The Mother Stone

I think most of it takes place in dreams, Caleb Landry Jones says of his debut solo album, The Mother Stone. "I'm talking more about dreams than I am about what's happened iin the physical realm. Or I'm talking about both, and you're not sure what's what. "This is the kind of conversation you end up having about a record like this one, a sprawling psychedelic suite built from abrupt and disorienting detours and schizoid shifts of voice, it's manic energy forever pulling the tablecloth out from under classic pop orchestration. One minute you're squarely in the realm of biographical fact and a moment later you're having a discussion about lucid dreaming and how Jones once punched up a dream set on a soccer field by willing himself to experience it from the POV of the ball. But maybe that's just another story about grabbing the wheel of your own hallucination; maybe this pertains to the music after all. Some biographical facts: Caleb Landry Jones was born in Garland, Texas in 1989 and comes from a long line of fiddle players. Three, maybe four generations back, on his mother's side. His grandfather wrote jingles for commercials, his mother was a singer-songwriter who taught piano lessons in the house, and his father was a contractor who did a lot of work for the Dallas music-equipment retailer Brook Mays and knew a guy if you needed a bass or a banjo. But Jones is not sure if you can hear any of this in his music and he does not play the fiddle. What you can hear on this record are the marks left by conversion experiences, two in particular. First there's Jones' formative encounter with the Beatles' "White Album," the Fabs record most obviously composed by four Beatles rowing in different directions, and the beginning of what Jones calls "this British Invasion of my soul," which is still ongoing. Second, there's Syd Barrett, cracked vessel of Pink Floyd's most intergalactic ambitions, and the "falling-down-the-stairs" quality of his solo work in particular. "I was dating a girl who was obsessed with him," Jones remembers, "and the fact that I'd never heard him really pissed her off. So we went and got The Madcap Laughs and we listened to it and I could see why it pissed her off. " "John keeps knocking at the door, and so does Syd," Jones says of these songs. "And I'm in there somewhere. And so are a few other people, I think. It would be really boring if it was just one guy. " Jones has been writing and recording music since age 16, around the same time he started acting professionally. Played in a band called Robert Jones for a minute, lost his guitar player to higher education, moved into his own place, and broke up with somebody, at which point the songs really started coming hard and fast. "I started playing guitar and playing more keys," he says, "and then started writing record after record after record after record, because I didn't know what to do with myself. It was a good way of healing. And it felt like as soon as I started doing it, it felt like it needed to happen all the time. " In the ensuing years he'd spend a lot of time carrying unrecorded songs around in his head like goldfish in a bag, waiting for a chance to record them in marathon sessions in his parents' barn. "You gotta play the songs every day, or every two or three days, to keep 'em," he says. "Otherwise I forget them. " Sometimes the ideas fuse together, one chapter to the next; this is how songs grow into seven-plus-minute epics like the ones on The Mother Stone. His back catalog is around seven hundred songs deep- a whole discography of full albums, most of them unheard