Fresh Wax: Olafur Arnalds, Thao with the Get Down Stay Down and More

My apologies to our resident vinyl nerd Jason Ferguson and all of you for posting this late. Mea culpa, mea culpa. Below, check out Ferguson's take on this week's fresh wax releases:

​There's not much in the way of new vinyl releases this week, although you'll definitely want to take note of Found Songs by Ólafur Arnalds (pictured on the left), the Amazon-exclusive vinyl version of the Monsters of Folk album and two great slabs of wax from Kill Rock Stars - a vinyl-only reissue of the Raincoats' self-titled album and the folksy awesomeness of the new set from San Francisco's Thao and the Get Down Stay Down.

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Although there's not a lot of new stuff, I did want to mention that I got my hands on the deluxe vinyl version of Porcupine Tree's new album, The Incident. The regular version is nice and all, but the stylish packaging of the Tonefloat-produced deluxe set is an incredible complement to the prog-rock tunes within. Too often, high-end limited vinyl packaging gets a little too full of itself, but the elegant simplicity of The Incident is well worth the price of admission. There were only 2000 pressed up, and Porcupine Tree fans are notably completist, but if you happen to spot one in a local shop and you're into what the band does, do yourself a favor and go ahead and splurge.

BYO Records box set

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Speaking of deluxe packages, the double-vinyl box set version of Let Them Know: The Story of Youth Brigade and BYO Records is a must-purchase for fans of contemporary, mid-stream American punk. The music - NOFX, Dropkick Murphys, Lagwagon, Pennywise, Leatherface, 7 Seconds, and, duh, Youth Brigade - is obviously integral, but the 100-page, coffee-table book and DVD documentary that round out the package really seal the deal. Again, it's pricey, but well worth it.

New Releases:

Ólafur Arnalds: Found Songs

Every Time I Die: New Junk Aesthetic

Ghostface Killah: Wizard of Poetry (green vinyl)

Jay-Z: The Blueprint

Lightning Bolt: Earthly Delights

Nellie McKay: Normal as Blueberry Pie: A Tribute to Doris Day

Monsters of Folk: Monsters of Folk (Amazon.com exclusive)

Grant Lee Phillips: Little Moon

Piano Magic: Ovations

Thao with the Get Down Stay Down: Know Better Learn Faster (Kill Rock Stars)

Wax Tailor: In the Mood for Life

Various Artists: Tumbélé: Biguine, Afro and Latin Sounds from the French Caribbean, 1964-1974

Reissues:

The Raincoats: The Raincoats (vinyl-only reissue)