark, brooding grooves and moody post-punk. From the reverb-drenched inspiration of Regulator Watts/Hoover to the bass and drums lock-groove perfected by Shellac and the Jesus Lizard, YOUNG WIDOWS gladly wears influences on its sleeve. The signature inventive guitar work of vocalist/guitarist Evan Patterson (Black Cross, The National Acrobat) is at its peak here, while the rhythm section of Nick Thieneman and Geoff Paton lays down syrup-thick grooves, recalling Pacific Northwest heavyweights (think Melvins, Karp, even Nirvana), and British post-punk, ala Gang Of Four. Settle Down City (JT1119) contains 11 songs of hypnotic, heavy, noise-rock anthems.

Vinyl is available through Auxiliary Records.

THESE ARMS ARE SNAKES second full length for Jade Tree finds the Seattle foursome towing a proverbial line between paradox, hostility and a caustic blend of post-hard/math core. Retaining the definitive tension and angular force of earlier THESE ARMS ARE SNAKES efforts, Easter is the year-long culmination of a more structured yet experimental song writing process for the band. Recorded at Red Room Recording in Seattle by TAAS drummer Chris Common, Easter explores the relationship between suspect animism, impending otherwordly doom and the ethereal battle between virtue and ruin. More than anything from THESE ARMS ARE SNAKES’ back catalog, Easter was meant to hurt you.

On the full-length follow up to his critically acclaimed The Baby and the Satellite EP, MICAH P. HINSON offers a substantiated account of misery and triumph, evoking translucent memories and physical struggle. Recorded, arranged and produced mainly at home in Abilene, TX during an ironically twisted period of heavy medication and physical torment brought on from recent back surgery, Micah P. Hinson and The Opera Circuit is the product of rallying above physical torment, facing proverbial closeted skeletons and discovering eventual resolution through the power of euphonic connection. Supported by a revolving cast of seasoned players, including Eric Bachmann (Crooked Fingers), The Opera Circuit imparts a newfound, expansive and virtual basement jam quality to Hinson’s trademark no man’s land take on hushed, emotive balladry. At the end of the tunnel, Micah P. Hinson and The Opera Circuit is a veritable reminder that progress through pain can be intimate, heartfelt and epically necessary.

Long known for favoring the EP format over the full-length, Toronto's FUCKED UP makes its Jade Tree debut with the two-song Triumph of Life seven inch. Although the six-minute title track appears on the group's forthcoming long-player, Hidden World, this highly anticipated EP offers a completely different studio version. Decidedly more raw than its full-length counterpart, the version found here crackles, hisses, thunders and booms with all the chaos of the band's legendary live shows-only listening to the seven inch, there's no ink-stamp smear left on your hand later. With only two songs, FUCKED UP solidifies its reputation as "the second coming of punk" (thank you Maximum Rock ‘n Roll): a band very much doing its own thing, in spite of the underground's many trends and pigeonholes. The comparatively shorter “Neat Parts” makes sure not to skimp, getting the job done quickly, and leaving listeners winded. Breaking the usual punk-song-time-limit barrier, Triumph of Life is an epic, multifarious track that roars through every expectation. Melodic, anthemic guitar lines and a driving rhythm section batter listeners alongside some of hardcore's most ferocious and truly jarring vocals.

Atlanta’s SNOWDEN drowns their brand of melodies in a sea of reverb heavy distortion and hypnotic layers. Anti-Anti (JT1115), the band’s debut album for Jade Tree, integrates the ethereal guitar resonance and dynamic percussion reminiscent of bands like RIDE, NEW ORDER and early CURE, with the volatility of contemporaries such as THE YEAH YEAH YEAHS. Combining a mix of tracks recorded by Erik Wofford (The Black Angels, Explosions in the Sky, My Morning Jacket) at Cacophony Recorders in Austin with tracks recorded and mixed by principal songwriter Jordan Jeffares, Anti-Anti finds Jeffares and company elevating their trademark sound into an unpredictable mix of dirty pop soundscapes. If post-shoegaze exists as a genre, then SNOWDEN is proving their contention for the upper ranks.

