Lana Del Rey - Blue Jeans/Video Games 7"

I've sort of been putting Lana Del Rey on the back burner for a moment. All the usual suspects have been touting this girl and she looks so Hollywood-hot I had to wonder. Now that it's been a minute I've given her due and the girl's got chops. Honestly, this girl could pull an Amy Winehouse and creep into mass consciousness. Everything about her just works: the music, the image, the videos. She's the product of pop-culture but makes no qualms about it and is as drawn to the dark allure of it all as she is swept up in the saccharine sugar-coatedness. In a way she reminds me of JJ in her ability to cull from different sources and create a pastiche of influences that almost run counter to each other. Hit play on each of these songs more than twice and the girl owns part of your soul...and I mean that in a Robert Johnson sort of a way. See you at the crossroads.

Order the 7" here. It should be a collector's item in about 5 seconds.

YOURS0173 - Sincerely Yours - "Maria"

More mysteries from Sweden.

YOURS0173 from disco naïveté on Vimeo.

Blood Diamonds - Grins

And from Grouper, we move to another one of my favourite 7s of the year. Now, Transparent recs/blog are usually on point with their releases but occasionally they release something so good you know they've tapped an artist with serious talent. Such was the case with Purity Ring's 'Ungirthed' earlier this year and now Blood Diamonds brings us 'Grins'. When I first heard this Blood Diamonds 7 it absolutely did not work for me. In fact, I turned it off half way through the first track. It sounded like one too many layers to my ears. A month later I gave it another shot and it all clicked. This big-orchestral-melodramatic-pop-by-way-of-stuttering-electronic-beats sound that is Blood Diamonds finally made sense to me. And dammit, it works well. Give this one a minute. Absolutely lovely stuff.
Blood Diamonds - Grins by TransparentRecs
Blood Diamonds - Move The Stars by TransparentRecs

Grouper - Water People

Grouper released a new 7" called Water People. As per usual with Grouper releases, it sold out in pre-orders. I, however, (for a change) managed to pre-order one and I can't wait to hear this vinyl. As with all of Liz's work this is just pure enchanting beauty sent from another planet. Get lost in this.
Grouper - Water People by pmwtumblr