outside the barn, at least for now. Before long Jones' other job started to keep him away from the barn for longer stretches. You may have seen him playing the drums on television as a member of Landry Clarke's death-metal band on Friday Night Lights. You may have seen him in other things, too. But enough about acting, except for this: A few years ago Jones had a pivotal meeting with Jim Jarmusch, the movie director and musician. "I was a big fan of his work," Jones says, "and I know how I act with people that I'm big fans of their work. So instead of wanting to talk, I thought I'd write him a piece that would somehow let him know who I was. " So Jones spent a few nights composing a new instrumental work for solo piano, and showed up ready to play it for the director at their meeting- which turned out to be at a diner somewhere in Canada, where the amenities did not include a piano, so they had a conversation instead. Jones did slip Jarmusch Microastro and Macroastro, two collections of songs from the barn, most of them four or five or maybe eight years old at that point. Jarmusch liked what he heard, told Jones he should talk to Sacred Bones founder Caleb Braaten, and before long Jones was making the record you're about to hear- whose opening track, "Flag Day/The Mother Stone" incorporates that piano piece Jones wrote to explain himself to Jim Jarmusch. A few more germane facts: The Mother Stone was recorded at Valentine Recording Studios, where everyone from Bing Crosby to Frank Zappa once logged time, refurbished to time-capsule retro standards in 2015 by studio manager and Mother Stone producer Nic Jodoin. Jones brought his collection of battered Yamahas and Casios up from the barn and played them alongside vintage equipment from Jodoin's collection. Working in a real studio gave Jones a chance to slow his creative process down. They built the songs up from acoustic guitar, let them sit a while, circled back. Sometimes Jones and his girlfriend would decompress at the Shakey's down the street, home to a range of acceptable video-arcade options. "They got that thing where you throw it in the clown's mouth," Jones says. "That's fun. I like the look of those clowns. " Maybe the clowns are the key. This isn't a concept album, it's a parade led by multiple unreliable narrators who rail against the universe and profess their love and vacate the stage before we can ask them a question. The circus comes to town, the circus leaves town. A young man from suburban Texas winds up and a clown opens it's mouth as wide as the sky. -Alex Pappademas US 1. Flag Day / the Mother Stone 2. You're So Wonderfull 3. I Dig Your Dog 4. Katya 5. All I Am in You / the Big Worm 6. No Where's Where Nothing's Died 7. Licking the Days 8. For the Longest Time 9. The Hodge-Podge Porridge Poke 10. I Want to Love You 11. The Great I Am 12. Lullabbey 13. No Where's Where Nothing's Died (A Marvelous Pain) 14. Thanks for Staying 15. Little Planet Pig N N N N SACRED BONES 02/24/2020 8 38839 N N 0 0 2 .50 40298702 24.98 16.20 0 WVNL209.1 843563126738 01 HALL,ERIK MUSIC FOR 18 MUSICIANS (STEVE REICH) 05/08/2020 https://mediacdn.aent-m.com/prod-img/500/05/3802805-2548910.jpg 005 158 US 1. Pulses 2. Section I 3. Section II 4. Section Iiia 5. Section Iiib 6. Section IV 7. Section V 8. Section VI 9. Section VII 10. Section VIII 11. Section IX 12. Section X 13. Section XI 14. Pulses II N N N N WESTERN VINYL 02/28/2020 8 38840 N N 0 0 1 .50 40291031 24.98 18.82 0 PFLO239.1 843563127018 01 CAUSTIC WOUND DEATH POSTURE 04/10/2020 https://mediacdn.aent-m.com/prod-img/500/68/3802068-2548305.jpg 001 002 Pacific