Aural Fixations

AMERICAN MUSIC CLUB
Love Songs For Patriots
(Merge)
When a beloved band reunites after a stretch of time as long as a decade, I'm always cautious. Not about acquiring the album, mind you—that's a given. But I'm always worried that at best the reunion will merely rehash past triumphs and at worst stumble miserably. (more)

THE BEVIS FROND
Hit Squad
(Woronzow/Rubric)
Hit Squad is the latest missive from the mercurial musical mind of Nick Saloman, and it's great. That sounds blasé, I know. But Saloman is one of the most amazingly consistent musicians in rock, with a bookcase full of high quality albums to his credit, and Hit Squad fits snugly on the shelf. (more)

THE CLASH
London Calling (Legacy Edition)
(Epic/Legacy)
London Calling, the third album by the Clash, is a certifiable classic, looked upon as a landmark rock & roll record, the pinnacle of the late 70s punk movement, the album that kicked the door open into the 80s, a pivotal influence on a million bands, etc., etc., et-fucking-cetera. (more)

MATTHEW SWEET
Kimi Ga Suki
Living Things
(Superdeformed/RCAM)
It's been way too long since we heard from Matthew Sweet. After his last album, the unheralded masterpiece In Reverse, he parted ways with his label and dropped out of circulation for a while to reassess where he'd next take his career. Last year he released Kimi Ga Suki in Japan only, as a way of saying thanks for the support from his Far Eastern fans. Now he's released it in his home country, joined by the brand new Living Things. (more)