Record Store Day 2012

ALARM’s guide to Record Store Day 2012

Tomorrow is the third Saturday in April, which means that independent record stores across the world will face an influx of limited-edition vinyl, avid fans, and rabid audiophiles. With myriad releases hitting shelves, we’ve provided you with some of our most anticipated picks to make Saturday’s shopping (relatively) quick and painless.

Morrow vs. Hajduch

Morrow vs. Hajduch: Austra’s Feel It Break

Scott Morrow is ALARM’s music editor. Patrick Hajduch is a very important lawyer. Each week they debate the merits of a different album.

Austra: Feel It BreakAustra: Feel It Break (Domino, 5/17/11)

Austra: “Beat and the Pulse”

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Morrow: A DIY advocate from the Toronto underground, singer/multi-instrumentalist Katie Stelmanis is the force behind Austra, a new electro-pop trio that incorporates an operatic flare.  Stelmanis grew up learning the viola and piano while also singing in the Canadian Children’s Opera Chorus, and that vibrato vocal ability is what carries this Austra debut.

The musical complexity isn’t as pronounced here as it was on Stelmanis’ solo debut, Join Us, which preceded Feel It Break.  But both albums channel a moody yet melodic dance/electronic sound — a style that’s sure to draw comparisons to The Knife.

100 Unheralded Albums from 2010

Among the thousands of under-appreciated or under-publicized albums that were released in 2010, hundreds became our favorites and were presented in ALARM and on AlarmPress.com. Of those, we pared down to 100 outstanding releases, leaving no genre unexplored in our list of this year’s overlooked gems.