Rack And Opinion: Release Date 5.9.06

Faithful readers may have noticed we skipped Rack And Opinion last week. There simply wasn't anything that tempted us. Case in point being that we actually did go to the record store last week, but instead of anything new we brought home They Might Be Giants' Flood (1990; still awesome) and Juliana Hatfield's Become What You Are (1993; now we remember why we sold it nine years ago). But this week there are some pretty great records to be had for the asking. And for the dough. Apparently Art Brut's Bang Bang Rock & Roll gets reissued domestically today, and it is full of hits ("Emily Kane," "Good Weekend"). And Matmos' new long-player is typically excellent, long on interesting sounds (typewriters, snails and lasers, anyone?) and heady concepts (auditory portraits of prominent historic gay figures). And then there's the solid swan song from Grandaddy. So why not get to the store this week. Our picks of what to buy are below, with relevant hyperlinks to related commercial opportunities from our former KFC co-workers over at Insound.

Art Brut -- Bang Bang Rock & Roll -- Downtown
Grandaddy -- Just Like the Fambly Cat -- [listen]
Matmos -- The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast -- Matador [listen]
Serena Maneesh -- Serena Maneesh -- Play Louder