The Darts: Halloween Love Songs

photo: Tina Cross

Seattle based garage-rockers The Darts go all out with late night songs about zombies, ghosts, sex (and sex with ghosts), politics and what-have-you on their new album Halloween Love Songs. It's fast, it's loud, with the lo-fi sound of vintage organs smack in the middle of the mix. If the Cramps, The 13th Floor Elevators or The Slits had enlisted a keyboard player they might have sounded like this.

Make no mistake, they may look like B-movie heroines, but they also get their inspiration from the medieval Apocalypse Tapestry, when they take a swipe at the political turmoil in the US. The repeated "no future, no kings" ensures that they won't be playing at the Kennedy Center anytime soon.

Y: May

Eclectic London quintet Y try their hands at post-punk with their new single May, contemplating the rise of something particularly nasty. Dark pop meets the Sisters of Mercy in a heavily orchestrated track with a howling guitar as the icing on the cake. They are a band who never write the same song twice, cherrypicking from any genre that tickles their fancy.

Stick Men: on tour in South & North America

Avant-prog improv trio Stick Men will be on tour in South & North America in the Spring. Tony Levin, Markus Reuter and Pat Mastelotto have mastered the art of playing tight and loose.

Ian Dury & The Blockheads: "Live in London 1980" for Record Store Day

The fabled Ian Dury & The Blockheads show on Christmas Eve 1980 at the Dominion Theatre will be released for Record Store Day (April 18). Live in London 1980 contains the songs that were broadcasted live on BBC Radio 1 and on tv via BBC2's 'Old Grey Whistle Test'. 2LP on orange vinyl. 1000 copies worldwide.

Pink Floyd: restored "Pink Floyd at Pompeii" in 4K

Pink Floyd's legendary performance at the Roman Amphitheatre in Pompeii came out in a wealth of formats last year, but not in 4K. A new Blu-ray version rectifies that omission and each frame was fixed by hand after the film was scanned.

» pinkfloyd.com