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What’s up Sorry State readers? Happy October! I can’t wait for the weather to cool off and for some fall festivities to commence. I’ll probably end up writing a staff pick or two on a horror movie… who knows? This week though, I’ll be writing about a cool record I found in the store. Whenever I’m working the counter and it gets busy and I need to throw something on real quick, the world section is usually the first spot I’ll consult and just grab whatever is the coolest/most interesting-looking thing. We’ve gotten a ton of great stuff in recently, but one record I’ve particularly been enjoying a lot is this compilation by the Ethiopian jazz artist, Mulatu Astatke: New York - Addis – London. This double LP compiles tracks of his ranging from 1965-1975 and they’re all fantastic. Just very chill and relaxing tunes to throw on, but still interesting enough to keep you hooked and listening. There’s also some more upbeat, dance-y numbers on here too, like Asiyo Bellema. There’s a wide mix of influences on here honestly and all kinds of different styles, like some tracks with a Latin jazz influence or Afro-Cuban. I think you’d be hard-pressed to listen to this and not find a track on here that you love. I’m a big fan of the final track, Tezeta. It sounds like such a fitting final track and almost sounds like you’d hear it roll in the credits of some cool-ass old foreign movie or something. Check this one out for sure!

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone has had a nice last couple of weeks. I can’t believe it’s already the end of September. It’s said all the time, but this year really is flying by fast. I’m excited for fall and cooler weather though, and of course getting in the Halloween spirit once October rolls along. Since the last newsletter, I got to attend two amazing shows. The first was on the 11th, when I saw the Billy Strings trio tour in Boone with my girlfriend. It was such a great show full of Doc Watson tunes, from where it all started. Also, it was nice cause it was a seated show in a small theater, so it was a nice intimate vibe. My girlfriend graduated from App State there in Boone, so we made a nice weekend trip out of it and hung out there and did some hiking and chilling around town. Boone is a great place to visit if you’ve never been before, and all the surrounding towns too. The other show was Stereolab this past Sunday at the Haw River Ballroom in Saxapahaw, a little less than an hour from Raleigh. I love this venue, and it was so sick to get to see them there. They put on a really great show and played a healthy mix of stuff from their new album and older material. I’m so happy I got to see them live. I highly recommend going if you have the slightest inclination to. It looks like their tour is going around the US for the next month, so check out if they’re coming anywhere near you. I gotta give props to their merch table too, cause they had good stuff for not outrageous prices, and the shirt that I got is surprisingly very high quality. They also had a tour-exclusive 7” that I picked up with two new songs. Well, the B-side, Flashes In The Afternoon, is actually just an instrumental version of a track from their new album. The A-side, Cloud Land, is a catchy, classic Stereolab tune. You could tell me it was recorded 30 years ago and I’d believe you. They still got it. Go check this tour out!

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone has had a nice couple of weeks since my last write-up. I got back from my trip to France last week and had a great time over there. I really enjoyed my time in Paris. It felt like there was just an endless number of things to do and places to see. It’s hard to beat just wandering around and settling down at a nice café and just ordering some drinks and roasting some heaters and just doing some nice people watching. The south of France was also super cool, especially after being in such a giant city. It was awesome to just take the train down and spend some time on the coast. I didn’t realize how salty the Mediterranean Sea was; it was fun to just float on the surface so easily. We went on a nice hike along this path on the rocks that led to this beautiful kinda hidden bay with a little beach, so we stopped and hung out there for a while and did some swimming. All in all, it was a great trip, and I definitely wanna go back someday and spend some more time there. Anyways, enough about my vacation. Today I’m writing about some other Americans that spent some time in Paris, the funk band Ice AKA Lafayette Afro Rock Band. The band started out up in Long Island, but quickly relocated to France after they formed. Maybe they were just on a mission to bring the funk to France. The other day I came into the store and Dom was blasting one of their records and it immediately caught my ear. This album, Afro Agban, is full of funky-ass tunes that are certified to make you groove. The whole album is amazing, but I really dig the track Alow Aton. It just has such a cool intro, and the organ is going crazy on this one. If you only have 35 minutes today to listen to music, listen to this album! You will be better off for it.

