First of all, huge thanks to Mexican Summer, Alex, and Emil for offering this giveaway up to our readers. We are handing over a free test pressing of the amazing Lilacs & Champagne album we talked about last week. To enter, just comment on this post. A winner will be picked at random in about 24 hours (sometime Friday morning). Please only enter once, we will be checking for double-ups. If your comment doesn’t show up right away, be patient, it is probably awaiting moderation. PS, the record is up for order now and officially drops on Tuesday, buy it HERE either way. Cheers!

EDIT: Just got word that we’ll be giving away a second item – a copy of the retail LP signed by Alex and Emil! Two winners.

WINNERS: Looks like the winning numbers were 33 and 136. Congratulations Jon, you’ve won the test pressing. Stefan, you’ve won the signed LP. You’ve both been contacted. Thanks so much to Mexican Summer and the band for this giveaway, and to the readers for entering. Buy the record!

Thrill Jockey just dropped their first batch of records for 2012…it’s a hot one. First up is Rhyton’s self-titled LP. This improvisational psych trio consists of members of D. Charles Speer & The Helix, Psychic Ills, and Messages. For blown-out trips, it doesn’t get much better than this. The LP is limited to 500 copies and costs $14 at ThrillJockey.com.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Next up is “And They Turned Not When They Went” by Imbogodom. This duo released a killer record for TJ in 2010, and the followup might be even better. Super far-out night moves, right up our alley. The LP costs $14 at ThrillJockey.com.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

The third new release is Jason Urick’s “I Love You”. Produced entirely on a laptop, this record really pushes Thrill Jockey’s output to the fringes. Bubbly manipulations, fucked vocals, caustic textures, it’s all here. The LP costs $14 at the same place, ThrillJockey.com.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Last, but not least, is “Improvisations”, a new record by Zomes (aka Lungfish’s Asa Osborne). Recorded to cassette, these impromptu, repetitive drone exercises are definitely a bit weird, but like previous Zomes material, they draw the listener in with their intimate nature. Like the rest, the LP costs $14 and is available at ThrillJockey.com.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

My friend Evan sat down with Rick Wojcik of Chicago’s Dusty Groove record store, and it’s a great interview. One of the best shops in the nation, read up. Visit IPMM.

Bit of a controversial black metal title here. Leviathan’s sole member Wrest stands accused of a bit more than the genre’s requisite misanthropic antics, facing charges that pretty much peg him as an absolute scumbag. However, nothings been settled and this really should only be about the music, and if you want to judge that than you’ll need to pick up a copy. Inferna Profundus has released a cassette edition of Wrest’s latest paean to the female gender, and you can now pick up an imported copy at shop-hellsheadbangers.com.

Smashing death metal from Norway’s Execration, now available on compact cassette format. This album has got styles to spare, throwing tons of doom cult vibes into the typically one dimensional sound of death. Europeans pick up a copy on tape at necrolatriarecords.bigcartel.com. Americans, wait for analogworship.com to stock some copies.

So, since 2012 is the Year of the Dragon, Thrill Jockey is taking it upon themselves to repress damn near the entire Tortoise catalog on the vinyl format. Starting apparently, with Standards, the group’s standout album from 2001. The post-rock genre has bled out magnificently, but this band’s entire discography still sounds fresh and needless to say, completely relevant. I absolutely cannot wait for a new pressing of Millions Now Living Will Never Die, but in the meantime, if you do not own this album – then own it. Comes in a heavy-duty silscreened PVC bag just like the original. A magnificent release available once again through thrilljockey.com.

Type continues it’s reissue campaign of classic Thomas Köner titles, this time reaching back to his partnership with Andy Mellwig as Porter Ricks. This album sees the dub techno genre imbued with Köner’s sublime and frosty minimalism. New artwork, 700 copies, absolutely essential – they just don’t make sounds like this anymore. Pick a copy up at beta.forcedexposure.com.

Porter Ricks – Biokinetics by _type

Two-man eardrum destruction unit Black Cobra released a new album last year, and in typical Southern Lord style, it is now available on the LP format. Pick it up at southernlord.com.

The hooded horde returns with a split 12″ on Doomentia, sharing a side with Horse Latitudes. Unleash the doooom – doomentia.com.

No more back alley handoffs with meth-addled Midwest DJs – now you can get a legit, clean copy of Aphex Twin’s classic Selected Ambient Works II above ground in a legal marketplace. I don’t know who’s brilliant fucking idea it was to repress this, but it should have happened about ten years ago, at least. Dig $30 out of your trust fund, send it over to midheaven.com and have a great weekend.