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Various Artists

Various Artists – Sean Rowley’s Guilty Pleasures

Innocent nostalgia-fest; highly-charged

Tortoise

Post-rock visionaries in their prime

Various Artists – Lif Up Yuh Leg An Trample Honest Jon’s

Trinidadian soca selected by Damon Albarn and his Honest Jon's partners

Various Artists – Warp Vision (The Videos

The adventurous Warp offer prize videos from the likes of Chris Cunningham ("Windowlicker", "Come To Daddy") alongside promos by, among others, fellow Sheffield alumni Jarvis Cocker. Lesser known but equally arresting, Jimi Tenor's "Total Devastation" and John Callaghan's "I'm Not Comfortable Inside My Mind" help make this an intriguing alternative history of one of the UK's most far-sighted labels.

Various Artists – What A Concept! A Salute To Teenage Fanclub

Twenty-four mainly Yank cover versions of Fannies classics

Righteous Brother

Mid-price reissues from one of the progenitors of intelligent rap

High Elf Esteem

From cross-legged cult to major pop star in three years. The first five albums, plus outtakes and alternate versions

Various Artists – Rough Trade Shops Indiepop 1

Even before Belle & Sebastian and Franz Ferdinand cited jangling, DiY indie as a touchstone, it had influenced Kurt Cobain (who covered The Vaselines' "Molly's Lips", featured here), the Manics and Saint Etienne. Essentially, indie-pop continued where Postcard records (Orange Juice, Josef K et al) left off a few years earlier (though minus the soul influences).

Various Artists – Por Vida: A Tribute To The Songs Of Alejandro Escovedo

Star-crossed line-up shines on underrated singer's catalogue

Various Artists – Dread Meets B-Boys Downtown

Don Letts soundtrack to early-'80s NYC
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