Clarity Records have brand new tote bags. We have two different option available, the first being a long handle shoulder bag and the second being a deeper bag with short handles. Both options are a natural coloured bag with a black Clarity logo print and they are the perfect size for one record, or many records. They are nice strong bags and can be used for many purposes other than buying records. If you are interested, come into the store and we have them for sale, or if you are buying a lot of records I am sure we will be kind enough to give you one for free! If you are interstate / overseas chuck us an email info@clarityrecords.net if you are interested in one and we can arrange for it to be mailed to you.

Big thanks to Tom at FTM who printed the bags and T-shirts for us. Check out the picture below for an idea on how they look:

A few good titles in this week. These include a new 7″ from TRASH TALK called “Awake”, new CD/LP from The Weakerthans front man JOHN K. SAMSON called “Provincial”, newCD/LP from The Get Up Kids MATT PRYOR called “May Day”.

Other new releases include Voodoo Glow Skulls CD, End Of A Year / Shook Ones 7″, Gallows 7″, Minority Unit 7″, Suburban Scum 7″, Heartless LP (Southern Lord), Loincloth LP (Southern Lord) and more.

We also have vinyl represses including Dead Swans LP, Iron Lung LP, Trial 7″, Between The Buried And Me LP, Eyehategod LPs and others.

You can also grab a copy of the latest issue of Maximum Rocknroll as well as other new zines and books that we now have in stock.

Two great Australian labels that we have recently been getting a lot of stock of, that has proven to be really popular, has been RIP SOCIETY RECORDS and NEGATIVE GUEST LIST RECORDS. Both labels have been releasing a lot of great 7″ singles and LPs of late and have been going from strength to strength. It is always great seeing Australian labels do so well and we really wanted to highlight these two.

Finally, thank you to everyone who has been buying our Clarity Records t-shirts. They have proven to be very popular, so much so that we have had to get another run of shirts done.

We have both men and women sizes available. See picture below for examples:

Laura’s Best For 2011

#1. DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE – “CODES AND KEYS” CD/LP

“The soundtrack to most of this year. Love it and can’t wait to see them play live in February”

#2. CITY AND COLOUR – “LITTLE HELL” CD

#3. TRAPPED UNDER ICE – “BIG KISS GOODNIGHT” CD/LP

Brock’s Best For 2011

#1. WAR HUNGRY – “S/T” CD/LP

#2. ACTIVE CHILD – “YOU ARE ALL I SEE” CD/LP

#3. TWITCHING TONGUES – “SLEEP THERAPY” CD/LP

Shannon The Cannon’s Best For 2011

#1 GUITAR WOLF – “SPACEBATTLESHIPLOVE” CD/LP

#2. ROYAL HEADACHE – “S/T” CD/LP

#3 BLACK LIPS – “ARABIA MOUNTAIN” CD/LP

click this link for Footy’s top 10 for 2011 – http://clarityrecords.net/2011/12/footys-top-10-albums-for-2011/

#10. MOGWAI – “HARDCORE WILL NEVER DIE, BUT YOU WILL” CD/LP

Seventh full length album from Mogwai. Atmospheric post-rock much like bands Explosions In The Sky and This Will Destroy You. I have never really delved to much into the world of Mogwai previously, however I thought I better start and this album grabbed me straight away. Album title of the year!

#9. ROYAL HEADACHE – “S/T” CD/LP

The first Australian releases in my top 10. Sydney’s Royal Headache play a style of garage, rock, indie and punk with this record being recorded by Mike Young of Eddy Current Suppression Ring. Raw, great energy and catchy songs. This release was my first exposure to the band and I look forward to future releases.

#8. FUCKED UP – “DAVID COMES TO LIFE” CD/LP

Third album, but by no means third release, from Fucked Up. Some people might have seen this band on their recent Australian tour supporting the Foo Fighter. Although I didn’t, I was lucky enough to catch them at a certain festival, who’s name we do not mention, and they were fantastic. David Comes To Life is a very long record, about 80 minutes all up and I do sometimes struggle to make it all the way through, but it is a cracking record. Straight up punk rock with a mix of indie in it. For me it is more the vocals that give this album its punk edge with the music and the mix of female vocals giving it a bit more of an indie feel. I have been following this band’s career and they seem to be going from strength to strength. I would love to see these guys to there own tour of Australia.