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone has had a nice week. I can’t believe we’re almost at the end of August already; this summer has been flying by. Later this week I’ll be heading to France for a vacation, and I’m pretty pumped. I’ve never been before. We’ll be spending a few days in Paris as well as Nice and Menton. If any readers have any sort of recommendations, send em my way! I’ve been trying to shift into French mode before the trip (I’m even wearing my Deletär shirt while writing this) so I’ve been listening to all sorts of different French music. Today I’m focusing on one of my favorite earlier discoveries, Troupeau Bleu by Cortex, originally released in 1975. I remember first finding out about this album in high school cause MF DOOM sampled Huit octobre 1971 on One Beer and I thought it was the coolest thing ever. I then checked out the rest of the album and fell in love with it. My favorite track on here though has always been Prélude à Go Round. The slower start and the way the vocals come in all dreamy-like has always done it for me. Top to bottom, though, it’s a great listen with some serious grooves going on throughout it. I still need to secure a copy of this myself. I’ve never come across one in person, so maybe I’ll just have to bite the bullet and consult the world wide web. Maybe I’ll get lucky and come across it in France. Hopefully I’ll have some interesting stuff to write about after this trip. Au revoir!

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone is having a nice week. I got to travel to Chicago this past weekend for a quick trip, and it was a blast. I’d never been before and always wanted to go, so it was fun finally getting to check it out. What a cool city. I even got to catch a nice afternoon Cubs game at Wrigley and it was a perfect day in the 70s and blue skies. Doesn’t get much better than that. This week I’m gonna be writing about the new Billy Strings and Bryan Sutton record, Live At The Legion. This may seem like déjà vu, as I was lucky enough to attend the show this live album was recorded at back in April of last year (and already wrote about it). I was real excited to see this was getting a physical release. It’s so cool to own an actual record of a live show you were at, hearing all the banter in between songs and remembering it all. This show was at a small bar in the back of an American Legion post in Nashville, so you can hear a pin drop. My favorite little detail was at one point you can hear a glass bottle get knocked over, and I remember seeing the person sitting by me accidentally kicking it over. This is a great show from top to bottom with a real relaxed feel and flow to it. I could try to name some of my favorite tracks off here, but I’d end up naming pretty much every single one. This was one of the coolest nights of my life, and I’m so happy to have it immortalized on a slab. I even got to meet the man himself after the performance and exchange a few words. Definitely a night I’ll never forget as long as I live, and I can’t wait to be an old man and throw this bad boy on and tell people I was there. Thanks again, Billy and Bryan! We still have a couple copies in stock of the Indie exclusive version if you’re interested in picking up a copy.

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone is having a nice week. This week I will be writing about the Grateful Dead, so probably 99% of y’all can stop reading now. I honestly wanted to write about something else cause I know most people reading this couldn’t care less, but it’s what I’ve been listening to the most lately and this year marks 60 years of the bands formation and we just randomly got this cassette from a collection so why not let it rip? I get it; the most popular, mainstream Grateful Dead stuff is from the late 80s/90s and it’s pretty bad, hokey, whatever you wanna call it. Unfortunately, that’s a lot of people’s first and only impressions. Not saying everyone would like the earlier material, but I think some people would be surprised to hear what the Grateful Dead sounded like in their early years, specifically ’65-’70. Today I’m writing about the album released in 1973, Bear’s Choice: History of The Grateful Dead (Vol. 1). The “Bear” in the title refers to Owsley Stanley, who recorded this material at a couple different live shows three years earlier in 1970 at the Filmore East in New York City. Owsley provided quite a few “extracurriculars” for the band as well as acting as the band’s soundman at this time. The album starts off with excerpts from a very laid-back acoustic set by the band, mostly covers including Katie Mae, Dark Hollow, and a version of Wake Up Little Susie that I’ve always been particularly fond of. The second half of the album features only two songs, mostly due to the first one being a ripping 18 minute cover of Howlin Wolf’s Smokestack Lightning, followed by Hard To Handle. The band’s lead man at the time, Pigpen, has a bluesy, raw voice that really lends itself to these tracks. Anyway, if you’ve ever been “Dead-Curious” I’d say a great place to start would be here and the Live Dead album. Don’t knock it till you try it!