Vinyl is available through Stickfigure Records

On their first release for Jade Tree, Seattle's PANDA & ANGEL paints a passively angst-filled portrait of lovelorn, heartache and loneliness. PANDA & ANGEL's eponymous, introductory EP combines the sedated dissonance of early LOW and CHAN MARSHALL (Cat Power) with the melancholy-filled distortion of MY BLOODY VALENTINE and the stark truth of PJ HARVEY. Anchored by the haunting and hypnotic voice of Carrie Murphy (TOUCHDOWN EAGLE), Panda & Angel (JT1114) offers a heavy-hearted perspective on losing one's way and ultimately starting anew. The end result is a poignant memoir of melancholic regret, cathartic revelations and vibrant but tempered pop orchestrations.

MICAH P. HINSON’S first release for Jade Tree harkens back to a stripped-down, self-professed “lost” period for the critically acclaimed singer/songwriter. Hailing from Abilene, Texas, HINSON’S introductory EP, The Baby and the Satellite, animates the emptiness of backcountry roads and late-teenage displacement. HINSON’s distinct brand of country-noir is delivered over hushed vocals and subdued guitars, shaded by fragments of Dylan’s storytelling and Bill Callahan’s (Smog) ability to tap into the darker emotions of real life. The Baby and the Satellite is an endearing journey through HINSON’S fractured past, searching for signs of hope in the somber halls of a downtrodden Middle America.

Witness the new sound of hardcore on Don’t Believe, the third album from punkers NEW MEXICAN DISASTER SQUAD – their first for Jade Tree. The band has been hiding in the weeds of their home sweet hellhole of Orlando, FL, just honing their modern melodic anthems and delivering pizza since 1999. Now they’re ready to turn their rage loose on the unsuspecting masses. The 14 songs on Don’t Believe blaze by in a fury of blue-collar triumph, creating a ferocious new sound still firmly rooted in the school of their 80s hardcore heroes like Dag Nasty, Minor Threat and Black Flag.

AVAIL triumphantly puts it all together on Over the James. The raw energy of their legendary live show is finally conveyed on this thunderously pristine recording. With a more mature take on songwriting and probably Tim Barry’s most personal lyrics to date, the 1998 album is the most ferocious and vital statement of their career. The 14 original songs have been remastered and are now bolstered by bonus tracks including the Fall of Richmond split with (Young) Pioneers and the band’s covers of Elvis, Billy Joel and Embrace, as well as new liner notes, artwork and rare photographs.

4AM Friday is the sound of AVAIL hitting their stride – plain and simple. The collection of sing-a-long anthems for the everyman solidified their place as the kings of the Southern punk underground. This reissue of the 1996 classic is now completed by the addition of the 15 songs from Live at the Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco recorded in 1997, this smoldering live set showcases the band at their absolute peak and is testament to the unforgettable, high-octane shows that are AVAIL’s hallmark. Remastering, newly written liner notes, freshly unearthed photos and new artwork complete the package.

Dixie, the classic 1994 album from Richmond, VA punk-rock legends AVAIL, is back in print and better than ever. The album’s original 12 tracks of highly personal, Americana-punk have now been remastered and beefed up by the addition of 11 bonus tracks (compiled from the Attempt to Regress 7” and the 10" Live at the Kingshead Inn), new liner notes and loads of rare photographs. Dixie is the rallying cry that truly put AVAIL on the map, belted out in emotive tales of the struggle of everyday Southern life and backed by unfathomably huge hooks and an unbridled rage.

Four Years in One Gulp is the vibrant 90-minute documentary of the all-too-brief life and times of KID DYNAMITE. For the first time you’ll hear the side of these Philadelphia punk heroes’ story that’s gone previously untold, and not just from the band themselves, but also from their friends, supporters and fans. Highlighted by 25 raging live performances, the DVD reveals KID DYNAMITE’s guts: the personalities, the music and the motivation, life at home and on the road, and the process of putting the band together only to watch it prematurely fall apart.

