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Album Reviews
Combat Rock + The People's Hall: The Clash Cash In
Malachi Lui  |  Jun 04, 2022  |  23 comments
By 1981, The Clash was in shambles. Seeking more direction following their 1980 triple album Sandinista!, co-frontman Joe Strummer and bassist Paul Simonon rehired the band's notoriously difficult original manager, Bernie Rhodes, to the dismay of other co-frontman Mick Jones. Jones sought to continue the band's expansive forays into dub, reggae, and hip-hop, while Strummer wanted something more streamlined. Yet despite all of that, plus drummer Topper Headon's spiraling heroin and cocaine addiction, The Clash toured and managed to record new material at The People's Hall in the Republic of Frestonia (a small area in West London populated by squatters hoping to secede from the UK) as well as Electric Lady Studios in New York City.
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Munich 2022
Munich High End 2022 Day Two - Action-Packed Analog
Michael Fremer  |  Jun 03, 2022  |  22 comments
Esoteric's $75,000 magnetic drive turntable with Ikeda tonearm

Munich High End 2022 day two was as analog action-packed as was day one. Second day videos tend to get somewhat lower viewer numbers, but you can be sure this video contains product debuts and events you really do not want to miss, including the saxophonist Jerome Sabbagh playing live in the Stenheim/darTzeel room backed by a recording of his bandmates. The illusion of the group playing live worked surprisingly well and even translated well recorded to stereo shotgun microphone. darTzeel introduced a new MC phono cartridge.

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FeaturesShort Cuts
Review Explosion: The Smile, Liam Gallagher, Harry Styles & Ethel Cain
Malachi Lui  |  Jun 01, 2022  |  9 comments
(Review Explosion, curated by contributing editor Malachi Lui, is a guide to notable recent releases and reissues. It focuses on the previous few months' new releases for which we don't have time or energy to cover more extensively.)
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FeaturesShort Cuts
Vinyl Review Explosion: David Bowie; Tyler, The Creator; The Weeknd; Lola Kirke
Malachi Lui  |  May 31, 2022  |  6 comments
(Review Explosion, curated by contributing editor Malachi Lui, is a guide to notable recent releases and reissues. It focuses on the previous few months' new releases for which we don't have time or energy to cover more extensively.)
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Album Reviews
Arcade Fire’s WE: Calculated & Concise, But Inconsistent
Malachi Lui  |  May 31, 2022  |  14 comments
Between the excessive sprawl of 2013's James Murphy-produced Reflektor and the failed experimentation of 2017's punchable Everything Now, it might seem as if Arcade Fire spent the last decade actively trying to lose people's interest. Now, however, they're back; at least, that's what their Nigel Godrich-produced new LP WE wants you to think. Split into more introspective "I" (A) and outward-facing "WE" (B) sides, WE is a concise 40-minute summation of the band's previous work. Every Arcade Fire record finds them striving for epic heights and always falling short, though you can't say they're not trying really hard.
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Album Reviews
On The Insufferable What's It Gonna Take?, Van Morrison Declines Even Further
Malachi Lui  |  May 30, 2022  |  67 comments
Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
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Munich 2022
The World's Best High-End Munich 2022 Analog Coverage
Michael Fremer  |  May 28, 2022  |  11 comments
The Kuzma Safir tonearm

Explosive worldwide vinyl record sales growth over the past few years produced a powerful response from the audio industry, based on what was on display at Munich High End 2022. A profusion of new turntables, tonearms, phono preamps and accessories spread throughout the sprawling 28,000m2 MOC Event Center made difficult covering it all even with four days available to do it.

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Interviews
Spinning Live Tales With Graham Nash
Mike Mettler  |  May 16, 2022  |  13 comments
Graham Nash In Performance. (Photo: Ralf Louis)

“I’ve been a harmony singer most of my life. I know what to do, and where to be.”

That’s Graham Nash, 80 years young, not only defining his artistic M.O. as a tenor vocalist, but also speaking to his inherent instincts for knowing what the right tones are for the music he’s making, and, frankly, where he stands on life and society in general.

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Features
Big Bill Broonzy--- The Bill Broonzy Story  Verve MGV 3000-5--- The Records You Didn’t Know You Needed #11
Joseph W. Washek  |  May 16, 2022  |  4 comments
On the evenings of July 12, 13, and 14, 1957, Bill Broonzy made his last recordings at Universal Recording Studios in Chicago. He was suffering from lung cancer, was scheduled to be operated on in a few days, and had been told that he would probably not be able to sing after the operation.

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AAA VinylAlbum Reviews
Yarlung's GRAMMY nominated Fire and Fancy  Is Music For Moderns
Michael Leser Johnson  |  May 16, 2022  |  3 comments
In my previous review of the Korppoo Trio by the Sibelius Piano Trio and Yarlung Records, I spoke a great deal about the recording philosophy of this boutique classical outfit and their AAA, 45rpm chamber music records. From the same recording sessions that brought us that exquisite romantic delight, we have another outing with musicians Petteri Iivonen, Juho Pohjonen, and Samuli Peltonen, this time with a decidedly different program.

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