Release Day Picks: June 23rd New Album Highlights
By Team JamBase Jun 23, 2017 • 6:56 am PDT

Each week Release Day Picks profiles new LPs and EPs Team JamBase will be checking out on release day Friday. This week we highlight new albums by Jeff Tweedy, Yonder Mountain String Band, 311, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Naughty Professor and Doc & Merle Watson. Read on for more insight into the records we have all queued up to spin.
Jeff Tweedy – Together At Last

The Scoop: There seems to be no slowing down Jeff Tweedy these days. Over the last handful of years he has put out two Wilco albums, recorded and released an album with his son as Tweedy, and produced records by Joan Shelley, White Denim and Kacy & Clayton. The one thing that the singer-songwriter hadn’t done until now was release a proper solo album. Together At Last finds Tweedy stripping down 11 songs from his career (nine Wilco tunes plus one each from a pair of side-projects Loose Fur and Golden Smog) down to their bare basics by giving them the solo acoustic treatment. The results are an album full of fragile interpretations that let the Tweedy’s vocals and guitar playing shine. Give a listen to Tweedy’s take on the Loose Fur track “Laminated Cat”:
Label: Anti/Epitaph
Producer: Jeff Tweedy
Number Of Tracks: 11
Running Time: 38:22
Guest Musicians: N/A
Tracklist:
- Via Chicago
- Laminated Cat
- Lost Love
- Muzzle Of Bees
- Ashes Of American Flags
- Dawned On Me
- In A Future Age
- I Am Trying To Break Your Heart
- Hummingbird
- I’m Always In Love
- Sky Blue Sky
Yonder Mountain String Band – Love. Ain’t Love

The Scoop: Jamgrass five-piece Yonder Mountain String Band teamed with longtime collaborator John McVey to produce their latest studio album, Love. Ain’t Love. The band’s new LP was mostly recorded at Coupe Studios in Yonder’s home base of Boulder and focuses on material the group has been road testing over the course of recent tours. YMSB used to take a more aggressive approach to their music, but Love. Ain’t Love shows off the more mature Americana sound the band has honed of late. The album mixes originals and covers including a version of King Harvest’s “Dancing In The Moonlight” sung by mandolin player Jake Jolliff. Another standout track is “Bad Taste” featuring lead vocals from guitarist Adam Aijala. Watch the video for “Bad Taste”:
Label: Frog Pad Records
Producer: Yonder Mountain String Band & John McVey
Number Of Tracks: 13
Running Time: 52:34
Guest Musicians: N/A
Tracklist:
- Alison
- Fall Outta Line
- Bad Taste
- Take A Chance On Me
- Chasing My Tail
- Used To It
- Eat In Go Deaf (Eat Out Go Broke)
- Dancing In The Moonlight
- On Your Dime
- Kobe The Dog
- Last Of The Railroad Men
- Up For Brinkley’s
- Groovin’ Away
311 – Mosaic

The Scoop: With a five-year gap since their last album, 311 rewarded fans with a beefy 17-track, 60+ minute new album chock full of their signature rock reggae sound. Beyond that though, the title Mosaic refers to the band aiming to pull pieces from more places and more members to create a cohesive album that comes together as a unified piece of art. The single “Too Much To Think” retains the familiar 311 sound and style as P-Nut and crew continue successfully doing what they do. A marker of the group’s longevity and success, Mosaic is the band’s 10th album and follows the last nine which all made the Billboard 200 Top 10. Here’s the “Too Much to Think” official music video:
Label: BMG
Producer: John Feldman, Scotch Ralston
Number Of Tracks: 17
Running Time: 60:32
Guest Musicians: N/A
Tracklist:
- Too Much to Think
- Wildfire
- The Night Is Young
- Island Sun
- Perfect Mistake
- Extension
- Inside Our Home
- ‘Til the City’s on Fire
- Too Late
- Hey Yo
- Places That the Mind Goes
- Face in the Wind
- Forever Now
- Days of ’88
- One and the Same
- Syntax Error
- On a Roll
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – Murder Of The Universe

The Scoop: King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard came into 2017 with an ambitious plan – release five studio albums during the calendar year. The prolific psychedelic-rock act are well on their way to accomplishing that feat with their second release of the year in Murder Of The Universe. The 21-track, triple-album (which sounds daunting on paper, but clocks in at a mere 45+ minutes) is described as, “A concept album to end all concepts … A face-melting musical assault concerned with the downfall of man and the death of the plane.” Split out into three chapters, the record comes across as the soundtrack to an acid-drenched Dungeons & Dragons campaign for kids that are into Black Sabbath, Kraftwerk and the 13th Floor Elevators. Check out the video for “The Lord Of The Lightning vs. The Balrog”:
Label: ATO Records
Number Of Tracks: 21
Running Time: 46:38
Guest Musicians: N/A
Tracklist:
Disc One
- A New World
- Altered Beast I
- After Me I
- Altered Beast II
- After Me II
- Altered Beast III
- After Me III
- Altered Beast IV
- Life/Death
Disc Two
- Some Context
- The Reticent Raconteur
- The Lord Of Lightning
- The Balrog
- The Floating Fire
- The Acrid Corpse
Disc Three
- Welcome To An Altered Future
- Digital Black
- Han-Tyumi, The Confused Cyborg
- Soy-Protein Munt Machine
- Vomit Coffin
- Murder Of The Universe
Naughty Professor – Identity