LORDS first album for Jade Tree, combines the “get in the van” urgency of a forgotten era of SST influenced punk rock with an awe-inspiring precision and swagger of late 80’s American thrash metal. LORDS deliver their unique brand of volatile thrash in a blaze of towering riffs, near heretical rants and throttling drums. Swords (JT1107) is a torrid and unrelenting assault that leaves a trail of scorched earth in its path.

ESTER DRANG’s third full length, Rocinate, catapults the band even further into their patented synth-dripped rhythms, throbbing percussion, rising horns and post-gazer grandeur, having as much in common with Brian Eno’s mournful drone as they do The Notwist’s passionate textures. Rocinate affords these Oklahomans the freedom to orchestrate their imagination into a beautiful ensemble of tracks; proving that songs not only have the power to elevate, to leave you infiltrated, but when properly strung together can be as transcendent as they are moving.

Denver Dalley’s follow up to Leave Your Name finds the lanky Omaha native upping the ante and delivering a record that is as poignant as it is potent. Often Lie begins with a breathy whisper, but it hardly murmurs for long before guitars hurtle in and the first power chord rings out. An album of mournful pop perfection, Omaha native and Desaparecidos co-songwriter Dalley delivers the goods here; delicate odes to forgotten radio DJs and loves lost are peppered with electronic flourishes while crushing choruses beautifully butt up against a melancholic wash of breathtaking production, but when push comes to shove Often Lie elegantly ends in a resounding crash.

Recorded while the band toured in support of Achilles' Heel, the iTunes Exclusive Stations EP (JT1104) features radio station versions of an assortment of PEDRO THE LION hits. Big Trucks off the band's watershed It's Hard to Find A Friend along with Of Minor Prophets and Their Prostitute Wives, and I Do were recorded as part of a live broadcast on WLUW-FM in Chicago on June 30th 2004. CBC Radio recorded the remaining tracks live in Toronto at the Horseshoe Tavern on June 24, 2004. The entire show was broadcast a few weeks later as a part of the CBC Just Concerts Series.

PAINT IT BLACK'S follow up to their urgent and trouncing CVA is epic in comparison. Not simply in terms of song length, but more importantly in terms of subject matter. Paradise contains all the mile-a-minute passion of the last release coupled with a more thematic tone, exploring the personal pains of divorce, the more global concerns of war and how the two are hopelessly intertwined. The end result is a heroic look inward and ultimately a catharsis guised in uncompromising intensity and spirit.

Philadelphia’s THE LOVED ONES rocket onto the scene with a debut filled to the brim with a blazing mix of punk sensibilities, rock riffs, and raspy vocals. Song after song, THE LOVED ONES – made up of members of The Curse, Kid Dynamite, and Trial By Fire – deliver a barrage of explosive hooks coupled with a pummeling sense of urgency. Expect big things, as earnest, heart-felt sing-alongs simply don't get any better than this.

The Richmond, Virginia boys of STRIKE ANYWHERE have made their career by delivering hardcore anthems peppered with a radical worldview and a sincere musical/political understanding of the last 30 years of punk rock lineage. The five-piece have been bubbling over and with the release of To Live In Discontent the band offers a rare insight into the history of their undeniable hooks and ferocious energy. A collection of rare and unreleased material including the long out of print Chorus Of One EP, outtakes from Exit English, and an assortment of classic cover choices including Cock Sparrer, Dag Nasty, and of course The Gorilla Biscuits. To Live In Discontent is a must have release for any fan of the band’s raucous rally cry; a definitive insight into what fuels a revolution, and a glimpse into the history that will thankfully keep it burning.

Somewhere In The Swamps Of Jersey unearths the lesser-known side of LIFETIME and simultaneously presents a new take on the band’s impassioned hardcore. This double-disc set not only contains singles, compilation tracks, covers and demos, but also two versions of their crucial, out-of-print 1993 debut, Background. Disc one’s version has been completely remixed to now foreshadow the tight, loud and exuberant sound that would eventually define the band. Disc two presents a remaster of the untouched original, complete with the bonus live set. A 52-page perfect-bound book of liner notes, lyrics and over 40 rare photographs completes this collector’s dream.

