4 Seasons

Gearing up for the Atoms For Peace show tonight with this lot: please note (and in some cases listen to) new Forest Swords, Feral Ohms (another Ethan Miller band, this one very much in the Comets On Fire zone) and a reissue for Robbie Basho’s long-unavailable first Windham Hill album. The Desert Heat record sounds better with every play, too…

Mazzy Star are set to release their first new album in 17 years, Seasons Of Your Day. The band's fourth studio album will come out on September 24 and was recorded in California and Norway. Click below to listen to the first single from the album, "California". The album follows 1990's She Hangs Brightly, 1993's So Tonight That I Might See and 1996's Among My Swan.

Jack White has become the latest musician to make a guest cameo in US TV series Portlandia, the sitcom lampooning life in the alternative Oregon city.

Part two of my 2011 favourites. Check out 100-76 here.

Pretty auspicious new arrival this morning, as you can see from Number 23 at the bottom of the list; sounding good, albeit 44 years too late.

Still much taken with the Mikal Cronin, Hiss Golden Messenger and Meg Baird records, but some nice new additions this week, from Real Estate, Plaid and Wild Flag (I have the full album now), among others.

Reinventing the hospital drama: Lars von Trier’s extraordinary TV experiment...

A few to flag up this week: Hiss Golden Messenger of course, Mikal Cronin (produced by Ty Segall; kind of kin to the first Ganglians record maybe), Meg Baird, Wild Flag.

No Polish epiphanies this week, sadly: thanks, by the way, for all your Czeslaw Niemen guidance – you’re invaluable.