Another Routine Day Breaks was recently reissued by Thrill Jockey on clear vinyl, a limited pressing of 500. It’s the second pressing of the single, following the original of 1,000 copies on Hi-Ball Records in 1997. Both feature three color print on die-cut board sleeves.

States the Thrill Jockey site about Brokeback and member Douglas McCombs:

Douglas may be familiar to many of you as the bassist for Eleventh Dream Day, Tortoise and Pullman (the latter being an all-acoustic collaboration that features members of Come, Directions in Music and Rex). Through Brokeback, Douglas has sought to explore something not as densely structured as his other musical outings with a focus on rhythm and texture. The idea with Brokeback is to keep things simple and let the melodies hang in the air. By the nature of this decision the music is sparse, but not without sounding full and realized.

Yes, I bought this solely for the purpose of featuring it here. And no, I have not yet listened to it. But I did find some tracks from other Brokeback releases and they are minimal yet glorious. As Thrill Jockey notes in one of their recaps for a different Brokeback release, this is a must for any Tortoise fan.

You can hear snippets of Brokeback (not this single, but their two LPs also released via Thrill Jockey) on iTunes.

Accompanying this disc is a small flier noting the band’s upcoming holiday show in Seattle. If you’re in town, you can see Pufferfish perform at The Tractor in Ballard on Saturday, December 26. The show starts at 9:30 and (as the flier notes) features Star Anna and Kristen Ward.

Pufferfish: Wrecking Ball [mp3]

The last collaborative effort was a brief Vice Records comp dubbed Do They Know It’s Hallowe’en? and featuring the likes of Arcade Fire, Beck, Karen O, Devendra Banhart and countless others going by the guise The North American Hallowe’en Prevention Initiative. The Marshmallow Ghosts follow suit, paring several seemingly distant artists together for something unique and Halloween-oriented. Here, it’s The Appleseed Cast, Black Moth Super Rainbow and Dreamend, to name a few.

What makes this item stand out is only partly obvious by the photos I’ve included here. First, there’s the spiral vinyl - one side black, the other orange. Then there’s the cover sleeve, which glows in the dark. Not your traditional release, but then again Halloween isn’t your typical holiday.

Here’s a quick video teaser from the single:

A Parallax I by Of Montreal multi-instrumentalist James Huggins III (going here by the moniker James Husband) is also a limited issue. This particular album is one of 2000 and includes a bonus disc of six cover songs from the likes of Numan, Pollard/Guided By Voices, The Beatles, and Neil Young. You won’t find much of that good ol’ Of Montreal psychedelic sound, at least in comparison to their more recent albums. Possibly an early album like Aldhils Arboretum or that one with all those songs about Dustin Hoffman. It’s folky.

Furthermore, the cover art features some excellent paintings by Jenna Gribbon and Patricia Zobel. Dan Donahue is credited with the design, layout and photography (for the last one, Huggins also contributed). Here’s the second track from A Parallax I, “A Grave In The Gravel”.

James Husband: A Grave In The Gravel [mp3]

But Br’er is none of that; at least they’re not what you’d expect. Listen to “Painted Lady” and you’ll be treated to something that’s more along the lines of Jens Lekman channeling Xiu Xiu’s Jamie Stewart (in his non-freak-out, minimalist mode) while creating something wonderfully melodic and beautiful. It’s pop of the experimental sort, dabbling in the avant-garde. In a way, it makes the cover art just that much more brilliant.

Filled With Guilt & Diamonds is out now on Edible Onion.

Br’er: Painted Lady [mp3]

Br’er: Catch A Falling Knife [mp3]

The single includes title track “Wholehearted Mess” as well as three remixes of the song. And, like proper modern vinyl, it comes with a digital download so you don’t have to use your USB turntable to rip the songs for your iPod.

Bear In Heaven: Wholehearted Mess [mp3]

Graph paper is not your usual suspect for an album enclosure, even be it a simple slip case. No, it’s usually a thick cover stock, glossy with full color and bleeds. As is the case with digipaks, featuring your standard book-binding-like double-fold. With Building A Bomb, Athens band Little Tybee break both these rules in what simply has to be one of the coolest album packages I’ve seen all year. It opens like that Bright Eyes / Neva Dinova 10″ split from a few years back, but its DIY nature truly sets it apart. And the art continues inside. I’ll end here and just let it speak for itself.

With one more aside: the music they make is just as unique as the packaging, displaying an eccentric blend of jazz, pop, and more. Just check out the title track directly below:

Little Tybee: Building A Bomb [mp3]

First, I have to disclose that I did not take these photos. I was a bit torn about even posting these on Cover Art for that very reason, as I like to take the shots myself. But Sub Pop packed these three images into a nice little email for their press folks. These shots of Nirvana’s Bleach reissue are very much in the style you’d see here, minus the homely environmental background. I just couldn’t resist.

Celebrating the album’s 20th anniversary, Sub Pop is slated to re-release Bleach both on white vinyl in a gatefold double LP. You can also get the deluxe CD version. Both include excellent photos from the band’s early days. This is easily a collector’s must-have.

The Bleach reissue is scheduled to hit November 3, but you can preorder it now at

Nirvana: About A Girl [mp3]

This is the first post covering Mount Eerie’s Phil Elverum. And believe me, this artist and this man will likely become a regular installment on Cover Art, as each of his releases feature something new and exciting in terms of art and packaging and format.

Dawn is a unique release both in that I own the vinyl version and the compact disc. The latter, in fact, is not really just a CD; it’s a book. It contains photographs of the trip taken by Elverum and an array of friends who visited him during his stay. There are sketches Elverum drew to further express his emotions and psyche. It is his diary of a momentous Kerouac-ian journey into the northern region of Norway. Now, I haven’t read the entire thing yet, so I may be slightly off in my reference to the beatnik master, but it’s brilliant nonetheless.

The vinyl is good, but if you really want the gem, you’ll drop three tenners on the CD/book. And once you have this item in your hands, you’ll know you’re holding something extremely special.

I Have Been Told That My Skin Is Exceptionally Smooth - Mount Eerie

Record Store Day often yields some pretty great treasures, and occasionally they feature something entirely unique in terms of concept and packaging. 2008 saw just that with a 3 7″ single bundle of Love No, a key track off Reality Check from the same year. This bundle includes red, white and blue vinyl, various remixes, and a few other great tracks.

Love No - The Teenagers