Reviews

Thomas Denver Jonsson & The September Sunrise – Hope To Her

The latest Swedish cowboy, Jonsson was praised early last year for his subtle-sweet EP Then I Kissed Her Softly. Having trodden European boards with Damien Jurado and Rosie Thomas, the 23-year-old's LP debut roots itself in similar earth. There's much of Jurado in his downcast tremble, while Fredrik Wilde's pedal-steel and Carl Edlom's softly cantering piano brighten the corners. "Shades Of Green" and "Black And Blue" shuffle with the kind of milky-moon sadness Neil Young patented on After The Gold Rush. Elsewhere, there are hints of the Palace Brothers and Low.

Barry Blue – Dancin’ (On A Saturday Night)…Best Of

Early-'70s hitmaker gets two-CD best-of and instant-cachet Bob Stanley sleevenotes

Ten-CD companion to last year's 24 Hours live CD box set

Holy Trinity

Final helping of the Wachowskis' techno-shock triptych

The Order—Cremaster 3

Matthew Barney's extraordinary Cremaster Cycle has won outrageous accolades: "greatest living artist", "best fusion of art and cinema since Buñuel", etc. This is the climactic 31-minute scene of that epic, and it's every bit as wildly mind-boggling as you'd hope. Barney scales the Guggenheim Museum-staircase, assaulted by molten Vaseline, tapdancing girls, metal bands and a cheetah. The perfect intro to a warped genius.

Parasites For Sore Eyes

All four movies from the interstellar belly-bursting-baddie franchise in extended form, plus five discs of extras

Trespassers William – Different Stars

Swoony Californian dreamscapes in the vein of Mazzy Star

June Tabor – An Echo Of Hooves

A return to traditional song, exquisitely sung, in a perfect setting

Various Artists – Just Because I’m A Woman: The Songs Of Dolly Parton

All-female tribute to country's First Lady features her own reworking of title track

Steve Earle – Early Tracks

Nashville legend's formative years unearthed
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