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone is having a nice week. It’s been hot and rainy here in Raleigh, but what’s new? Almost a year ago, I wrote about the Norman Blake album Whiskey Before Breakfast. Coincidently, I finally just came across a copy of his 1972 album, Home In Sulphur Springs. Another album full of some of my favorite songs he’s written and some incredible picking. I really love all the instrumental tracks on here, especially Warp Factor #9. Usually once a week on one of my days off, if the weather is nice, I like to go on a hike at Umstead State Park here, especially in the summertime. This song always makes me think of cruising down the trails there alongside the river and the light shining through in patches through the canopy of the forest. I probably just listened to this song while doing this one time and it’s secretly burned into my memory, but also the instrumental just gives off so much emotion and paints a vivid picture, all without lyrics. My favorite track on here, though, is Randall Collins, which is the song that originally got me hooked on Norman Blake via Billy Strings. It’s just such a cool song. Other highlights on the album include Cattle In The Cane, Ginseng Sullivan, and Bringing In The Georgia Mail. This record is essential if you’re into this kinda music and I’m happy to finally own a copy.

What’s up Sorry State readers? Holy cow, it feels like an eternity since I’ve done one of these, so apologies if I’m a little rusty. I missed the return newsletter last week cause I was in Memphis visiting my mom for the week, which was very nice. Not much has happened since the last newsletter before half the Sorry State crew was over in Europe. Their stories are much more interesting and entertaining than mine. I was, however, introduced to an album I’ve totally been diggin since Dom showed it to me a couple weeks ago, The Baby Huey Story: The Living Legend. I got a copy of the newest reissue that Rhino just put out and from what I can tell it seems to be very well done and high quality. Baby Huey died in 1970 of a heart attack at the age of 26 and this album was released posthumously the following year in 1971. The album starts off with an infectious groove that doesn’t let up for the entire record. Plenty of funky and groovy basslines and breaks that have been sampled countless times by producers years later. The standout track has to be the almost ten minute version of Sam Cooke’s A Change Is Going To Come that truly is a psychedelic journey, full of Baby Huey’s loud, piercing shrieks. That last part kinda sounds like a knock, but it’s definitely not. I love them. I also really like the instrumental version of California Dreamin on here. Maybe many of you have already heard of this album, but if you’re like me and haven’t or just never bothered to check it out, do yourself a favor and do it!

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone has had a nice week. Last week Scarecrow opened up for TV Smith’s Adverts and it was sick. Both bands absolutely killed it. When he came on stage, he dubbed Scarecrow “the hardest band in the world,” so get that etched in stone. Tuesday May 20th, Ultimate Disaster is playing at Kings alongside Starving Bomb and From Below, so that should be a great show as well. If you’re in Raleigh or any of the surrounding areas definitely check it out. Speaking of shows at Kings, another one happening at the end of the month is what leads me to my pick for this week. I saw a video someone shared on Instagram of this band called TAKAAT playing and it sounded really good, so I clicked on the bands profile and saw they were on tour and were conveniently coming to play at Kings on May 30th. I thought they kinda looked/sounded familiar, and then realized the three of them are actually the rhythm section of Mdou Moctar. Apparently this side project came together while they were on tour and doing sound checks, when they realized they had a shared common interest of cranking the amp up all the way and having that blown out sound. They released this four song 10” and it sounds great; I’ve really been digging it. Definitely some good guitar shredding going down on here. I think they’re sold out of copies on their bandcamp, but we still have some available as I’m writing this. I’m really excited to see them in person too. I think it’ll be a really great show. Hopefully they have the volume cranked up to the max.

