That’s right, starting now – all CDs in the Collar City Records store are $5, until December 31, 2010. Shipping costs have been reduced as well. Have at it! Some very limited items in the shop, including the last copies of Swamp Baby’s All Fours, a few found copies of Matthew Carefully’s Penny Riddle and a limited run of his St. Joseph’s Oblivion CD which was only available in physical form at Restoration Fest this past August.

Music makes a great gift, and we feel there is something in our catalog for everyone. Please visit the recently updated “FREE” section of our website to sample many of the recordings for sale.

Sean Rowe Signs to ANTI- Records!

The news has been out for a few weeks now, but if you haven’t heard yet, our pal Sean Rowe recently signed a record deal with ANTI- Records (Neko Case, Tom Waits, Antibalas Orchestra, Mavis Staples, etc). This is a huge turn of events for all parties involved since the label was absolutely blown away by the album that we helped Sean create and release last year, Magic.

ANTI- is re-releasing Magic to the world on February 22, 2011! as well as releasing his next album. Sean will be touring the world and bringing his music to places yet untouched by his words. This is absolutely the best-case scenario for one of our associated recordings and we hope to continue to deliver world-class albums as the years continue to fly by.

Here are Sean’s upcoming tour dates for those on the West Coast!. More East Coast shows will be announced soon…
1/05/2011 – Rockwood Music Hall – New York, NY
1/19/2011 – The Biltmore – Vancouver, BC
1/21/2011 – Doug Fir Lounge – Portland, OR
1/22/2011 – Sam Bond’s Garage – Eugene, OR
1/25/2011 – Freight & Salvage Coffeehouse – Berkeley, CA
1/26/2011 – Café du Nord – San Francisco, CA
1/29/2011 – McCabe’s Guitar Shop – Santa Monica, CA
2/01/2011 – Hotel Café – Los Angeles, CA

( above photo by Flickr user Macalicious used under a CC license )

Collar City Records will be putting on a little showcase of sorts as a part of the bash.

While shopping from many local vendors, attendees will hear the following Collar City Records artists:

6PM: IKE SNOPES
7PM: PRINCESS MABEL
8PM: MATTHEW CAREFULLY

This show will be your first opportunity to pick up the brand new Ike Snopes album, Troubled Guest.
Come say HELLO.

How are you?

Today marks the first official album release by Matthew Loiacono, performing under the name Matthew Carefully. His new album is called Community Balloon, and is made up of ten songs that were built out of suggestions from Matthew’s email list.

In November 2008, Matthew started a brand new email list to keep in touch with those folks who are interested in his solo music. After sharing new music and music from his unreleased archive for nearly forty weeks, Matthew had an idea to solicit folks on the list for ideas which would be fodder for songs.

The content that came back after the initial call for entries was nothing short of excellent. Matthew received ideas, lyric snippets, poems, sound samples, challenges, and much more. He began to create songs from this material and delivered them to the list each week.

Seven weeks went by and judging by the feedback he received from list members, he realized that the songs were some of the best compositions he’d written to date.

Thus, Community Balloon was born.

Click here to listen to four songs from the album. While you are there, you’ve got a quick opportunity to pick up one of the last remaining “Community Bundles” which include posters, postcards and the brand new Music To Fall Asleep To Vol. 1 CD from Matthew!

If you’d simply like to order the CD with no bundle, click here.
If you’d like to purchase the album from iTunes, click here.
If you’d like to purchase the album from Amazon MP3, click here.
If you’d like to procure the album from eMusic, click here.

Another surprise release from a shamefully under-recorded Capital Region artist comes from George Muscatello today.

This album is a glorious dissection and reassembly of guitar music; forms and styles are explored, torn apart, abandoned and launched from, carving out a distinct world that clearly encapsulates every disparate element of George’s musical existence.

Metal? Jazz? Doom? Funk? Languid Balladry?

It’s all there.

Read Josh Potter’s excellent profile of George and Angel Dust in Metroland Magazine today.

Then, listen to the first two songs from Angel Dust.

Finally, head to the Collar City Records store to purchase your copy of this monumental album.

The physical manifestation of this album features a gorgeous silk-screened tab-n-slot sleeve designed by Phil Pascuzzo and printed by Sire Press.

All proceeds (after shipping and PayPal charges) go to feeding the hungry.

After years of playing under-the-radar art gallery performances, sprawling library derailments and genius fits of beauty, the four members of Swamp Baby set their minds to commit their music to recorded form. Nick, Frank, Mike and Meg spent a few days in August 2009 holed up in a multi-faith temple just outside of their Albany homes and returned with a recording of epic proportions.