The Scoop: New Orleans funk/soul outfit Naughty Professor has expanded into new musical terrain on their new album, Identity. Previous LPs showcased the group’s instrumental prowess, but the band went a different route for Identity. Naughty Professor welcomed a bevy of acclaimed collaborators to lend their vocal, instrumental and compositional skills to the Qmillion-produced effort. David Shaw of The Revivalists, keyboardist Ivan Neville and legendary hip-hop artist Chali 2na are just a few of those who contributed to Identity. Watch the video for “Without A Trace”:
Label: Self-Released
Producer: Qmillion
Number Of Tracks: 12
Running Time: 62:40
Guest Musicians: Cole De Genova, Chali 2na, Ivan Neville, Eric “Benny” Bloom, David Shaw, Jason Butler, Dexter Gilmore, Sasha Masakowski, Mike Dillon, Mykia Jovan, Cliff Hines, Julian Gosin, Big Ed Lee, Paul Robertson, Ed Williams
Tracklist:
- Mirrors (feat. Cole DeGenova and Alexi Marti)
- Sugar Coat (feat. Chali 2na and Ivan Neville)
- Without A Trace (feat. Eric Benny Bloom)
- Stray (feat. David Shaw and Cole DeGenova)
- Do You Like Dragons (feat. Jason Butler)
- I Can’t Sleep At Night (feat. Dexter Gilmore)
- Through it All (feat. Sasha Masakowski and Cliff Hines)
- Venison Poetry (feat. Mike Dillon)
- Darker Daze (feat. Chali 2na and Dexter Gilmore)
- Stolen Ones (feat. Mykia Jovan)
- Psycho Switch (feat. Cliff Hines)
- Funk 4 Lunch (feat. Members of The Soul Rebels)
Doc & Merle Watson – Bear’s Sonic Journals: Never the Same Way Once – Live at the Boarding House – May 1974

The Scoop: Compiled from the “Sonic Journals” of the late great sound engineer Owsley “Bear” Stanley, the seven-CD, 94-track box set features four Doc & Merle Watsonn performances captured by Bear in May 1974. The acclaimed late father and son bluegrass duo can be heard playing shows on four consecutive nights marking the first official release from the Owsley Stanley Foundation which is home to more than 1,300 of Bear’s live recordings. “Bear had marked these shows as among the gems in his Sonic Journal archive, in both the quality of the performances and the quality of the sound,” said Bear’s son and Owsley Stanley Foundation president Starfinder Stanley, “which is one of the reasons we chose them as the first project to develop since his passing.”
Label: Owsley Stanley Foundation
Producer: Owsley Stanley, Jeffrey Norman
Number Of Tracks: 94
Guest Musicians: N/A
Tracklist:
Chapter 1: May 1, 1974 (reels 038-040)
- Salty Dog Blues
- Doc’s Talking Blues
- Blue Yodel No. 1 (T for Texas)
- Miss The Mississippi & You
- Wabash Cannonball
- Nancy Rowland
- Solid Gone
- Tennessee Stud
- Frosty Morn
- Matchbox Blues
- Mama Don’t Allow No Music
- Deep Elem Blues
Chapter 2: May 2, 1974 (reels 028-032)
- Introduction
- Good Ole Mountain Dew
- Travellin’ Man
- Miss The Mississippi & You
- Wabash Cannonball
- Leather Britches/Cotton Eyed Joe
- A Rovin’ on a Winter’s Night
- Tennessee Stud
- Black Mountain Rag
- St. James Infirmary
- Love Me
- Blue Suede Shoes
- Sweet Georgia Brown
- Lonesome Moan
- The Clouds Gwine Roll Away
- Three Times Seven
- Peach Pickin’ Time In Georgia
- Poor Boy Blues
- Nancy Rowland/Salt Creek
- Alberta
- Movin’ On
- Smoke! Smoke! Smoke!
- Walk on Boy
- Nothin’ To It
- Blue Railroad Train
- Brown’s Ferry Blues
- Beaumont Rag
Chapter 3: May 3, 1974 (reels 033-037)
- New River Train
- Doggone My Time
- Peach Pickin’ Time in Georgia
- Poor Boy Blues
- Nancy Rowland/Salt Creek
- Alberta
- Natural Born Gamblin’ Man
- Doc’s Guitar
- Matchbox Blues
- Streamlined Cannonball
- Summertime
- Love Me
- Blue Suede Shoes
- Mama Don’t Allow No Music
- Freight Train Boogie
- Life Gets Teejus Don’t It
- Miss the Mississippi & You
- Wabash Cannonball
- Leather Britches/Cotton-Eyed Joe
- Bye Bye Bluebell
- Tennessee Stud
- South Coast
- Sweet Georgia Brown
- St. James Infirmary
- Step It Up & Go
- Jailhouse Rock
Chapter 4: May 4, 1974 (reels 041-046)
- Introduction
- Way Down Town
- Billboard Song
- Blue Yodel No. 1 (T for Texas)
- Miss the Mississippi & You
- Poor Boy Blues
- Nancy Rowland/Old Joe Clark
- Chicken Road
- The Last Thing on My Mind
- Solid Gone
- South Coast
- Going Down the Road Feelin’ Bad
- Summertime
- Love Me
- Jailhouse Rock
- Hound Dog
- Brown’s Ferry Blues
- Gambler’s Yodel
- Peach Pickin’ Time in Georgia
- Wabash Cannonball
- Beaumont Rag
- In the Jailhouse Now
- Lovesick Blues
- Black Mountain Rag
- Tennessee Stud
- St. James Infirmary
- Sheik of Araby
- Step It Up & Go
- Mama Don’t Allow No Music
Compiled by Jeffrey Greenblatt, Ryan Dembinsky, Andy Kahn and Scott Bernstein.