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Youth Fountain (formerly Bedroom Talk) is a 2-piece emotional pop-punk outfit from Vancouver. After a long time, the band has finally released their first full-length. And I'll be the first to say, it may have not been worth the wait. Letters to Our Former Selves is a collection of 12 songs, comprised of five new... Read More »

Sometimes I have no idea how I find music. It's a weird combination of factors that go into the discovery of new music. Sometimes I just have to be in the right place at the right time, in the right mindset. 花冷え。(Hanabie) is no exception to this case. The way I discovered this band, which... Read More »

Analog Record Collection, Universal Music LLC  Stereo Sound SSAR-028~029 There are some albums that for some reason stay in use in the industry "permanently." We can hear them at many shows, we find in our friends' collections—well, usually even we have at least one version of such titles on our shelf. They are almost always... Read More »

Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab UD1S 2-008, Motown B0026761-01, Limited Edition, SuperVinyl, Box Set (2019, Jan.), # 6140 of 7500 Originally released on Tamla – TS-310 (1971, May) Category: soul, jazz and spiritual undertones Format: Vinyl (2x180 gram LPs at 45 rpm) Rating Global Appreciation: 9.9 Music: A+ (10) Recording: 9.5 Remastering + Lacquer Cutting: 9.9... Read More »

The article is about how the "High Performance" series has changed the perception of classical music reissues, as well as about an incredible combination of knowledge and technology that has led to this change. We have got used to the fact that Japanese companies are the driving force in the field of Compact Disc/Super Audio... Read More »

FAURÉ Orchestral works. Seattle Symphony/Ludovic Morlot. Seattle Symphony Media SSM1004.  TT: 70.29. Masques et bergamasques. Fantaisie for Flute (orch. Talmi; with Demarre McGill, flute). Pelléas et Mélisande: Suite. Berceuse for Violin and Orchestra (with Alexander Velinzon, violin). Élégie for Cello and Orchestra (with Efe Baltacigil, cello). Dolly (orch. Rabaud). Pavane (with Seattle Symphony Chorus). Full disclosure: I haven't... Read More »

The musical form I had the most commercial success in (as a classical-music record producer and label owner), was the string quartet. Granted, my remarkably successful string-quartet recordings consisted of quartet arrangements of sacred and traditional Christmas music. But those recordings are a lot more "classical" in character than "crossover" in character. In other words,... Read More »

Telarc Stereo TEL00005. 33.3 RPM, 180 gram vinyl. Retail $24.98. Robert Shaw conducts the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus for this recording of Stravinsky's Firebird Suite paired with Borodin's Polovetsian Dances. Igor Stravinsky The Firebird:  Introduction The Firebird:  The Firebird and Her Dance The Firebird:  Round Dance of the Princesses The Firebird:  Infernal Dance of King Kastchei The Firebird:... Read More »

Congratulations to Fedor Rudin! The Vienna State Opera has appointed him to fill one of their vacant co-concertmaster positions. I am tempted to say "Even better" that in parallel with that, he will be on probation for two years as an (I assume co-) concertmaster of the Vienna Philharmonic. (So, yes, I have a slight bias... Read More »

Record labels usually focuses on promoting the music itself, forgetting that it is closely related to sound. Every now and then, companies are created that try to do something about it. One of the newest is the Dutch company TRPTK, which is the following text is about. (See their distribution site at trptk.nativedsd.com.) Let's be honest:... Read More »

Courtesy www.maritasolberg.com; photo credit Felix Broede. Marita Sølberg: Opera Arias. Opera arias by Catalani, Mozart, Gounod, Bizet, Leoncavallo, Puccini, Bellini, Rachmaninoff, Dvořák, Verdi, and R. Strauss. Norwegian National Opera Orchestra. John Fiore, conductor. CD Simax Classics PSC1336 Say "Hello" to Marita Sølberg! Marita Sølberg's name was unknown to me when I stumbled upon her upcoming new release (which came out in 2016, which... Read More »

My relationship with box sets? Well, you might say its complicated. I recently reached the 100 mark with box sets in my collection, a bit of a milestone for me. This seemed like a great time to share some of my observations about collecting them, potential issues, the hurdles I've encountered and the solutions I've... Read More »

After a holiday season of good cheer, John Marks returns to the pages of PF with a new reflection on the music of Gordon Lightfoot, one of blessed memory for him, as well as for me. John maintains a worthy blog site at The Tannhauser Gate, always worth regular visits for those who value fine reflections and... Read More »

Surprise! I'm back with another installment of my "Perfect Song" series! As I started thinking about writing this article, I reminded myself that perfect isn't the same as favorite. A Google search for the word favorite netted this definition: preferred before all others of the same kind. A search for the word perfect provided this... Read More »

Lyn Stanley (photograph by Evelina Pentcheva) Part I Synopsis: There is some confusion in the audio world about the difference between a Direct to Disc recording and a One Step Record. Lyn Stanley has made both and she will explain in detail what they are and what is required to make each. First, I would like... Read More »

This is an ongoing project by Claude Lemaire of Soundevaluations 82. Pink Floyd, The Dark Side of the Moon. Harvest – SHVL 804, 1E 064 o 05249 (UK) (1973), 582 1361 (UK) (2003) (30th anniversary edition), 33 1/3 rpm. Genre: space rock, art rock, progressive rock, electronic, jazz fusion, and funk touches. Ahh, at last, there it is.... Read More »

Roberta Invernizzi, soprano; Auser Musici/Carlo Ipata. Glossa GCD 922905.  TT: 59.30. Astianatte: Se la Grecia s'armerà. L'oracolo del Fato: Qui ti scrivo o nome amato; Se non canti più per me. Il Ciro: Nell'orror della procella. Bajazette: Par che mi nasca in seno. Sinfonia. Il Tamerlano: Svena uccidi; Cor di padre. Santa Eufrosina: Qui dal porto. Amleto:... Read More »

Here are some LPs that I've gotten in recently and I want to bring to your attention. Espresso, Bob James Trio, EVLP023, from Tappan Zee Records. 2018, Featuring Bob James, Billy Kilson, and Michael Palazzolo. $32.99. Tracks Recorded by Ken Freeman, KFP Studios, Bethlehem, PA. Tracks Recorded at Stagg Studios, Van Nuys, CA.. Assisted by Josh Frank. Mastered by Steve Vavagiaskis for Bang... Read More »

Sweetbeats Productions, Digital download available at Apple Music and Google Music $8.99 I know I've raved about recordings in reviews, even in the last year, where I remarked that I put it in my CD player or an LP on my turntable and I didn't take it out/off for a very long time. That's a... Read More »