Labor Day Sale August 30 2024
For this holiday weekend, we have 20% off our catalogue. (Sorry, discount does not apply to pre-order items.)
Over 100 titles to choose from including Dicks' Kill From The Heart, Contortions' Buy, Alice Coltrane's Eternity, Sun Ra Arkestra Featuring Pharoah Sanders & Black Harold and John Frusciante's solo debut Niandra LaDes.
Simply enter promo code LaborDay2024 during check-out. Offer ends Monday September 2nd at midnight.
Just Announced: Guided By Voices' Tonics And Twisted Chasers May 01 2024
We're thrilled to add another of our all-time favorite bands, Guided By Voices, to the Superior Viaduct roster.
Originally released in 1996 as a limited fan-club pressing, Tonics And Twisted Chasers has always existed as an anomaly in Robert Pollard's vast discography. In many ways, the album serves as the tail of a creative comet that in just two years included the "classic line-up" trilogy of Bee Thousand, Alien Lanes, Under the Bushes, Under the Stars and countless singles that crammed endless hooks in their grooves.
This nineteen-song collaboration with guitarist Tobin Sprout could be interpreted as spontaneous sketches, late-night improvisations, ideas that blossomed later in the timeline, but as with anything in Pollard's orbit, its intention is clear when heard as a cohesive whole. The Pollard tenet that "less is more" is on full display here.
Using a primitive drum machine, Radio Shack effects, minimal instrumentation and the DIY spirit that guided them in the first place, Pollard and Sprout construct a masterpiece of pop that could only come from a basement in north Dayton, Ohio. Anyone in that hallowed era who happened upon it, kept it as a secret.
Available in limited edition color vinyl or standard black.
Black Friday Sale November 24 2023
For this Black Friday weekend, we have 20% off our entire catalogue. (Sorry, discount does not apply to pre-orders.)
Lots of great titles recently back in stock such as Spacemen 3's Playing With Fire, Devo's Hardcore Volume 2, Suicide's First Rehearsal Tapes and more. Simply enter promo code BlackFriday2023 during check-out.
Offer ends Monday November 27th at midnight, Pacific Time (while supplies last).
Andrei Tarkovsky's 90th Birthday March 30 2022
Andrei Tarkovsky, master of Soviet cinema, turned to composer Eduard Artemiev to score The Mirror (1975) and Stalker (1979) – two lyrical films that rival Solaris in their spellbinding beauty and breathtaking range. Artemiev's dense, slow-moving mood pieces are a perfect match – often resonating beyond the films' haunting settings.
We were honored to first release the soundtrack to The Mirror / Stalker a few years ago, and now we are excited to announce a limited edition of 200 copies on color vinyl to celebrate Tarkovsky's 90th birthday.
Dadawah and The Silvertones March 22 2022
We're excited to add two more classics in our series focusing on Trojan's essential '60s / '70s catalogue.
Ras Michael's lone release under the Dadawah moniker, 1974's Peace And Love - Wadadasow, is his magnum opus. Produced by Lloyd Charmers, the album features slinky basslines, hypnotic keyboards, dubbed-out studio trickery and, of course, the propulsive drumming and rhythmic chanting characteristic of Nyahbinghi.
Originally released in 1973, Silver Bullets is The Silvertones' soulful debut. Recorded at Lee "Scratch" Perry's legendary Black Ark studio with vocal tracks captured at King Tubby's, the LP features some of Kingston's biggest sessions players (Hux Brown, Bertram "Ranchie" McLean, Ansel "Pinkie" Collins and more.)
Pre-orders are now shipping. Both titles in stores on April 1st.
Prima Materia's La Coda Della Tigre March 16 2022
Prima Materia was a vocal improvisation ensemble, founded by Roberto Laneri in 1973. Composed entirely of vocalists with no academic training, the group developed various techniques – revolving mostly around the use of overtones – that would embody their unique sound. No instruments nor electronic manipulations were ever employed within the group's physiognomy, which was realized purely through the human voice.
La Coda Della Tigre, the group's sole album, was recorded in 1977 by Alvin Curran and released on Ananda, an artist-run label founded by Laneri, Curran and Giacinto Scelsi. Prima Materia combine voices to create a singular, beautiful drone that is (as the group's name suggests) both impossible to define and fundamentally simple.
This first-time standalone reissue is recommended for fans of La Monte Young, Terry Riley and Disques Ocora.
The Fall's A Part Of America Therein March 02 2022
In the summer of 1981, The Fall embarked on their second American tour, criss-crossing the States over a two-month period. A Part Of America Therein, 1981 would document this fabled journey with crucial performances that show the band evolve from noisemaking lout cultists into true post-punk legends.
"From the riot-torn streets of Manchester, England to the scenic sewers of Chicago ..." as the album opens unforgettably with a nameless promoter introducing The Fall, who proceed to tear into a hypnotic take on "The N.W.R.A." The LP highlights Mark E. Smith's incomparable bite, heard most notably on the adlibbed vitriol of "Totally Wired," where not even the costumed punks were safe from a proper dressing down.
Just Announced: LAFMS album reissues February 16 2022
For five years, our Etats-Unis sub-label has been dedicated to strange and beautiful music that manages to remain between genres. No other scene is more right for this series than Los Angeles Free Music Society.
