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The Local Show’s most anticipated fall releases

by Andrea Swensson

August 27, 2012

On this week's edition of the Local Show, we shined a spotlight on some of the most promising albums that are expected to hit shelves this fall. Some will come from heavyweights whose names are probably already familiar to local music fans, but there's also a crop of up-and-comers releasing promising debuts over the next few months.

Check out our full list of recommendations below, compiled by Local Show producer Jon Schober and myself, and stream last night's episode here.

Fire In The Northern Firs, Of Bones and Things 
Out September 22
This krautrock quartet is known for lead singer Carin Barno’s adept use of a manipulated telephone as a microphone. Their first EP was well-received, and this debut full-length is finally seeing a release after months of recording. 

P.O.S., We Don’t Even Live Here 
Out October 23
The Rhymesayers artist and Doomtree crew member has recently been performing material from his new record at live shows. It’s definitely more of a banger, combining influences from the hip-hop collective and his work in Marijuana Deathsquads. 

Leisure Birds, Globe Master 
Out August 28
Leisure Birds has gone the more psychedelic route since their appearance on Moon Glyph’s Regolith compilation, and their immaculately produced concept record will see a release on the same label, although Steve Rosborough has newly relocated to Oakland. 

Bob Mould, Silver Age 
Out September 4
Big news on the Bob Mould front: he signed to Merge Records and promptly saw his Sugar catalogue re-released. Now the 51-year old rocker is back with a 10th album and proving that he’s still got the amps all the way up. 

Ben Rosenbush and The Brighton, A Wild Hunger 
Out September 6
A trained cellist, Ben Rosenbush has played with Jeremy Messersmith and John Mark Nelson. But he’s also got the talent to be a frontman, and he’s recruited backing back The Brighton to bring his new release to fruition. 

Dark Dark Dark, Who Needs Who 
Out October 2
Our favorite chamber-folk group has been touring overseas pretty extensively while receiving blog love from the likes of Pitchfork and Stereogum. They’ll be the in-studio guests on The Local Show September 30. 

Pony Trash, Pony Trash EP
Release date TBA
Pony Trash features members of The Chambermaids, Vampire Hands, and Gospel Gossip, and their new EP is a testament to shoegazey rock. The full EP is streaming online now, but the release date and show will be announced soon. 

Brother Ali, Mourning in America and Dreaming in Color
Out September 18
Never one to shy away from political and social justice causes, Brother Ali delivers his State of the Union address and offers up a bold thesis statement about remaining positive and community-oriented in what he perceives as an increasingly divided and troubled time. The record is also his venture with a new producer, Jake One, after a decade spent collaborating with Atmosphere's Ant. 

Night Moves, Colored Emotions
Out October 18
Twin Cities fans already got a taste of Colored Emotions when the band gave it away as a free download back in 2011, but those songs have since been re-recorded and remastered for international release by London label Domino Records (home of Dirty Projectors, Animal Collective, Hot Chip).

Polica, Give You the Ghost
Out August 14
As with Night Moves, Polica's already-released album got a higher-profile push recently when Mom + Pop Music, based in New York City, picked up the band. The new version of the record comes complete with a remix EP, Dark Star, and should keep the band on the road for the foreseeable future. 

Ben Kyle, Ben Kyle
Out September 11
Romantica's frontman steps out with a solo album, allowing him to venture into more personal terrain than he typically travels with his alt-country band. The album is loaded full of special guests from throughout Kyle's career, including violinists Carrie Rodriguez and Jessy Greene, plus four separate pedal steel players. 

Various Artists, Twin Cities Funk & Soul: Lost R&B Grooves from Minneapolis & Saint Paul 1964-1979
Out September 25
Crate-digging reissue label Secret Stash Records have taken on their biggest project yet, compiling 15 years of funk and soul rarities and documenting a seminal time in local music that predates the Minneapolis Sound. 

The Chalice, We Are the Chalice
Out September 28
Hip-hop trio The Chalice finally follow up their catchy single “Push It” with a proper EP, adding in a few more tracks and rounding up an excellent bill of collaborators for a show at the Entry on its release date. 

Strange Names, Strange Names
Release date TBA
The musical chemistry between Liam Benzvi and Francis Jimenez is immediately apparent on the layered electro-jams that fill their first studio EP -- now they just need to nail down a release date. The promising debut is expected to come out sometime this fall.

Mark Mallman, Double Silhouette
Out October 9
Mark Mallman's cross-country Marathon 4 isn't the only project coming from the creatively restless piano man this fall. He'll also issue his seventh full-length album, which he jokingly describes as "a depressing rock record."

 

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This activity is made possible in part by the Minnesota Legacy Amendment’s Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.