Heavy electro rock pioneers Trans Am have been bringing the heat since the early 90s. Music fans and critics alike hail the group as the originators of  "post-rock."  Their sound lies comfortably between the synth driven sonics of Kraftwerk and the robotic vocal production of  Daft Punk. With 9 studio albums to date, Trans Am has enjoyed a lengthy career with all their albums being released by  Thrill Jockey Records.

Trans Am continue to push the envelope both live and in the studio. Their live show consists of all three members taking on double duty alternating between synth, bass, guitar, vocals and drums. The group does a great job at replicating their electronic tsunami of sound on stage. Be sure and catch them live if you get the chance!

                                                               Trans Am came by Amoeba Hollywood to do a little digging. From the iconic hip hop record illmatic by Nas, to Wooden Shjips' psychedelic offshoot Moon Duo, Trans Am dig up some great pieces. 

Wonderful things are happening at Amoeba San Francisco, especially if you love books, collectables, soundtracks, vinyl, bargains of all kinds, or just like to chill out in a groovy environment. You must fall into one of those categories, right? I thought so! Then come on down and experience our newly doubled Books & Magazines section. We have more than doubled the space dedicated for music, film, and pop culture publications and are filling it with new stock daily! We now feature back issues of your favorite music and film zines, and are breaking out our backlog of used books.

You’ll also enjoy our new reading lounge, made possible by Amoeba SF’s heritage as a bowling alley! Yes, we have repurposed a few of the benches from back in the day when this building housed a bowling alley. Sit, relax, and flip through some of our fascinating used books in style.

Additionally, we’ve added a collectables case for rare and out-of-print books, toys, and other memorabilia such as lunch boxes, cookie jars, and other surprises.

In other news, all Music DVDs (except classical) have been moved from the Main Floor to the DVD Room for easy browsing. You’ll also find a greatly expanded Bargain DVD section full of amazingly priced finds. By popular demand, the Soundtrack section has been moved to the Main Floor by Spoken Word and features an expanded Soundtrack Vinyl selection. Additionally, a brand new Audiophile CD section has been added to the main floor too!

Nashville's psychedelic/ garage rock duo, JEFF the Brotherhood, dropped by Amoeba for an exclusive What's In My Bag? episode.  Brothers Jake and Jamin have been releasing records since 2001 and they've been collecting vinyl ever since they were kids. From rock records to world pop selections like, Idjah Hadidjah's Tonggeret and folk songwriter Will Oldham's Goya, these brothers love to dig! They don't just talk vinyl, they've got a few interesting book selections too. One in particular is Slim Diamond's book of Pimpoetry.  Oh yes, JEFF the Brotherhood is big pimpin' when it comes to digging for vinyl!

JEFF the Brotherhood - What's In My Bag?
Watch and comment on YouTube.

 

Check out their official music video for "Sixpack":

Since the doors opened at 10:30am this morning, Record Store Day 2013, at each of the three Amoeba Music stores it's been hectic and hella busy. Above and below are some photos from Amoeba Berkeley in the early afternoon today a few hours after opening. Also below is a video clip of E-Lit at the Berkeley Amoeba store talking about some of the most popular Record Store Day items. And if you have still not made it out to Amoeba for Record Store Day 2013 - there is still lots of time (and goodies) left. More Record Store Day at Amoeba Music info here.

Like Christmas in April is how some of the dedicated music fans I talked with outside Amoeba Berkeley this morning described Record Store Day. And today's Record Store Day seems to be the biggest and most popular yet. When I stopped by Amoeba Berkeley earlier this week to chat with Steve Cirelli about Record Store Day (RSD) he recommended RSD fans get there an hour before the 10:30am opening. So this morning I arrived at the Telegraph Avenue Amoeba Music at 9:30am expecting the line to be just beginning to form. However there was already a long line by that time with those at the top of the line there since before dawn [for a rare Dave Matthews Band RSD release]. A lot of RSD fans won't divulge exactly what RSD titles they are specifically looking for - as you will see in the video above in which I chat with a bunch of the music fans from as far away as Indonesia - all outside Amoeba Berkeley this morning, Saturday, April 20th, 2013.

Check back on the Amoeblog for updates from the Berkeley, Hollywood, and San Francisco Amoeba Music stores throughout Record Store Day 2013.