We’re generally skeptical about the consumerist crapfest that is Black Friday — spend Thursday giving thanks for everything you do have, and wake up early the day after to throw elbows like crazy at your fellow shoppers to spend a shitload of cash on everything you don’t have — but if there’s one thing we do like buying, it’s music. Happily, Black Friday does tend to bring a decent amount of music-related specials, mostly via the folks at Record Store Day. As such, we’ve dutifully thumbed through this year’s list of special releases to sort the proverbial wheat from the chaff, and shared our shopping list after the jump. What’s caught your fancy this year?
Joe Strummer — Live at Acton Town Hall
Right, so, this is the most genuinely exciting release of the day as far as we’re concerned — it captures the benefit show Strummer played for striking firefighters in 2002, at which Mick Jones joined the great man on stage for the first time in two decades, and it’s never been released in any sort of physical format before. Now you can get it on LP, which is all kinds of awesome.
Asobi Seksu / Boris — Split 7″
Boris cover Asobi Seksu. Asobi Seksu cover Boris. What’s not to like? More info right here.
Mogwai — A Wrenched Virile Lore
We included one of the tracks from this remix album in last Friday’s regular MP3 roundup, and we’re pretty excited to hear the rest of it. There’s a full tracklist at Mogwai’s record label Sub Pop, and the RSD listing is here.
David Bowie — “The Jean Genie” (7″)
So, according to Record Store Day, this kinda cool picture disc is a teaser for an upcoming 40th-anniversary re-release of Aladdin Sane. According to the official David Bowie Facebook page, there’s in fact no such re-release planned. Um. Well, either way, this 7″ looks like a fun thing to have — it comes with Bowie’s 1973 Top of the Pops performance of the song on the b-side, and also “the original American music press advert for ‘The Jean Genie.'”
Various Artists — You Turned My Head Around: Lee Hazlewood Industries 1967-1970
A box set of 11 7″ discs collating a bunch of bands who released music on the great Lee Hazlewood’s record label during the late 1960s, this looks like a real treasure (although we’re guessing it’ll probably cost a fortune.) We’ll be honest — we’ve never heard of half the bands featured, but still, we’re suckers for interesting-looking compilations of weird old music, and this definitely looks like it fits the bill.
Various Artists — Death Might Be Your Santa Claus
Speaking of weird old music, how’s about this compilation of “classic blues holiday songs from the ’20s, ’30s, ’40s and ’50s”? It’s gotta be better than Rudolf the bloody Red-Nosed Reindeer again, at least…
Mayhem — De Mysteriis Dom Sathans
Oh yes indeed — if you’ve ever wanted to own a copy of church-burning Norwegian funsters Mayhem’s debut album on 180g vinyl, then rejoice!
My Morning Jacket — “It Makes No Difference” (featuring Brittany Howard)
A 10″ containing a live recording of The Band’s “It Makes No Difference” from the Newport Folk Festival earlier this year, featuring guest vocals from Alabama Shakes’ Brittany Howard. If you like your rock ‘n’ roll Southern, hirsute, and/or soulful, this will no doubt go down a treat.
Nirvana — Incesticide (20th Anniversary 45RPM Edition)
Kurt probably would have hated this, but still, for Nirvana completists, this remastered 180g vinyl edition of Incesticide is probably like Christmas coming early. The irony of a pretty crappy-sounding record being touted “for superior audio quality to past 33 1/3 RPM reissues” isn’t lost on us, mind.
Leonard Cohen / Jeff Buckley — “Hallelujah”
Hey, if you’ve ever wanted a 7″ containing both Cohen’s original and Buckley’s ubiquitous cover, knock yourself out. Now you have something for every Emotional Moment in your life!