#7. NIGHT HAG – “GILDED AGE” CD

What’s a top 10 without having local bands in it? Adelaide band Night Hag blew me away with the release of Gilded Age. This was the bands third release within a year with this being the first album after two EPs. Everything from the recording, artwork, songs and all round quality is much superior to the first two releases (not to say the first two weren’t good). Fast, angry, dark blend of hardcore and metal with crunching riffs. I really wish this album got a vinyl release as well, I could imagine the artwork looking amazing at that size and the sound quality coming out even more but, as most bands would know, it isn’t really the easiest thing releasing an album on vinyl.

#6. FRENZAL RHOMB – “SMOKO AT THE PET FOOD FACTORY” CD/LP

I hate being that guy “I like their old stuff better than the new”, but this has been the case with Frenzal Rhomb until the release of this new album. I started out listening to Frenzal when I discovered punk rock and those first few albums will always remain as classics in my eyes. It had been a while since I had listened to Frenzal and I had a feeling this new album was going to be a cracker, and I was right. Definitely the best quality recording out of the eight albums and this is a true return to form for the band. Songs were stuck in my head after the first spin, a sign of a good record.

#5. RINGWORM – “SCARS” CD/LP

Scars is an excellent album by the legendary Ringworm. Heavy, fast blend of hardcore, thrash and metal with great riffs and brutal vocals. I thought I was over this band after their performance in Adelaide the first time they came around, but after the release of this latest album it has totally reignited my love for this band and I wish I caught them on the most recent tour of Australia. Had I done this list when I first heard this album it may have been number 1, however it didn’t quite make it. Special mention goes out to the Ringworm and Mindsnare’s (my favourite Australian band) split 7″ release that came out this year as well.

#4. DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE – “CODES AND KEYS” CD/LP

Death Cab For Cutie return with an excellent album, doing exactly what they do best. Death Cab never really stray too far from what they do, so if you are a fan of their earlier stuff and you hadn’t heard this album, I would say you would like it. Catchy, poppy, indie rock songs with great hooks in the vocal and guitar lines. When I was younger Death Cab were a band I refused to like. No matter how often I got the songs stuck in my head, I still didn’t want to like them. Then one day I put my stubboness aside and listened to an album in full and fell in love. Since then I have bought and loved every album. At first listen I thought Codes and Keys was a bit too polished for my liking, but I got over that pretty quickly and it is one of my top albums for the year

#3. BLACK KEYS – “El Camino” CD/LP

I don’t think this band can really do anything wrong. They are loved by people of all different music tastes and this is because they are such brilliant musician’s who write excellent songs. It seems to me that each album gets a little different to the last with this one having a bit more of a rockier edge too it, compared to the earlier blues albums. I was amazed when I heard they had a new album coming out so short after the release of Brothers, however they seem to be a very prolific band with their constant touring and releases. The only let down to this album is track 4, Stairway To Heaven rip/tribute? Not a good song, cost you position # 2.

#2. FORMER CELL MATES – “PRESENTED AS A WORK OF FICTION” CD/LP

I really don’t know the best way to describe this record, all I can say is that it is a brilliantly written record. Songs are catchy, production is great and the addition of extra instruments into the music really brings out the songs a lot more. This is the 3rd release from the UK based band featuring an ex-member of Leatherface. However, don’t let the name Leatherface give you an indication of what they sound like because I believe they sound different. I guess melodic punk rock would be the best way to describe this band. I checked them out live before I heard the record and I went away singing the songs in my head after the first listen and I have been listening to the album ever since. Fingers crossed they come back soon.

Before I do my number one I will do what I did last year and make a few special mentions. Albums that just missed out was the new ones from Horrible Crowes, Driven Fear, Teargas, Wilco, Explosions In The Sky, This Will Destroy You and I am sure there are more. To great albums that came out this year that I never got a chance to listen too… I am sorry.

I would like to also mention that Clarity Records put out our first record this year, Stolen Youth’s – Dark Century CD/LP. I am really proud of what we have been able to do with that record and I can’t wait to release more records in the new year. Keep an ear out for more news about this in the new year.

Finally, a very special mention goes out to Adelaide band Weightless. If this list was a “top 10 recordings of 2011″ Weightless would be number one. I was lucky enough to get an unmastered preview copy to listen too and it hasn’t left the CD player. I know the album is due to be released in 2012, so keep an eye out for that one because I can already tell you that it will be my number one for 2012 (unless Propagandhi release a new record of course).