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone has had a nice week. Last week I wrote about my favorite movie director, Stanley Kubrick, and this week I’m writing about my other favorite director, David Lynch. Well not exactly, but an album that he produced alongside frequent collaborator Angelo Badalamenti, Floating Into The Night by Julee Cruise. This album was released in 1989 and some of the songs on here would be featured on the Twin Peaks soundtrack the following year. The whole album has that same dream like flow and feel to it that a lot of David Lynch’s work has. It always gives me a kind of melancholy feeling whenever I listen to it, but sometimes that’s nice. One song in particular I really like on here is Rockin Back Inside My Heart. It’s just a very pretty song. I remember the first time I heard it was in a scene in Twin Peaks where Julee Cruise is performing it. It was stuck in my head after hearing it, and then I looked it up and was led to this album and was like, “oh shit I’ve heard a bunch of these songs in the show.” Anyways, good album to check out even if you’ve never watched the show or anything.

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone has had a nice week. This past Sunday I went and saw Stanley Kubrick’s film Barry Lyndon in theaters. I’m a huge Kubrick fan, but admittedly this was my first time watching this one. I think it’s because the time period it’s set in, the 18th century, honestly isn’t of huge interest to me. Not to mention its long run time of just over three hours. Don’t get me wrong, I love a long movie, but I think just the combination of those two things kinda put me off of it. I tried to watch it once a while back when I had Covid, but I think my brain was just really foggy and I was kinda dozing off and on and just stopped after a bit, so I was excited to have the opportunity to see it in theaters where I could really lock in and focus on the movie. The movie is the story of a young Irish lad’s aspirations and dizzying ascent to join the upper echelon of English society by any means necessary. You can’t help but find Redmond Barry, as he’s known in the first half of the movie, to be endearing in his cunning ways. After a series of different professions and schemes, he meets a rich countess, Lady Lyndon, who’s married to a rich and titled elderly man, Sir Charles Lyndon. After seducing her, he basically gives Sir Charles a heart attack by hitting on his wife so hard and not giving a fuck when confronted about it. They end up marrying and this is when our dear protagonist becomes Barry Lyndon, who soon is corrupted by wealth and greed and turns into a real dick. The second half of the movie is about how all the opulence and excess that comes with wealth will destroy the human part of someone and ultimately be their downfall. I absolutely loved every minute of it. This is probably the most beautiful film I’ve ever seen. So many shots look like incredible paintings that you’d see in massive gold frames hanging in museums in Europe. It truly feels like you’re watching a master of his craft just having a field day setting up incredible shots and scenes and nailing every single one. When I woke up the next morning after watching this, it was still racing through my mind. I had a similar experience when I watched 2001 A Space Odyssey. I could not stop thinking about what I had just watched and how incredible it was. I remember getting home afterwards and staying up till like 4AM reading all I could about it. Damn, I love Stanley Kubrick. I guess to end this I would say if you’ve put off watching this film, do yourself a favor and do it, especially if you can find a theater near you that happens to be showing it.

What’s up Sorry State readers? I hope everyone has had a nice two weeks. Mine have been phenomenal. Last weekend Billy Strings came to Koka Booth Amphitheater here for three nights of pickin and grinnin, and it was too much fun. Dom even tagged along the first night and we had an absolute blast boogying to some bluegrass. It wouldn’t be an NC show either if there wasn’t a bunch of Doc Watson played and the boys even got an Ole Slew Foot. It felt like a minute since I’d been to an outdoor show and the weather was beautiful, so we really lucked out here. A good time was had all around. Then, this past Sunday was my birthday, and I had a very relaxing day spending time with my love and going on a hike and getting a delicious French meal over in Durham. Even got some herbs planted in our little garden. So I’ve been happy as a clam lately and embracing the arrival of Spring and all the greenery returning again. When you’re feeling good, you need the music to match, and a record I got this past RSD has been filling that role: I’m Not Made of Iron by Chrissy Zebby Tembo & Ngozi Family. A Zamrock banger from the 70s, this thing is straight heat from start to finish, with kickin drums and that sweet sweet guitar fuzz. Side note: this goes to show why I appreciate physical media, cause this wasn’t available online till this release, and they totally botched it on streaming services with the tracks all mislabeled. This release also contains an awesome booklet with information galore and a bunch of cool photos from back in the day. My favorite song on here has to be the title track. I’ve had it stuck in my head since I heard it, and it’s just a great track. Definitely check this one out, but not on streaming cause you’re gonna be very confused with song titles.