All Fours exists in its own space, where the surroundings played a dominant role in shaping what you hear in the final mixes. Buzzing crickets, natural reverb, quiet whispers as to not disturb other meetings in the temple and other wonders await you on the first of what we hope will be many recordings.

The album is now available in physical form housed in a gorgeous 6-panel EcoWallet designed by Phil Pascuzzo for PepCo Studio.

Click here to purchase the album directly from the band, which will then give you an immediate download of the album while you wait for the physical copy along with three bonus tracks and a slideshow of images set to one of the songs on the album!

If digital is your thing, head to the band’s Bandcamp storefront,
or you can procure it at iTunes,
or you can grab it at Amazon,
or possibly even eMusic (link coming soon), if you’d like!

Oh, “What does it sound like?”, you ask. Stream away!

Check out the free Digital 7″ of “Little Eyes” b/w “Off the Handle (4x4mix)“!

Then, grab the Limited Edition Two-Color Silkscreened Arigato Pack CD version for $5 in the Collar City Records store – while they last!

If you prefer buying digitally, click:
here for iTunes,
here for Amazon mp3,
here for eMusic!

This music is for fans of New Order, Galaxie 500, Sebadoh, the Album Leaf and many more.

Since MMX‘s completion, Paul has been cranking out a series of “Lunch Hour Recordings” that range from strange video game music, to COPS-like reggae jams. Bizarre, but unfolding in a great way.

Stay tuned for more from Mount Mole…

What’s that you say?

Win EVERY single release from Collar City Records in 2010?

How can I do that?

Easy.

Click here to subscribe to the new Collar City Records Email List. (Or sign up in the sidebar to the lower right of this page…)

That’s all you have to do.

Subscribe.

• You’ll get first-hand knowledge about all of our releases planned for this year.

• You’ll get exclusive downloads which will be for email list members only.

• You’ll get the first opportunities to purchase very limited-edition physical copies of our albums before anyone else even knows about them.

• Most importantly, you’ll be entered in the drawing which will award TWO winners every single album we will be releasing this year! (Current count = 6 confirmed, with many more on the way!)

And of course, our undying love and gratitude.

We will be picking the winners on Wednesday, March 3rd – so please subscribe now! All subscribers between Sunday, February 21st and Tuesday, March 2nd at 11:59PM will be entered!

Winners have been notified!

Collar City Records 2010 First Season is ON.

Thank you very much!

Photo above:

It is happening. The resurrection of the one night only show of the band Pumped for Dumplin. Five years ago at Valentine’s in Albany NY you may or may not have seen the four um, folks in the following picture do things that delighted, horrified, mystified and confused you.

If not, you have a second chance. The P for D revival will take place this Friday, August 7th at Valentine’s once again. The Restys will join the bill and The Mission Control of… will be opening the show. Show starts at 9PM, $5 cover.

Congratulations to the folks named in Metroland Magazine‘s BEST OF 2009 edition! We have plenty of friends all over this thing, but first, our own artists!

SEAN ROWE :: “Best Solo Artist”
Sure, this guy once ate a chipmunk so as not to starve, but he also opened for Boz Scaggs and the Doobie Brothers, so cut him some slack. Better yet, give his recent album Magic a spin and then try to tell us Rowe ain’t the bee’s knees. This survivalist has pretty much the best baritone around and certainly knows his way around a six-string, backing band be damned.

MATTHEW LOIACONO :: “Best Songwriter (Project-Oriented)”
Loiacono has proven to be an ace songwriter (in addition to label honcho and musician-about-town), particularly when he puts himself to task. Last year’s excellent Kentucky, recorded for the RPM Challenge in just 22 days, found the artist limiting himself to just mandolin and voice. For this summer’s Penny Riddle he used different constraints: Each of its eight songs is just a minute long. We can’t wait to see what he puts his mind—and talent—to next.

Check the rest of the listings here! Thanks Metroland!

Congrats to our favorite local radio station, WEXT for making it past the 2 year mark! Tomorrow (7/7) marks the 2 year anniversary of the launch of this excellent addition to our local community. We look forward to their giant birthday party at Valentine’s in Albany on Wednesday, featuring CCR’s own Sean Rowe, Railbird, Sgt. Dunbar & the Hobo Banned and Davy Knowles / Back Door Slam! Doors at 7PM, show at 8PM!