DC October 30 New Release Recap

A paucity of newbie artists this week as the veterans deliver the cream of the proverbial music crop on new release day (which would appear to be shifting to Mondays, at least for a few major labels). Neil Young and Crazy Horse drop their Psychedelic Pill, an often improvisational excursion into the dark, raw and Young-ian musical underbelly, while Everything But The Girl's Tracey Thorn delivers an exquisite holiday gift of seasonal songs. Andrew Bird's Hands of Glory extends the stripped acoustic production of his acclaimed recent tour to some well-chosen covers, one new song and a couple reworked tracks from his 2012 album Break It Yourself. We think In the Dusk of Everything from Matthew Ryan is the hidden and unheralded find of the batch, though, a self-described "modern folk record" that also happens to be a collection of intelligent, personal songs. Also out this week: Paul Buchanan's "In The Air", Delerium's "Music Box Opera", Macy Gray's celebration of Stevie Wonder's Talking Book, the new Starbucks/Hear Music holiday collection Holidays Rule and the debut of RNDM, the collaboration of Joseph Arthur, Pearl Jam's Jeff Ament and drummer Richard Stuverud. See the DC features and listing below...

With In the Dusk of Everything (October 23), Matthew Ryan completes his masterful trilogy of personal introspection and renewal that began with 2010's Dear Lover. The electro-beat ambient atmosphere of last year's quite brilliant I Recall Standing As If Nothing Could Fall has been replaced with a far more vivid acoustic template, stripping back studio production ornaments to leave only the skeletal structure of Ryan's own rubbed-raw rasp of a voice, a sparse if elegantly organic instrumental backing and the stark relief of some of the most awe inspiring poetic lyricism you're likely to hear this or any year...more DC

Whether you're a staid traditionalist or irony-stoked hipster, with Tracey Thorn's Tinsel and Lights you get both the winter and the wonderful. Rising from the muck and gaggle of holiday albums that speak volumes of label contract obligations and finding an easy, queasy buck (we're looking at you Rod Stewart), Thorn's eclectic and un-schmaltzy seasonal collection mixes a few standards brilliantly updated with a grab bag of divinely obscure (and delightfully unpredictable) indie gems that go hand in, well, mitten. At the heart of Tinsel and Lights is Thorn's remarkable, distinctive voice, an instrument that can sound sweet and melancholy within a single note...more DC

For those of us who have been quietly pining for a new album from the legendary Scottish trio The Blue Nile, hearts were gladdened when word came that frontman and songwriter Paul Buchanan was self-releasing a solo album Mid Air in the U.K. Even better news came last week when we learned that Mid Air will be released in the U.S. October 30 with the bonus second disc of rarities, demos and remixes. Formed in 1981 and releasing only four albums between 1984 and 2004, The Blue Nile became as beloved as they were commercially unsuccessful and whose self-titled debut and second album Hats (1989) have been pegged by both fans and critics alike as two of the greatest and most influential alt-pop albums of the past 30 years...more DC

Dark, gothy minor chord art/rock meets spacious trip-hop vibe with London's The Mouth of Ghosts, a new band that sounds like they're tuning in Evanescence and Portishead on the same mysterious wavelength. Frontwoman Alla Seydalieva is the explosive ace in the hand here, a powerhouse vocalist who has not only the pipes but unpacks the alluring siren-like drama when needed as well. New single "When The Sun Sets" (amazing iPhone-shot video below) is also the best track we've heard so far, a nocturnal anthem that has piqued the interest of BBC 6's resident tastemaker Tom Robinson (who pegged it as "effortless, ethereal and gorgeous")...more DC

More October 30 Releases:

Andrew Bird - Hands of Glory
Black Country Communion - Afterglow
Chad Valley - Young Hunger
Cheval Sombre - Mad Love
Chris Mann (The Voice) - Roads
Delerium - Music Box Opera
Dolfish - I'd Rather Disappear Than Stay the Same
Ending People - Fill Your Lungs
Flyleaf - New Horizons
Gilmore & Roberts - The Innocent Left (UK)
Huey & The New Yorkers - Say It To My Face (UK)
Jerad Finck - Stuck In Your Riddle
Macy Gray - Talking Book (S. Wonder Covers)
Mick Hucknall (Simply Red) - American Soul (Covers)(UK)
Neil Young/Crazy Horse - Psychedelic Pill
Nick Gill - Waves Are Only Water
RNDM (Joseph Arthur, Jeff Ament) - Acts
Rod Stewart - Merry Christmas, Baby
Skye (Morcheeba) - Back to Now (UK)
The Velvet Underground & Nico - S/T (45th Anniv. 6-CD Box)
The Rebel Light - S/T
Toby Keith - Hope On the Rocks
Various - Holidays Rule
Walk Off The Earth - R.E.V.O. EP
Wax Fang - Mirror Mirror EP
We Are The Woods - Whales and Roses