Northwest's Caustic Wound (featuring members of Mortiferum, Cerebral Rot, Fetid, and Magrudergrind) play unrelenting and punishing brutal death-grind that captures the aesthetic and palpitations of the classic old-school era of the genre (not exceeding 1992 of course). Their debut album, Death Posture, which follows their 2018 Grinding Terror demo, sounds like a foul relic that could have been produced in '88-91, while upholding a powerful, dark, murky yet unyielding production. This debut eschews and lays waste to the clinical, plastic and ornamental trappings of the modern-day grind scene. In what will most likely despoil and maraud the majority of current death-grind albums, Death Posture renders total annihilation upon the feeble mortal coil. US 1. Death Posture 2. Cemetery Planet 3. Visions of Torture 4. Black Bag Asphyxiation 5. Terror Bomber 6. Blast Casualty 7. Ritual Trappings 8. Uranium Decay 9. Cabal 10. Acid Attack 11. Invisible Cell 12. Guillotine 13. Automated Weapons Systems 14. Cataclysmic Gigaton N N N N PROFOUND LORE 02/27/2020 8 38841 N N 0 0 1 .50 40291055 24.98 18.82 0 PFLO242.1 843563127056 01 KRUELTY DYING TRUTH 04/24/2020 https://mediacdn.aent-m.com/prod-img/500/70/3802070-2548306.jpg 001 002 Japan's Kruelty was formed in 2017 and play a brutal and devastating mix of beatdown hardcore and punishing doomy death metal. Their debut full-length album A Dying Truth follows several splits and a single EP along with a slew of live shows, and is a savage and monolithic slab of what an ideal mix between vicious hardcore and brutal death metal should encompass. Mixed by Taylor Young (Nails). US 1. Introduction to 2. Definition 3. Ancient Words 4. Nothing More 5. Vengeance 6. Darkside 7. CKS 8. Intitulado N N N N PROFOUND LORE 02/27/2020 8 38842 N N 0 0 1 .50 36677757 19.98 12.77 3 MMPI513.1 5060146098687 01 HALEY PLEASURELAND 10/26/2018 https://mediacdn.aent-m.com/prod-img/500/84/3570384.jpg 001 002 Pleasureland is the newest work from Canadian-born artist Haley McCallum, known professionally as Haley Bonar for the past 15 years. In 2017, she changed her surname to reflect her maternal family name, now performing under the name HALEY. Mixed by Shuta Shinoda (Anna Meredith, Ghostpoet), McCallum's production shines through in a new light. Sparsely interlacing the organic and digital, Pleasureland moves through the gamut of grief, perception, and empowerment, eliciting both the uneasiness of a world shifting unexpectedly as well as the innate capacity for goodness and beauty. Here, McCallum displays her long time mastery of simple and haunting melodies that remain with the listener long after, replacing explanation through words with a pallet of sonic exploration wrapped up into just twenty-seven minutes. US N N Y WHITE N MEMPHIS INDUSTRIES 08/28/2018 1 38843 N N 0 3 1 .48 38554384 19.98 12.77 1 MMPI519.1 5060146099080 01 MALIHINI HOPEFULLY AGAIN 03/08/2019 http://media.aent-m.com/graphics/items/sdimages/c/500/7/8/7/6/3896787.jpg 001 002 US N N Y N MEMPHIS INDUSTRIES 01/23/2019 1 38844 N N 0 1 1 .59 38509704 19.98 12.77 2 MMPI532.1 5060146099219 01 PLAIN,ROZI WHAT A BOOST 04/05/2019 http://media.aent-m.com/graphics/items/sdimages/b/500/6/0/0/3/3893006.jpg 001 002 US 1. Inner Circle 2. Swing Shut 3. Symmetrical 4. The Gap 5. Old Money 6. Conditions 7. Dark Park 8. Trouble 9. Quiz 10. When There Is No Sun N N Y N MEMPHIS INDUSTRIES 01/16/2019 1 38845 N N 0 2 1 .70 36359677 19.99 13.88 4 SRDS186.1 5036436113521 01 SELECTER BEST OF LIVE AT DINGWALLS LONDON 04/06/2018 https://mediacdn.aent-m.com/prod-img/500/92/3530992-2532494.jpg 001 002 Recorded at Camden Dingwalls