{"title":"Cass Mccombs","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCass McCombs is an American singer-songwriter, born in 1977 in Concord, California, USA. With a unique blend of folk and indie rock, his music captivates audiences around the world. Inspired by artists such as *Woods*, *Damien Jurado*, and *Smog*, McCombs has created a distinct sound that resonates with listeners.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eKnown for his introspective lyrics and soulful melodies, McCombs has released numerous critically acclaimed albums throughout his career. His music explores themes of love, loss, and self-reflection, drawing listeners into a world of raw emotion and heartfelt storytelling.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eInfluenced by iconic musicians like *Kurt Vile* and *M. Ward*, McCombs continues to push boundaries with his innovative songwriting style. His songs have been described as poetic masterpieces that effortlessly blend genres and evoke deep emotions.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"mangy-love","title":"Mangy Love","description":"\u003cp\u003eOver the past decade, \u003cstrong\u003eCass McCombs\u003c\/strong\u003e has established himself as one of our premier songwriters. It's a career that's twisted and turned, from style to subject, both between records and within them.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHis new record, \u003cem\u003eMangy Love\u003c\/em\u003e, ventures into realms of experimental soul, twisted psychedelia, and straight-up rock, resulting in a sound that articulates his live show better than ever before. Thematically, it's far darker, tackling heavy issues through McCombs' uniquely cracked lens of (oftentimes hilarious) lyrical wit and acumen toward subtlety.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHip-hop and Beat poetry influences have never been more evident, with several songs employing a speechstyle and clever fast-paced wordplay. There are guest appearances by many fellow musicians of his tribe ranging from \u003cstrong\u003eAngel Olsen\u003c\/strong\u003e to \u003cstrong\u003eBlake Mills\u003c\/strong\u003e, under the production of veteran \u003cstrong\u003eRob Schnapf\u003c\/strong\u003e, and the overall result is his most immediate and upbeat record to date.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMangy Love\u003c\/em\u003e is available as a 2LP - Double LP with Download.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Anti","offers":[{"title":"Black LPx2","offer_id":50422416867659,"sku":"2198291","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50422412968267,"sku":"403245","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/f7c486d0-a9a1-4575-98c9-e9d7d47b5f54_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726764190"},{"product_id":"heartmind","title":"Heartmind","description":"\u003cp\u003eOn \u003cem\u003eHeartmind\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eCass McCombs\u003c\/strong\u003e enters the double-digit-album phase of his career, a quantitatively rarified place for any songwriter; rarer still, though, is the fact that he does not yet seem to have settled into a qualitative sound or pattern, of singing the same thought twice (or perhaps even once).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSongs like \"\u003cem\u003eKaraoke\u003c\/em\u003e\" are a god-level burst of powerpop perfection, as fetching as anything Cass has ever cut. The springy staccato guitar, the vaporized electric keys, the melody seemingly born for singing or clapping or dancing along: Cass triangulates a perch of his very own out among The Go-Betweens, The dB's, and The Cure, and vibrates there, a beacon. And then, of course, there is the song's playful if painful lyrical conceit—the lover who is making all the sacred motions of commitment but whose feelings may be no more deep or real than someone simply reading the lyrics for \"Vision of Love\" or \"Stand by Your Man\" from some crowded bar's TV screen.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThere are, at least, some basic facts to share about \u003cem\u003eHeartmind\u003c\/em\u003e, logistical evidence that may in turn shape your own questions: Cass recorded these songs in multiple sessions on both coasts, in Brooklyn and Burbank. The great Shahzad Ismaily not only cut the staggering \"Unproud Warrior\" and four others here but also played lots of bass. Buddy Ross tracked \"New Earth,\" a paean of post-humanity renewal with several sharp wisecracks. Ariel Rechtshaid—now a dozen years into his collaboration with Cass, which began with 2009's \u003cem\u003eCatacombs\u003c\/em\u003e—captured Cass' scintillating guitars on \"Belong to Heaven,\" a thoughtful consideration of what we all lose when we lose an old friend to the inevitable end. The steadfast Rob Schnapf (who previously produced McCombs' Anti- debut, \u003cem\u003eMangy Love\u003c\/em\u003e) mixed and merged it all. Wynonna Judd (yes, that one) offers harmonies, while her beau Cactus Moser provides some lap steel. Joe Russo, Kassa Overall, Danielle Haim, Nestor Gomez are featured on the album, too.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Anti","offers":[{"title":"Black | LP","offer_id":50443984339275,"sku":"1162448","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50443984830795,"sku":"1162446","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/e07b85b0-523f-4c19-9d6a-b7a05fc89d6c_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727022752"},{"product_id":"tip-of-the-sphere","title":"Tip of the Sphere","description":"\u003cp\u003eOver the past decade, \u003cstrong\u003eCass McCombs\u003c\/strong\u003e has established himself as one of our premier songwriters. It’s a career that’s twisted and turned, from style to subject, both between records and within them.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMcCombs\u003c\/strong\u003e has never made two albums that sound the same. His new one, \u003cem\u003eTip of the Sphere\u003c\/em\u003e, is particularly unique. \u003cem\u003eTip of the Sphere\u003c\/em\u003e is \u003cstrong\u003eMcCombs\u003c\/strong\u003e’ 9th studio album and while many of his records have been comprised of songs recorded in different studios and pieced together over time, this one was recorded quickly in one location with a strong sense of purpose, resulting in his most consistent record to date.