#1. ATLAS LOSING GRIP – “STATE OF UNREST” CD/LP

I am very surprised by my number one for 2011 and had you asked me through the year after this came out I probably would never have said this album, however this is truly an amazing album and has a lot of elements of what it takes to create a classic melodic punk album. At first I thought this was an excellent record, but it grew mo0re and more on me and it has been my most listened to album this year. To give a bit of background on Atlas Losing Grip, the band is from Sweden and it features ex-satanic surfers vocalist/drummer Rodrigo on vocal duties and the band have previously released an EP with him on vocals and an earlier album with a different vocals. State Of Unrest has a perfect mix of fast melodic songs, rockier catchy songs with techy guitars and great vocal melodies. I hold this record close to my heart because when Stolen Youth toured Europe this year I was listening to it a lot and venues we played at would play this record in between bands, so I have two albums that remind me of good times on my trip and this is one of them. I really hope this band gets the opportunity to tour Australia and I can’t wait for future releases.

There you have it, I hope you enjoyed my top 10 for 2011

Firstly, I would like to send the biggest thank you out to Laura, Shannon and Brock for watching the shop while I was away. They did a magnificent job and I wouldn’t have been able to do the tour without their help. I have been back in the shop for 2 weeks now and I won’t be going anywhere fast, so come by and say hi.

Lots of stock is starting to arrive for Christmas. Yesterday we received a big shipment including these new releases – Lagwagon LP and CD box sets, H2O covers LP & CD, Bastard Noise LP/CD, Coliseum LP/CD, Seahaven LP, Young Statues LP, Sick Of It All LP, No Doubt “Tragic Kingdom” repress LP, Transit LP, Alkaline Trio “From Here To Infirmary” Repress LP, new MAXIMUM RNR issue and lots more!

I will mention now that if there is anything that anybody wants specifically for Christmas, please get in contact and order now. Time is rushing towards the big day and we like to make sure that we have enough time for all orders to arrive for you to receive the stock.

Finally, it won’t be long until he new webstore will be ready. It has been a busy week or so working on it and we should hopefully have it ready for you very soon.

Keep an eye on this spot for further updates leading into Christmas.

The long awaited album from Horrible Crowes is now in stock!

Most of us know Brian Fallon as the frontman for The Gaslight Anthem, an act who started out in Jersey basements and slowly built their way up to headlining New York’s Radio City Music Hall. Despite the success Fallon has had with his main band he’s always loved decidedly less rocking acts such as the Afghan Whigs and Tom Waits. The Horrible Crowes – his new side project alongside longtime friend Ian Perkins – is his lounge-friendly tip of the hat to the acts who have shaped another side of his musical vision.

CD version is in stock, LP version will be in store very soon!

Keep an eye out for a week of big releases next week with new albums out from Polar Bear Club, Chuck Ragan and more!

At this stage the album is only available on CD, however an LP version is on the way! Check out the first single from the album called “Bird Attack”

Other new releases in stock now include: Ringworm LP, War Hungry LP, Ampere CD/LP, Rotting Out LP, Man Overboard CD/LP, Thou LPs, Basement CD/LP, Chariot LP, Heartsounds CD/LP, All Pigs Must Die CD, Ceremony CD, Braid CD, Scream 10″, Polar Bear Club 7″, Flatliners 7″, Terrible Truths 7″ and a lot more!

This Saturday, August 27th, we are having an instore acoustic performance from BALANCE AND COMPOSURE. The show starts at 5pm, and it is only them performing, so be here on time so you don’t miss out. The show is free and all ages, so everyone is welcome!

In 2008, hardcore punk band The Bronx diverted from their usual hard rock sound in favor of a mariachi style that is very much a part of the Mexican culture surrounding their hometown, Los Angeles, CA. Fast forward to 2011 and the band return with another full-length of punk-flavored mariachi tunes. If you like the bands first album, then I am sure you will enjoy this new album.

Keep an eye out for a heap of new releases coming in next week.

A brand new issue of one of Australia’s longest lasting hardcore / punk fanzine’s has just released a new issue. Pee Zine has been going for 15 years now and has delivered its 47th issue. Inside includes interviews with Defeater, The Carrier, I Exist, Stolen Youth, Warbrain and much more. It comes with a free sampler CD and a bunch of stickers!