In Heavy Rotation
June 24th, 2026
Discogs and Academy Records Present Public Sale of Tom Verlaine's Personal Vinyl Collection Available Globally Through Discogs and In-Store at Academy Records Beginning June 26 By: Tracking Angle(Press Release): Discogs, the world's largest music discovery and record collecting platform, and NYC’s stalwart independent shop Academy Records today announced a special public sale of records from the personal vinyl collection of Tom Verlaine, musician, poet and founding frontman of the influential New York band Television. Beginning June 26, collectors and music fans worldwide will have the opportunity to purchase records from Verlaine's archive through... Read More
Comments: 0June 23rd, 2026
Wynton Marsalis's Jazz at Lincoln Center Big Band Opens Sensational New NYC Jazz Club Jacob Heilbrunn was there opening night By: Jacob HeilbrunnThere was much to muse about on Monday evening at the grand opening of The Pocket, a new jazz club in located in midtown Manhattan inside the boutique Muse Hotel. The 4,500 square foot underground venue can hold up to 170 patrons. Designed to resemble the jazz clubs of yore on 52nd street, this intimate listening space features elegant booths lined with green velvet as well as white-cloth tables. The cheap seats, or as cheap as it gets, are the so-called “rail seats”... Read More
Comments: 1June 23rd, 2026
Craft Recordings and Bluesville Records to Reissue Sought After Jimmy Reed and Skip James Albums Reed’s 1961 album, "Jimmy Reed at Carnegie Hall", and James’ 1968 swan song, "Devil Got My Woman"—in partnership with Acoustic Sounds By: Tracking AngleLos Angeles, CA (June 23, 2026)—Craft Recordings and Bluesville Records are excited to announce the release of two peerless album reissues from a pair of blues heavyweights, Jimmy Reed and Skip James. A studio LP despite its name, the Jimmy Reed title is the first disc of his classic 1961 double album, Jimmy Reed at Carnegie Hall, which spawned the enduring hit song “Bright Lights Big City.” Devil Got My Woman is James’ 1968 swan song, released just a year before the... Read More
Comments: 1June 23rd, 2026
Of Montreal Laments Heartbreak on “Aethermead” Another one of Kevin Barnes’ emotionally vulnerable records By: Dylan PegginOf Montreal is a musical entity that defies the notion of ‘staying in one's lane.’ It’s remarkable to consider the whimsical baroque flourishes on albums like The Gay Parade and the synth-pop glitz of Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?. All are by-products of songwriter Kevin Barnes channeling wherever their creative trajectory veers. Since abandoning fantasy characters and concepts during the group’s early years, they’ve never strayed from exposing the... Read More
Comments: 0June 23rd, 2026
A June 27th Invitation in So. Cal to Hear the Wilson Audio Autobiography Loudspeaker at the audio salon By: Michael FremerEven if you can't afford to spend $788,000 on a pair of loudspeakers, it will cost you nothing to go listen to them at the Audio Salon in Santa Monica, CA. and hang with some people who can. You'll also have the opportunity to meet CEO Daryl Wilson and talk to him about the design and why it costs what it does. You'll also have an opportunity to meet Peter McGrath, who in addition to being Wilson's "Brand Ambassador" and speaker set-up... Read More
Comments: 0June 22nd, 2026
The Aesthetix Rhea Eclipse Phono Stage. “Continuous Improvement Is Better Than Delayed Perfection” By: Brian PastuszenskiAesthetix Audio Corporation introduced the original version of its single chassis, tubed phono preamplifier - the Rhea in 2002 - nearly 25 years ago. The Rhea was designed to give listeners most of the sonics of Aesthetix’s reference level phono stage, the Io, but at a less celestial price point and with a lot fewer tubes.[1] Since the introduction of the original version of the Rhea (which Aesthetix now refers to as the “Standard” version), Jim White, Aesthetix’s... Read More
Comments: 1June 22nd, 2026
Joni Mitchell's "Blue" Rhino High Fidelity Vinyl and R2R press release highlights "vinyl wear" and "surface noise" By: Michael FremerLOS ANGELES – Joni Mitchell’s masterpiece Blue celebrates its 55-year anniversary today with new audiophile editions from Rhino High Fidelity on reel-to-reel and vinyl.(ed note: why the publicist or Rhino or both feel it necessary to highlight "surface noise" and "groove wear" in a press release announcing a vinyl and R2R release escapes me. Then why not mention the hassle of R2R threading, the expense and that it's a 3rd gen tape versus... Read More
Comments: 14June 19th, 2026
Curtis Mayfield's "Superfly" Soundtrack Next Rhino High Fidelity Release on Vinyl and R2R Tape R2R limited to 350 copies By: Tracking AngleLOS ANGELES – Curtis Mayfield’s Super Fly soundtrack pioneered socially aware soul in the early ’70s with its groundbreaking, orchestral-funk arrangements and unflinching lyrical commentary. Today, new audiophile editions are available from Rhino High Fidelity on reel-to-reel and vinyl.Super Fly (Rhino High Fidelity R2R) was duplicated in real time from a 1:1 copy of the original analog master tape. The result is a master-quality listening experience that captures... Read More
Comments: 0June 19th, 2026
Marvin Gaye’s "Let’s Get It On" Next Release in Interscope-Capitol’s Definitive Sound Series Landmark 1973 Masterpiece Receives Premium Limited-Edition One-Step Audiophile Edition Cut from Original Analog Master Tapes By: Tracking AngleLos Angeles, CA – June 17, 2026 – Interscope-Capitol Records’ Definitive Sound Series (DSS) announces Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On as the next release in its acclaimed premium audiophile vinyl collection. Arriving July 17, the limited-edition AAA 180g high-definition vinyl One Step pressing is available for pre-order. "Mr. Gaye created music that was deeply personal, yet universally understood,” says The Estate of Marvin Gaye. “Let’s Get It On remains one of his... Read More