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis approach brings a raw immediacy to his songs, which are some of his best yet as he finds the perfect balance of compassion and experimentation. The rock songs rock harder, the ballads are more beautiful, the experiments more confident; with the sounds of jazz and latin music creeping in through the back window. This is an artist trying to make sense of it all through a relentless, ever searching creative process.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCD - Digipack. 2LP - Double 180 Gram Black Vinyl housed in Gatefold Sleeve.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Anti","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50465267614027,"sku":"1051426","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/3f8cd895-6188-4906-956a-5238e0525eb1_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727284422"},{"product_id":"wits-end-1","title":"Wits End","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn several sometimes perplexing ways, Cass McCombs' fifth full-length outing, Wit's End, veers moderately but decisively away from the appealingly direct, rootsy indie folk of its predecessor, Catacombs. In its place is a stark, occasionally stifling collection of dark, literary, chamber folk, melodramatic piano balladry, and one sterling piece of country-pop classicism. Album-opener \"County Line\" is a quiet stunner: a mellow-grooving country-soul burner so achingly smooth you'd swear it was a turn-of-the-'70s chestnut from the L.A. soft rock scene — a stray cut from the vaults of Asylum Records, perhaps, or maybe a particularly glossy tune by the Band — complete with that iconic Fender Rhodes twinkle. (Its restrained melancholy and vintage-styled craftsmanship also call to mind Beck's Sea Change.) But it's hardly an accurate indication of what's to come, at least musically: although several songs feature a similar instrumental palette, and the moody, subdued tone persists throughout, nothing else here is nearly as warm or winningly melodic. Lyrically, \"County Line\"'s tale of loss and rueful homecoming (seemingly about a hometown transformed by new development, rather than a doomed romantic relationship, though it could be both) is just a taste of the darkness and desperation that, as the album's title hints at, pervade these eight songs. Elsewhere, we get the desolate, jilted lover of the maudlin \"Saturday Song,\" the chilling \"Buried Alive\" (whose title is evidently not metaphorical), and the wracked \"Hermit's Cave,\" which plays like a gloomier variation on the Beach Boys' \"That's Not Me\" with an added dose of mysticism. When McCombs' often heavily stylized, antiquarian verse is paired with a suitably intriguing arrangement (as on \"Memory Stain,\" a forlorn piano waltz that gets some much-needed color and lift via accordion, bass clarinet, and a few well-placed castanets) or a decently forward-moving melody (\"Buried Alive,\" which is both tender and almost delightfully macabre), the results can be effective, if not exactly inviting. On the other hand, no amount of celeste can save \"The Lonely Doll,\" an overly precious fable set to a maddeningly harmonically static waltz — with the title phrase repeated after every awkward couplet — from being utterly insufferable. The album's most ambitious — and, possibly excepting the incongruous \"County Line,\" most successful — moment comes with nine-minute closer \"A Knock Upon the Door,\" a rambling narrative ballad and yet another waltz, this time with a rustic, old world lilt spiced up with a coolly sinister backing combo of banjo, bass clarinet, organ, chalumeau (a Baroque relative of the recorder), and found-sound percussion. It's the most potent and captivating expression of the gothic sensibility that runs through Wit's End, and one of a few potentially promising directions suggested by this odd, somewhat bewildering, and perhaps hopefully transitional effort.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"No Label","offers":[{"title":"LP","offer_id":50491133034827,"sku":"337160","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/cf87f1a6-72c2-4b88-93c6-d758d0db7178_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727682451"},{"product_id":"a-folk-set-apart","title":"A Folk Set Apart","description":"\u003cp\u003eDomino release Cass McCombs's new anthology, 'A Folk Set Apart', subtitled 'Rarities, B-Sides and Space Junk, Etc.' It's an alternate retelling of the last decade in the life of the extraordinary songwriter Cass McCombs. 'A Folk Set Apart' is nineteen tracks in all (11 songs long with 8 digital bonus tracks to square up with the CD version). It very well may be the most compelling album he's released, showcasing McCombs' thematic and emotional diversity. These songs (five of which are unreleased never to be heard before) have been unearthed from the so-called underground - culled from the various limited, rare sources from which they were initially released on different independent labels on both sides of the pond, now compiled by Domino. For the past decade, most of these have been next to impossible to find, or unveiled on rare 7\"s, and for the first time are now readily available. 'A Folk Set Apart' is a glimpse behind the studio curtain at one of the greatest songwriters of the 21st century. Fare thee well, Cass.LP - The LP is a single 180 Gram vinyl in a Gatefold jacket, which includes a printed inner sleeve and an MP3 download card. 11 Track LP plus 8 digital bonus Tracks.CD - 19 Tracks.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Domino","offers":[{"title":"LP","offer_id":50494594187595,"sku":"395651","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/e03cd4ea-2471-4835-800f-1a5b456f2a4e_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727706878"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/collections\/cass-mccombs.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}