Dave Douglas - Spirit Moves

atizaya vaadaka / pittalopama / krodhaniiya sadhRyac saraNi

Steve Lehman Octet - Travail, Transformation, And Flow

jagat navaracanaa /agra agra /krodhaniiya saraNi / aSTaka

Kaiser;Smith;Walter - Plane Crash

adhyaatma / susamaahita / bhayaMkara tretaa

Profound Sound Trio (Andrew Cyrille/Paul Dunmall/Henry Grimes) - Opus De Life

vapuSa / dairyaziila kinnara katamaa viharati

Religulous

atyavrata / vipra / suraNa / haasya

Harvey Milk - Life...The Best Game In Town

The Rolls Royce of heavy-ass art/damage rock.

Khanate - Clean Hands Go Foul

The champagne of Doom Metal.

Let The Right One In

The filet mignon of vampire movies.

The IT Crowd, Season 1

The Stradivarius of current British sitcoms.

Melvins - "Star-Spangled Banner"/"Detroit Rock City"

The Citizen Kane of limited edition cover singles.

tip: Live shows of the year (so far):  The Necks and John Zorn's Electric Masada.
Oh, and Christ,  if you already saw and liked Let The Right One In, read the book.  If you haven't, see the movie first, then read the book. You'll thank me.

Modest Mouse - Building Nothing Out Of Something

Piglet - Lava Land

Looking for something else to devour after the math-rock scrumptiousness of Don Caballero and Battles? Look no further than Piglet. Unfortunately, this 2005 EP is the only thing the trio ever put out, but quality is more important than quantity with this band.

The Microphones - Don't Wake Me Up

Phoebe Killdeer and The Short Straws - Weather's Coming...

A female Tom Waits from Australia.

Logan Whitehurst & The Junior Science Club - Earth Is Big

Fun, quirky, outsider music. Lauded by Dr. Demento. Unfortunately, Logan Whitehurst passed away at the young age of 29 in 2006, but he left behind a wealth of music for his fans to remember him by.

Withnail and I

"London. The '60s. Two unemployed actors -- acerbic, elegantly wasted Withnail (Richard E. Grant) and the anxiety-ridden 'I' (Paul McGann) -- drown their frustrations in booze, pills, and lighter fluid." Criterion said it best. Buy it, you won't regret it.

tip: Amoeba is the best music store in SF, Green Apple is the best book store in SF,  Arinell's Pizza + Escape From New York Pizza are the best places to eat pizza in SF, Ocean Beach is the best beach in SF. Listening to music from Amoeba on your boombox, reading a trashy pulp novel from Green Apple, and eating pizza while fog-bathing on Ocean Beach is the best way to spend your summer in SF.

Madeleine Peyroux - Bare Bones

Atmosphere - God Loves Ugly

Heavyweights

Aqua Teen Hunger Force Vol. 6

Leonard Cohen - Live in London

tip: Jugtown Pirates are my friends' local band and they play at Mojitos in North Beach every Monday from 10pm-2am, no cover. Go! They are awesome!

Death - ...For The Whole World To See

Grass Widow - Grass Widow

Big Business - Mind The Drift

Jesus Lizard - Inch

Very limited edition reissue for Record Store Day.

Dinosaur Jr - Farm

Hypnotic Brass Ensemble - Hypnotic Brass Ensemble

tip: "Cool Down Your Temper" last Thursday of every month, at Koko's Cocktails. Reggae music all night long.

Naomi Shelton & The Gospel Queens - What Have You Done, My Brother?

Vampires Of Dartmoor (Ackermann & Thusek) - Dracula's Music Cabinet

Fans of Science Fiction Corporation may enjoy this.

Monks - Early Years 1964-1965 (180 gram pressing)

Limited edition!

The Beach Boys - Sunflower (180-gram vinyl)

Limited edition vinyl pressing from Capitol Vaults.

Linda Lovelace & Others - Deep Throat, Part II (Soundtrack)

Eastbound & Down

I love Kenny Powers.

Wise Blood

My Breakfast With Blassie

Scott Walker: 30 Century Man

Hypnotic Brass Ensemble - Hypnotic Brass Ensemble

La Grande Bouffe

Three "Ms": "Marcello...Model...Manifold"

Wendy & Lisa - White Flags of Winter Chimneys

Everything these women create is absolutely beautiful; a score to a TV show, Prince's bells and whistles during The Revolution days, or songs for other folks. This album falls right in line with the rest of the great Wendy & Lisa legacy. Now, a message to Ms. Wendy Melvoin: I'm not getting any younger Wendy. Marry me. (Author's note: Nero is 30, strong, talented, utterly smoldering, and good to go.)

Lou Reed - Berlin: Live at St. Ann's Warehouse

Lou revisited his landmark album Berlin in front of his New York audience last year. He toured with this project overseas, and I was fortunate enough to see him perform this show in Arezzo, Italy in a medieval city square on a hot summer night. It was probably one of the greatest live performances I've ever experienced. Julian Schnabel did the set design and assisted in a film that accompanied the performance. I cried like a baby when he performed "Sad Song" (full on with the London Children's Choir singing back up). This is the closest thing I have as a document to that important night in my life. I highly recommend this intense and riveting performance of this dark and sad collection of songs (they actually rock more in this performance as well). This is a must for any Lou fan. I also recommend the DVD of this same NY performance.

Prince - Lotusflow3r

This is a three-disc set by Prince; one disc is by new Prince chick Bria Valentine, one is a rock record by Prince, and the third is a vintage-sounding purple dance record. I haven't peeped that Bria girl's CD yet and besides "$" on the "Lotusflow3r" disc, I haven't really dug into the Lotus disc. But I have been obsessed with the "Mplsound" disc. He dusted off his Linn Drum and got back to naughty club jams. He also gets into some avant-purple pop stuff like "Valentina." This is a song where he basically tries to get Salma Hayek's young daughter "Valentina" to relay a message to her mother to "Give him a call." Wink wink. Even at 51, Prince is still the most interesting and inventive courters in the history of romance. Go get 'em, Princey.

Siouxsie & The Banshees - Tinderbox (reissue)

I have every Siouxsie CD and the remasters sounds pretty good. But I am praising this one alone for the "Sweetest Chill" 12" remix. Great bonus cut. They don't make beautiful goth rock songs like this anymore. It makes you feel in love, in despair, at three in the morning somewhere. Simply fantastic.

tip: I endorse all local musicians who don't have rich parents, a publicist, a rich buddy with a label, or friends in high places. Rock & roll is a blue-collar sport, a working class art. Also I'm pimping my own split 7". It's under "Nero Nava with The Sexx Act."

Zero Boys - History Of

Sexy - Por Vida

Maniax - The Lost Tapes

Lots of songs that sound like The Clash recorded in a trash can by the best pre-pubescent band on the Not So Quiet comp.

Various Artists - Rocky Mountain Low

Studs Turkel would be proud.

Wildildlife - Peas Feast

The Units - History Of the Units-The Early Years 1977-1983

Gotta respect the Moog

Mind Eraser - Concious Unconcious

Grass Widow - Grass Widow

tip: Reissues and weird wild stuff.