Comments: 1June 19th, 2026
The Band's "Music From Big Pink" and D'Angelo's "Brown Sugar" Are Next Vinylphyle Reissues great choices! . "...Big Pink" O.G. had bass amputation@80Hz, D'Angelo AAA for the first time By: Tracking AngleLos Angeles – June 18, 2026 – Though separated by nearly three decades and rooted in different musical traditions, The Band’s Music From Big Pinkand D’Angelo’s Brown Sugar share a common distinction: both debut albums fundamentally reshaped the course of American music. The latest additions to UMe’s Vinylphyle series exemplify its mission to present essential albums across genres with uncompromising sound quality and packaging.Available to order today exclusively via... Read More
Comments: 3Bassist Ben Allison, guitarist Steve Cardenas, and multi-reedman Ted Nash make up an odd sort of trio (no piano, drums, or second horn), which in other hands might produce the stuff of “chamber jazz,” but in theirs spans the gamut from hot to cool, sometimes both at once, sprightly but dense with clipped rhythms, twisty intervals, and a quiet virtuosity. Over the past decade, they have recorded albums covering the music of Jim Hall (Quiet Revolution), Carla Bley... Read More
Comments: 1June 17th, 2026
Vienna High End Show No. 4, Yet More new Turntables, Phono Preamps, Cartridges and Ultrasonic Cleaning Machines and there's at least, perhaps two more videos to follow By: Michael FremerNo.4 will not be the final video from High End Vienna 2026. There's more to come. In this video you'll see the new compact Boulder 808 phono preamplifier, the new 12" The Wand tonearm, the Mavis phono preamp from Vietnam, and one from WestminsterLab making its European debut.Pear Audio's Odar turntable has a new configuration that puts the arm on an outboard platform, JMF will inboard transformers on its PH 7.2 phono preamp, Korf Audio introduced a... Read More
Comments: 1June 16th, 2026
Vienna High End Show No.3—Even More New Turntables, Phono Preamps and Cartridges And yes, there are more videos with more exciting news coming up! By: Michael FremerWow. This is the 3rd 1/2 hour video from High End Vienna and there's so much more to be edited and posted. In this one you'll see the debut of a new $54K Constellation Performance phono pre, the new circa $7500 Wattson Madison phono pre available for MM, MC or DS Audio optical cartridges, the Thales Reference TT featuring a mechanical speed regulator, and Magnifier preamp/phono preamp, the new Dr. Feickert Virgo S and Virgo SE turntables, two new Dynavector... Read More
Comments: 2June 15th, 2026
Building the Bridge: Flea's "Honora" Flea's long-promised trumpet album has arrived! By: Brian FisherThere are times when a record is just on time. Flea’s Honora is most certainly one of those efforts. And it’s not the Flea we know. This album is actually the work of a Flea we’ve only heard of. If, like me, you were an early Red Hot Chili Peppers fan, you no doubt remember early interviews with Flea where he discussed his childhood trumpet playing. I also recall his awesome mother saying her son could really play like a "m.....fker", or something of that... Read More
Comments: 2June 15th, 2026
Grappling with the Avant-garde: Revisiting Classical Music’s Most Experimental and Divisive Period - Part 5: “The Iconoclast and the Poet” A Visit to Mauricio Kagel’s Workshop of Sonic Wonders - and Hovering in the Air with the Zen Artist of the Avant-garde, Toru Takemitsu By: Mark Ward
In these excellent Original Source remasterings on vinyl - courtesy of Emil Berliner Studios - two more titles from this landmark series arrive for a new generation maybe more receptive to their musical and sonic experimentation.
You can read Part 1 of this series here, Part 2 here, Part 3 here, and Part 4 here.
Read More Comments: 14June 15th, 2026
“Philadelphia’s Been Good To Me” - Kurt Vile’s Love Letter to His Hometown The indie legend’s 10th album is full of love for life, family, and music By: Dylan PegginFace obscured by wavy brown locks and donning a flannel over his Waylon Jennings shirt, Kurt Vile is a name that’s hard to bypass or ignore within the indie music circles. The man is a legend in his own right, having sustained a 20+ year career and making the glow-up from being a part of the Matador roster to the major-label big leagues of Verve. Vile’s brand of psychedelic indie rock–with roots circling back to folk and Americana–makes him a uniquity within an... Read More
Comments: 4June 15th, 2026
Tastykakes, Soul Songs & Shining Stars: Affections and Reflections 1973–2025 Longtime journalist and A&R man for Sire/Columbia puts together a heartfelt scrap book of his Soul writing By: JoE SilvaOf the 73 million people that watched The Fab Four move the needle on the Ed Sullivan show, young Joe McEwen was part of that tiny percentage of Americans that weren’t moved by what they’d seen.“It didn’t make any connection with me at all. But there was something nagging inside. To paraphrase Bob Dylan, something was happening here, but I didn’t know what the hell it was.”Clarity eventually came to him by way of a small transistor radio. As McEwen writes in the... Read More
Comments: 0June 13th, 2026
Vienna High End Show 2026 No.2—More New Turntables! and there's so much more coverage to come By: Michael FremerThough Pro-Ject turntables are manufactured in the Czech Republic, Vienna is home to Pro-Ject's founder Heinz Lichtenegger, who pulled out all the stops to create a major impression at this first Vienna High End show. Covering everything new from Pro-Ject and Heinz's other acquisitions takes up a great deal of this video, but of course there's far more and it will require additional videos to cover all that's new in analog this year. There was even... Read More
Comments: 2