Italian five-piece The Ghibertins have released their emotive sophomore album, The Life & Death of John Doe. The Milan-based band creates a style of music that is difficult to pigeonhole. Running through elements of classic indie-rock to electronic soundscapes and heartfelt indie-folk, The Ghibertins have offered up a chameleonic, distinctive collection of songs.
Headed by frontman Alessio Hofmann’s unique vocal delivery, The Ghibertins showcase the soulful rock of Hozier on “My First Day On Earth,” the post-grunge edge of Nickelback on “Round Trip,” and the indie-electronic soundscapes of AWOLNATION on “20149-Milano.”
The Life & Death of John Doe undulates throughout, catching you off guard as The Ghibertins move into Americana territory on the uplifting “Ropes & Kites” and “In Your Arms.” As the album closes, “My Last Day On Earth” offers a rousing, almost euphoric penultimate track; a track that sums up The Ghibertins willingness to embrace experimentation.
The Life & Death of John Doe is an affecting listen illustrating why the likes of Clash magazine, Music Week, Noctis magazine, and BBC Radio have covered the collective. With support slots alongside notable acts such as Fatherson and The Xcerts, The Life & Times of John Doe won’t be the last UK music lovers will be seeing of this talented quintet.
The Life & Death of John Doe is in stores now.
NEW RELEASE PICKS: The Whitmore Sisters, Ghost Stories (Red House / Compass) This one starts big and bright and then doesn’t falter in its old-school harmony rich rootsy country-rock sweetness. Bonnie Whitmore is known for her solo recordings, of which there are four, with 2020’s Last Will And Testament serving as my entry point to her work. Eleanor is half of The Mastersons with husband Chris Masterson; they’ve cut four albums and play in Steve Earles’ Dukes. Produced by Masterson, this is the Whitmore siblings’ first album together, but anybody coming to it cold would likely think they’d already cut three or four, as the interaction is sublime. Recorded spontaneously post-pandemic in Los Angeles, the 11 tracks thrive on unexpected twists, and right away in “Learn to Fly,” which has a Bangles gone country-rock appeal, while also emphasizing their harmonious strengths, as in “On the Wings of a Nightingale,” a song that Paul McCartney wrote for the Everly Brothers. Secret weapon: strings. In closer “Greek Tragedy,” they bring Forever Changes to mind. WHAT KIND OF WONDERFUL CRAZINESS IS THIS?! A
Artsick, Fingers Crossed (Slumberland) The focal point of Artsick is Christina Riley, formerly of Burnt Palms, who set this band in motion by sharing a few of her demos with Mario Hernandez of Kids on a Crime Spree and Ciao Bella. He was up for playing drums and doing some recording at his Oakland, CA studio. With Donna McKean of Lunchbox and Hard Left stepping in on bass, a new trio was formed. Musically, the focal point on this concise full-length is also Riley, with her vocals lending everything, even the hard-charging Ramones-y handclapping highlight “Despise,” a 1990s indie-pop angle, though this shouldn’t discount the deftness of the playing. On that note, the Ramones mention supports a comparison to Vivian Girls, though I will add that Artsick is less rigid and more supple in their approach, and with some appealing range. A fine example is “Look Again,” which reminds me a bit of a Bratmobile-’80s Flying Nun hybrid, though I suppose that the C86 explosion and even earlier ’80s predecessors Dolly Mixture can be considered part of the equation, as well. It’s an equation that never feels like formula. A-
REISSUE/ARCHIVAL PICKS: Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers, Play Selections From the New Musical Golden Boy (Honey Pie) Here’s a highly deserving reissue of one of the few obscurities in the discography of celebrated drummer and bandleader Blakey. Released in 1963, Golden Boy’s lack of stature derives partly from its release on the Colpix label (rather than Blue Note or Atlantic or Impulse!) and also I’m guessing due to the Broadway musical tie-in. The corrective is the personnel, specifically the Messengers lineup that cut Caravan before and Free for All after: trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, trombonist Curtis Fuller, saxophonist Wayne Shorter, pianist Cedar Walton, and bassist Reggie Workman, this core group expanded with Lee Morgan on trumpet, Julius Watkins on French horn, Bill Barber on tuba, James Spaulding on alto sax, and Charles Davis on baritone sax. The largest Blakey band on record? I think so, and the playing throughout is splendid, with Shorter and Davis particularly fired up. Blakey shines in his spots, and if Golden Boy isn’t on par with his best stuff, it’s not far behind. A