London, 24th February 2002 Featuring the hit singles: On My Radio, Three Minute Hero, Missing Words, The Whisper. Plus a nine minute version of Train to Skaville. US 1. On My Radio 2. Three Minute Hero 3. Missing Words 4. The Whisper 5. Train to Skaville 6. Everyday 7. Respect Yourself 8. James Bond N N N N SECRET RECORDS 06/13/2018 1 38846 N N 0 4 1 .48 36146758 24.99 17.35 26 SRDS192.1 5036436114627 01 FALL BEST OF THE FALL & MARK E. SMITH 06/08/2018 http://media.aent-m.com/graphics/items/sdimages/a/500/2/9/4/8/3788492.jpg 001 002 Vinyl album of The Fall's greatest hits recorded live at King George's Hall Blackburn, 22nd September 2002 US 1. Telephone Thing 2. Hey! Luciani 3. Free Range 4. Behind the Counter 5. Mr Pharmacist 6. There's a Ghost in My House 7. The Chiselers 8. Big New Prinz 9. Victoria 10. White Lightin' 11. Hit the North N N N N SECRET RECORDS 04/23/2018 1 38847 N N 0 26 1 .50 36676927 24.99 17.35 4 BNGS931.1 5036436115525 01 MIGHTY MAYTONES MADNESS 10/05/2018 http://media.aent-m.com/graphics/items/sdimages/b/500/6/6/1/4/3824166.jpg 001 010 Vinyl reissue of the Maytones' 1977 album, back in print since the original issue! US N N N N BURNING SOUNDS 08/28/2018 1 38848 N N 0 4 1 .57 36818815 24.99 17.35 6 SRDS199.1 5036436116621 01 ALARM BEST OF LIVE 11/09/2018 http://media.aent-m.com/graphics/items/sdimages/c/500/8/0/5/2/3832508.jpg 001 002 Live versions of The Alarm's classic hits, recorded 83-91. Includes stirring versions of "Sixty Eight Guns," "The Chant Has Just Begun" and more. US 1. Where Were You Hiding 2. Sixty Eight Guns 3. Absolute Reality 4. Knife Edge 5. Spirit of '76 6. Rain in the Summertime 7. Rescue Me 8. The Chant Has Just Begun 9. Strength 10. Blaze of Glory N N N N SECRET RECORDS 10/04/2018 1 38849 N N 0 6 1 .52 36818792 24.99 17.35 6 BNGS923.1 5036436117123 01 THOMPSON,LINVAL ROCKING VIBRATION 11/09/2018 http://media.aent-m.com/graphics/items/sdimages/a/500/1/1/5/2/3832511.jpg 001 010 Reissue of Linval Thompson's 1978 album on 180 gram vinyl. Featuring Sly and Robbie, produced by Linval and mixed by King Tubby, this one of Linval's best albums. US 1. Rockin' Vibration Got Together 2. Black Women 3. Freedom Fighter 4. I Got to Have You 5. Superstar 6. More Power 7. No More Problems 8. No Confusion 9. Dangerous Position 10. Rasta Children N N N N BURNING SOUNDS 10/04/2018 1 38850 N N 0 6 1 .60 39052599 16.98 12.88 0 CSWT6.1 9342977215331 12 PURPLE DISCO MACHINE BODY FUNK REMIXES 05/17/2019 https://mediacdn.aent-m.com/prod-img/500/66/3670366-2509771.jpg 001 044 US N N N N CLUB SWEAT 05/01/2019 2 38851 N N 0 0 1 .49 33750118 8.98 6.54 0 FAOW3051092.7 752830510920 07 REVEREND PEYTON'S BIG DAMN BAND SIXTEEN TONS 11/23/2017 http://media.aent-m.com/graphics/items/sdimages/b/500/6/4/2/7/3737246.jpg 001 002 US Limited Edition N N N N FAMILY OWNED RECORDS 09/29/2017 2 38852 N N 0 0 1 .18 40276397 26.98 18.31 0 AFOX32.1 5060672883320 01 JARRETT,KEITH BERWARDHALLEN, STOCKHOLM OCTOBER 3RD 1989 03/20/2020 https://mediacdn.aent-m.com/prod-img/500/14/3800014-2546737.jpg 001 007 Alternative Fox presents Berwardhallen, Stockholm October 3rd 1989, a live set from the Keith Jarrett Trio. Gifted piano giant Keith Jarrett is one of the world's great jazz musicians. From 1983, Jarrett's trio has featured drummer Jack DeJohnette and former Albert Ayler collaborator Gary Peacock on bass and they show their chops on this excellent performance given at Stockholm's Berwardhallen on 3 October 1989. Highlights include a version of the oft-covered "Ballad Of The Sad Young Men," Porgy & Bess standout "My Man's Gone Now" and Sinatra's "The Way You Look Tonight.