Right-click to download a PDF of the layout.

The digital only The People Of And Their Verses, recorded just prior to DESPISTADO'S breakup, seethes of potential and captures a band at their peak. Potent, scathing, and vital the twelve tracks burn with a passion and sense of eagerness that render this an instant classic. While the band will be sorely missed, this is as fine a farewell as any band has given their fans.

Produced by Kurt Ballou (Isis, Cave In, Give Up the Ghost, Converge), Charmer (JT1098) takes off in many ways where their Only In Morning EP left off, that is to say in throws of total madness, the end result is an absolute force to reckon with; equally vicious, progressive and thoroughly unpredictable. The band, made up of current Black Cross and one time National Acrobat member Evan Patterson on guitar, along with bassist Nick Thieneman, drummer Geoff Paton, and vocalist Steve Sindoni, deliver an explosive and volatile vision – scathing, brutal, and biting BREATHER RESIST are simply too explosive to ignore. Vinyl is also available from Level Plane

Oxeneers or The Lion Sleeps When Its Antelope Go Home (JT1097) is, in many ways, the completion of the promise made with the potential of This is Meant to Hurt You. (JT1084) The hooks are thicker, the guitars bigger and the songs are a simply stunning culmination of a years hard work and dedication. The album sparkles with a tight, visceral momentum, both angular and infectious. This is the record THESE ARMS ARE SNAKES set out to make, a confident testimonial, a vicious revision, and a true confrontation in every sense of the word.

Canadian prairie-rockers, DESPISTADO are as much a mix of Wire's artful passion as perhaps Modest Mouses' steadfast quirk and with the release of The Emergency Response (JT1096) they make their spastic and raging debut worldwide. Angular, driving, and thoroughly commanding DESPISTADO are just out the gate and already hold court as the band to watch out for.

Simply put PEDRO THE LION have made the album of their career. After the huge crossover success of 2002's Control (JT1072), it was only a matter of time before David Bazan and company would fully realize their potential swansong. Beautifully achieved, Achilles' Heel (JT1095) is crafted as a scathing glance into the crosshairs of the American dream, a heartbreaking sketch of husbandhood and ultimately an exploration of faith as told through eleven perfectly textured vignettes. As sonically mature as it is emotionally complex, Achilles' Heel is imbued with the hopeful sadness that only PEDRO THE LION can, and do deliver.

Jade Tree's second volume in its' Location Is Everything (JT1094) sampler series provides the perfect overview of the label's most recent and upcoming releases, featuring 21 tracks by beloved Jade Tree artists STRIKE ANYWHERE, DENALI, CHALLENGER, ESTER DRANG, THESE ARMS ARE SNAKES, JETS TO BRAZIL and more. The CD also features bonus tracks of unreleased, live, and demo versions of songs from PEDRO THE LION, FROM ASHES RISE, ONELINEDRAWING, PAINT IT BLACK, CEX and STATISTICS.

On The Volunteers (JT1093) Jonah Matranga seamlessly integrates visceral rock with the intimate, sharp lyricism that has made him one of the underground's most beloved songwriters. A stunning album of shimmering, eccentric pop rock made spontaneously in many different places, the performances are immediate and diverse, with Jonah's voice more direct and dynamic than it has ever been. This CD is enhanced with demo versions of album tracks and additional liner notes written by Jonah.

Reminiscent of the abrasive and pummeling energy of bands such as Husker Du and Sonic Youth, CHALLENGER songs are non-stop, scratchy, fuzzed out affairs of speed driven post-punk. But CHALLENGER refuses to lose itself just to keep pace with its meaty bursts, providing a generous roadmap of melody buried within the scrawl and totally refining the classic guitar determined origins of American indie music in the process.

The debut full length from STATISTICS refuses to be pinned down to any one style, rather the record spans the sonic spectrum with an impressive collection of power pop song craft, steadfast hooks and textural soundscapes. The distinctive, eleven-song Leave Your Name (JT1091), is a bittersweet gem, a singular vision and lays claim to a sound that is very much it's own.