The Cosmic Jokers, S/T (Die Kosmischen Kuriere) The label blurb for this reissue states that it’s a remaster from the “original analog tapes,” and has apparently never sounded better. The text also describes the Jokers as simply an “all-star band,” which isn’t wrong, as this Krautrock supergroup features Manuel Göttsching and Klaus Schulze from Ash Ra Tempel and Jürgen Dollase and Harald Großkopf from Wallenstein, with Dieter Dierks also contributing, but definitely omits some crucial info, as they congregated to play parties organized by producer Rolf-Ulrich Kaiser and hosted by Dierks in his sound studio, with the “band” reportedly paid in cash and hallucinogens. Recorded (legend has it surreptitiously) and edited by Kaiser, four albums were issued in 1974 without the consent of the players (who weren’t even informed of their release). Legal action ensued (the dispute eventually settled). It’s been a while since I’ve heard the others, but checking this one out fresh solidifies my belief that it’s the best of the bunch. It features two potent side-long space rock excursions sans vocals. A-
Brooklyn Park, MN | Vinyl proves resilient at Golden Valley music store: At Down in the Valley music shop in Golden Valley, the store’s 50-year anniversary is coinciding with an ongoing vinyl revival. “It’s hip now to listen to vinyl,” said Scott Farrell with Down in the Valley. Cassette tapes supplanted vinyl in the early 1980s and then CDs took over the market followed by digital music options. But records are proving to be resilient. “It’s actually that physical piece,” said Farrell. “We went so long in the digital world of music, iPods, MP3s but there was nothing to hold, there was no artwork to look at.” New vinyl is now in high demand at Down in the Valley. It’s a trend the music and novelty store started seeing around 15 years ago and really picked up around 2015. “So as we come to today, 2022, it’s at a peak level and you see turntables and records in commercials and everywhere you look now there’s turntables and it’s quite 
Sligo, IE | Sligo record shop where good music never grows old: Over the last 40 years the music industry has gone through countless transformations, but as people’s relationship with how they experience and consume music has changed there has been one constant in Sligo: The Record Room. The shop was first opened in 1983 by Aidan Mannion, Gerry Taheny and Kevin Flannery and is located right at the heart of Sligo town on Grattan Street. “The main sellers back in those days were 7-inch singles, cassettes and LPs. Generally, it was pop music, it tended to reflect the charts,” Aidan said. “We actually had a machine connected to the Irish chart system which recorded the sales made in Sligo, that in turn helped to create the Irish charts.” As 
Bloomington, IN | Ameliorate Records showcases Indiana life pressed on vinyl: “2 Minutes in Indiana” is a curated album by Ameliorate Records on a $25 vinyl record supported through a crowdfunding campaign. With 19 days left, 11 more people need to purchase the record to get to their goal of 100 buyers before it’s released physically. It will be digitally available in early February after the campaign ends. “I put out an open call to artists on social media with this challenge: to create a new solely instrumental composition that lasts exactly two minutes,” Ameliorate Records owner Andrew Gustin said. “The theme is to capture what living in Indiana feels like to you.” Gustin said he wanted 20 Indiana artists to make a track of what it feels like to live in Indiana. He said he included 20 artists because a 
House Of Marley Stir It Up turntable review: The king of reggae would surely have approved of this impressive record player from House Of Marley. This year marks the 45th anniversary of Bob Marley’s Exodus, an LP recorded while the reggae legend was exiled in London following an assassination attempt in his home country of Jamaica. Featuring classic tracks such as Jamming, Waiting In Vain and Three Little Birds, it’s an album well worth checking out if you haven’t already – and what more apt piece of kit to play it on than a record player designed in collaboration with the late musician’s own family. House Of Marley has been making 
Keynsham, UK | Longwell Records in Keynsham opened after owner wanted to leave 30-year NHS career: Iain Aitchison is still getting recognised after his cameo appearance on The Outlaws. Iain Aitchison never dreamt his home-based Bristol record business would end up as an actual shop so he simply called it after the area where he lives with his family. Named after Longwell Green, Longwell Records now has two shops, neither of them in the area which inspired the name. The original shop opened in Keynsham in April 2016, a year after Iain started the business online. It was followed in June 2020 by a second store in a converted shipping container at Cargo 2 in Wapping Wharf. “I never thought I would get 
Fargo, ND | Fargo-Moorhead music stores riding wave of vinyl’s remarkable comeback: Store owners, audiophiles sing the praises of the Old School format. Aaron Swinkels is doing his part to be sure vinyl records keep “Stayin Alive.” Swinkels, the owner of Vinyl Giant in downtown Fargo, has made his store into a haven for audiophiles, cramming it with bins of vintage vinyl discs and the audio equipment to make the music happen. With the Bee Gees playing in a background mix, Swinkels estimates his personal collection of LPs and 45s has climbed into the “couple thousand” range. They are his time machine. “I’ve collected ever since I was a kid. I was always the guy that had a record collection. I don’t know anyone else who did. I don’t know why. My mom had records. … I fished them out of the garage and listened to them in high school. They were just 
