tUnE-YarDs
w h o k i l l
4AD
Street: 04.19
tUne-YarDs = S.L.F.M + Sister Suvi
Merrill Garbus, aka tUne-YarDs, has had an exhausting touring schedule over the last few years, opening for Sunset Rubdown, Dirty Projectors, Thao Nguyen and Xiu Xiu just in the last couple years (all of whom came to Salt Lake). One of the biggest complaints you will hear about her (not from me) is that her first album was too lo-fi to really showcase the incredible voice you will hear at her live show. This album will leave nobody complaining. All of the shortfalls of the first album (most of which was recorded with a handheld voice recorder) have been overcome and all of the new songs (which you may have seen performed, if you have seen her in the last year) are catchier and more well written. The single “Bizness” has had a ton of Internet buzz, but my personal favorite has to be “Powa”—with its incredibly simple song structure, it will be stuck in your head for days. –Cody Hudson

The Tunnel
Fathoms Deep
Glorious Alchemical
Street: 04.05
The Tunnel = Swans + Nick Cave
Gritty rockers The Tunnel are back for another round with their second album, Fathoms Deep. Much like their debut album, Carver Brothers Lullaby, they keep it simple with dirty guitars and a predictable crack of the bass drum. Because making personal reflections of every horrible mistake into a dark, sludgy drinking jam is something close to talent, The Tunnel could have the capacity to be your new favorite bar band. Especially with Jeff Wagner’s awkward croaks disguised as vocals, which create a sound that can only be good a few drinks in. In track “The Best Catcher,” Wagner’s vocal mockery is reserved enough. The listener is able to get wrapped up in the damp, whiskey-soaked chaos or “Fathomless Deep” a track that creates a dynamic instrumental trip, which embodies a promising glimpse into what could be a favorable direction for the band, an awesome silence of Wagner’s voice. However close they come to sounding like an actual band, instead of Wanger’s failed endeavor of mimicking Nick Cave, we should all raise a glass and drink (because you are gonna need it) to The Tunnel. –Liz Lucero

Vampillia
Alchemic Heart
Important
Street: 03.01
Vampillia = Swans + Philip Glass x This Mortal Coil
Comprising only two tracks but running 50 minutes, this album by a little-known orchestra from Osaka, Japan, along with members of The Boredoms, is not for the ADHD generation. “Sea” features the legendary songstress Jarboe (Swans) breathily intoning over a slow-building swell of orchestral layers mixed by Merzbow that pick up around 11:25, as both orchestra and singer launch into a beautiful lyrical maelstrom. The ocean may be a metaphor for sex, but this is both stormier and prettier than it is sexy. “Land” is crafted from the same source material as “Sea,” but it is quite different: a digital noize reinterpretation, with the same layers creating a beautiful cacophony of the previous track’s lyricism. I once heard an apocryphal story about a Japanese musician attending a Western orchestral performance. After the discordant tune-up, he clapped wildly, to the dismay of the Westerners, who didn’t consider the preliminary noise to be music. Land is that tune-up, set to shine against black velvet earth. –Madelyn Boudreaux

Various Artists
Mortal Kombat: Songs Inspired by the Warriors
Watertower Music
Street: 04.05
Mortal Kombat = Cold Blank + Wolfgang Gartner + Doctor P
Produced by JFK from MSTRKRFT and Death From Above 1979, this album is comprised of 12 original songs based on characters’ themes from Mortal Kombat. The striking thing about this compilation is the diversity of the producers who signed on, but the album is fairly hit or miss. The biggest miss is Skrillex’s track, which sounds just like every other horrible song he’s ever produced. This guy has one gimmick—he glitches the fuck out of every womp—and he beat it to death a while ago. Congorock’s track has the same problem, in that it sounds like every Congorock track I’ve ever heard. However, there are some standout tracks, notably those by TOKiMONSTA (from Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder label), who is making big waves right now, as well as Them Jeans’ track, which is a sweet and original blend of house with some dub elements, and Felix Cartal’s track, which gives an excellent example of his remarkably original brand of progressive electro-house. It’s a fascinating album, and worth picking up for the good parts.
 –Jessie Wood