CEX, an artist who is known for wowing fans with his jaw-dropping freestyle ability and his penchant for stage mayhem, drops another hot disc of genre-defiling genius with Maryland Mansions (JT1090). A groundbreaking mix of glitchtronic hooks, classic party rap, and NIN-inspired darkwave crunch topped with loquacious rhymes, this is clearly an album that evidences CEX as one of the most exciting things going in American music.

During preparations for the recording of this record, DENALI experienced a variety of emotional extremes from which came contrast and introspection, and translated into shorter songs, quicker tempos, and seemingly new eyes on the world. Gone are the cold, reserved, atmospheres of the first album, as Denali is reborn through more evolved, immediate, impassioned, and enveloping compositions.

Three full lengths into their career, Portland via Tennessee subversives FROM ASHES RISE unleash their most harrowing dissention among a barrage of devastating and seditious musical ferocity. Armed with anger as their energy and backed by achingly severe riffs, unforgiving beats, and ramrod snarls, the band wades through the protests, the thievery, the disillusion, and the ultimate tragedy of the modern world.

On their second full-length, STRIKE ANYWHERE does justice to their previous efforts while completing its formal transition into one of the most compelling and exemplary bands of their era. Rarely does a band challenge its listeners to become part of its collective consciousness with a musical rally to discourse inclusive of direct pop explosions, folk imbued hardcore mantras, and piercing punk manifestos.

In an unprecedented partnership, Jade Tree and California's finest cover band, ME FIRST AND THE GIMME GIMMES have combined forces for a limited edition 7". Titled "Jackson" (JT1086), this single features "Ben" and "I’ll Be There". Better known as two of Michael Jackson’s finer cuts, ME FIRST AND THE GIMME GIMMES have added their own special touch to these classic compositions that live up to the originals and are sure to please fans to boot.

This posthumous release contains songs culled from every compilation and split release, cover songs, the original six-song demo, a live radio appearance, and assorted demo versions of KID DYNAMITE classics. The CD also includes a booklet with extensive liner notes written by the band and a bonus DVD of never before seen live footage and photos, as well as flyers. This DVD has Region 0 encoding.

Seattle, WA’s THESE ARMS ARE SNAKES are poised to spread their venom far and wide. With members who have participated in such Northwestern luminaries as Botch, Nineironspitfire, and Kill Sadie, THESE ARMS ARE SNAKES pedigree is only but a touchstone for the band’s progressive aggression and passionate chaos. Defying parameters, THESE ARMS ARE SNAKES match their determined rock with side-winding sonic parallels and layers of subtle confusion.

Omaha, Nebraska's all-star STATISTICS is the new band from Desaparecidos founder, main songwriter and guitarist Denver Dalley. Complementing, yet expanding upon Denver's efforts with the Saddle Creek powerhouse he fronted with Conor Oberst (Bright Eyes), STATISTICS is percolating, hushed electro-pop melded with power-rock dynamics and pure, timeless hooks.

Oklahoma's ESTER DRANG has produced a precise and delicate album on their second full-length and Jade Tree debut, Infinite Keys (JT1082). Cinematically inspired and atmospheric, it is a spectral wall of sound that reaches out in several directions at once without losing its central focus, emanating a feeling of timelessness that melds well with its psychedelic elements.

Tim Kinsella, JOAN OF ARC'S lead man, has amassed a collection of songs culled from a variety of sources - sketches begun on his computer at home and collaborations with kindred spirits from coast to coast - and given them life. Further gussied up with help from a plethora of fellow Chicago luminaries, this is a career culmination of JOAN OF ARC'S musical meanderings and genius in a concise, focused, and mature realization.

PAINT IT BLACK delivers unabashed, uncompromising hardcore, negating the preconceived boundaries between the personal, political, melodic and aggressive, accentuating a much-appreciated axiom: maximum intensity. Features current and ex-members of Lifetime, Kid Dynamite, Good Riddance, and The Curse.

JETS TO BRAZIL'S third offering is a mirror ball of sound that reflects a clearer, more focused band and represents not so much a continuation of JETS TO BRAZIL'S previous gestures, but rather a better understanding of them. Having mastered their brave blend of angular rock, epic balladry, and really cool keyboard noises, the Jets have accomplished what is quite clearly the defining record of their career. This CD is enhanced with video.

MILEMARKER return with a six-song mini album/maxi EP showing that high-velocity progress is the MILEMARKER steez. While the first three songs deliver on the promise of the live shows - bombastic heaviness, drone epics, flailing anthems and polemics aplenty-the following three are various and sundry Electro-jams, alternately recalling the precision and coldness of Kraftwerk and the crunktastic party-vibe of “Around the World in a Day”-era Prince And The Revolution. This CD EP is also enhanced with live footage.

Existing in Washington, DC circa 1989 and featuring members of Ignition and Swiz, FURY was unapologetically hardcore in the vein of Void, Discharge, and Minor Threat. At the end of their short run, FURY managed to record all their songs in an uninterrupted 12-minute rant-to-tape. Years after the band's demise these songs were released as a limited 7"EP and are finally available on CD for the first time.

ONELINEDRAWING is Jonah Matranga, singer/songwriter of New End Original and former singer/songwriter of Far. Jonah's explorations into private music making sounds as if you're in his bedroom witnessing a personalized performance made from voice, guitar, bass, feedback, and found sounds. Simultaneously full of joy and marked by melancholy, the music is ultimately uplifting.

Jade Tree's first sampler "Location is Everything Vol. 1" (JT1075) is economically priced and designed to provide a definitive overview of the label's output. 16 of the CD's 23 tracks dip into Jade Tree's catalog of recent and forthcoming releases with songs by NEW END ORIGINAL, STRIKE ANYWHERE, DENALI, ONELINEDRAWING, TRIAL BY FIRE, OWLS, and many more. This sampler also features seven never-before-released songs by JETS TO BRAZIL, THE PROMISE RING, PEDRO THE LION, MILEMARKER, GIRLS AGAINST BOYS, MIIGHTY FLASHLIGHT, and PAINT IT BLACK.

GVSB'S first record in three years marks the anticipated return of one of America's greatest rock bands with eleven songs that aggressively take their trademark thick, propulsive, pop opulence to a new level and refuse to let up. Sexy, abrasive, and compelling, the album marks a return to the rawness and focus of past work, but with a new finesse.

DENALI'S self-titled debut is dreamy art pop and plaintive melancholy built on a brilliant architecture of glacial hooks, angelic, sultry vocals and dark-hued electro-touches. Complimented by the lush production skills of Sparklehorse member Alan Weatherhead (with fellow bandmate Mark Linkous) the atmospheric result captures the solid chemistry of a band on the rise.

PEDRO THE LION are back and armed with a ten-song arsenal that heralds another beautiful progression within the band’s sound and lyrical vision. A deepening complexity to their songwriting mirrors the complexity of messages and lyrical content. Anchored by trademark rolling, indelible hooks and Dave Bazan's vocals, which swing from sweet indictments to mournful mocking, PEDRO THE LION digs deep to examine the vast disparity between the "haves" and the "have-nots".

MY MORNING JACKET'S 3 country-rock tent-revival styled jams are so earnestly played that they make a lasting impression-one that sears the songs deep into the soul of the listener. SONGS: OHIA'S 10-minute, two-part song features notable, but unnamable, Drag City records guests, a dark lord doo-wop coda, and Jason Molina's trademark vocals, making this Molina's most daring and impressive song to date. Both band's contributions are new and exclusive to this release.

TRIAL BY FIRE play uncomplicated, no frills hardcore of a caliber that is without equal. Endowed with dynamic force and a revitalizing state of mind, TRIAL BY FIRE reward the ever faithful with a debut album full of fervent musical angst and shrewd lyrical observations which harken back to the days when punk meant something more than who has the tightest t-shirt or coolest haircut, but rather a purposeful reflection on society and ones role within it.