We're excited to announce reissues from LAFMS' pioneering catalogue: I.D. Art #2, Le Forte Four / Doo-Dooettes' Live At The Brand, Blorp Esette Volume One and Smegma's Glamour Girl 1941. Landmark albums and compilations that were not included in their recent vinyl box sets as well as a rare 1979 sound-art comp, aptly named Sound.
Each album pressed in a limited edition of 500 numbered copies.
Buy individual titles right here or get them all in our special-priced vinyl bundle.
Photo by Fredrik Nilsen
Harold Budd's The Pavilion Of Dreams January 27 2022
In the early '70s, Harold Budd started an extended cycle of works that would comprise his second album. For the composer, this was a signpost for a new direction in thinking about music: "The Pavilion Of Dreams erased my past. I consider that to be the birth of myself as a serious artist. It was like my Magna Carta."
The Pavilion Of Dreams – produced by Brian Eno and released on his Obscure imprint in 1978 – reveals a lightness of touch that draws the listener in. Featuring saxophonist Marion Brown and multi-instrumentalists Gavin Bryars and Michael Nyman, the album is a master class in exquisite timbre and shimmering texture.
Out Now: The Fall's Slates LP and The Ex's Dignity Of Labour November 19 2021
We just got in The Fall's Slates (expanded LP edition) and The Ex's Dignity Of Labour.
For the uninitiated, Slates is peak era Fall (originally released on Rough Trade in 1981) and features the dual guitar of Marc Riley and Craig Scanlon, the Hanley Bros. rhythm section, and the incomparable Mark E. Smith.
Dignity Of Labour is the third album by legendary Dutch group The Ex, originally released as a 7-inch box set and configured here as a single LP. In 1981, the band started squatting Villa Zuid in the village of Wormer and captured a haunting sense of space that is at once cavernous and decaying. (Tumult is coming soon, FYI.)
The Fall's Slates (LP version) October 26 2021
We're thrilled to present The Fall's untouchable Slates as a full-length release. This LP edition compiles the original 10" EP tracks, their March 1981 Peel session and an early '80s studio outtake. On Slates, Mark E. Smith was at the apex of his distinct vocabulary, equally matched by a band at the peak of their powers.
Now Shipping: Suburban Lawns September 30 2021
We're excited to reissue Suburban Lawns' only LP. Originally released in 1981, the album is quintessential Reagan-era new wave/punk: the irony is thick, the pinball rhythms infectious, and no song has quite the same feel as the last. Co-vocalist Su Tissue's deadpan delivery on "Janitor" is simply stunning. C'est très moderne.
Pre-orders are shipping now. In stores everywhere on October 22nd.
Chris Marker's 100th Birthday July 29 2021
French filmmaker, photographer and writer Chris Marker would have turned 100 years old today.
No other artist has had such a lasting impact on us here at Superior Viaduct. While Marker himself was notoriously reclusive, his work remains deeply personal, lyrical, being-in-the-world and forever searching.
We were honored to first release the soundtrack to La Jetée a few years ago, and now we are excited to announce a limited edition of 200 copies on clear vinyl to celebrate Marker's 100th year.
Just Announced: The Ex's Dignity Of Labour and Tumult June 17 2021
We're thrilled to announce more titles in our ongoing reissue series with Holland's The Ex.
Following History Is What's Happening, The Ex released two albums in 1983: Dignity Of Labour (originally a 4x7" box set and configured here as a single LP) and Tumult (produced by The Mekons' Jon Langford). From Bas Masbeck's roaring bass and Sabien Witteman's superb drumming to Terrie Ex's textural guitar and G.W. Sok's agitprop lyrics, these fiercely idiosyncratic sounds skirt the boundaries of punk, avant-garde and beyond.
European fans, you can buy dirert from the band right here!
Just Announced: Suburban Lawns April 09 2021
If your brain has a shortlist of bands that instantly evoke New Wave, Suburban Lawns deserve a slot right next to the likes of Devo, Talking Heads and the B-52's. After putting out two singles on their own Suburban Industrial imprint, the Lawns signed to I.R.S. Records and released their debut LP in 1981. From a West Coast scene dominated by 7-inch singles and EPs, the Suburban Lawns' lone LP remains in a class with precious few.
Photo by Charles Wharton
Spring Catalogue Sale 2021 March 19 2021
Hope everyone is hanging in there. The Screamers release date has been pushed to April 16th, but we'll ship as soon we can. Also, we're going to announce some new releases very soon. Stay tuned for those.
We just repressed a dozen or more titles including Spacemen 3, Jackson C. Frank and Joe McPhee.
For this weekend only, we have 20% off our catalogue. Sorry, discount does not apply to pre-orders.
Simply enter promo code Spring2021 during check-out.
Offer ends Monday March 22nd at midnight, Pacific Time (while supplies last).
Now Shipping: Gavilán Rayna Russom's Secret Passage February 04 2021
Shipping this week, the second solo album from NYC multimedia artist Gavilán Rayna Russom.
Originally self-released on cassette, Secret Passage now sees its first-time vinyl release on our sub-label W.25TH. Recommended for fans of Cosey Fanni Tutti, Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe and GAS.
Limited edition translucent blue vinyl. Also available on black vinyl.
SV Catalogue Bundle 2020 November 30 2020
It's been a crazy year. Hope everyone is hanging in there, staying healthy and safe.
Now is your chance to catch up on our catalogue with this special-priced bundle – including Alice Coltrane, Tony Conrad, Brigitte Fontaine, Ike Yard, The Mekons, Charles Mingus and more.
Offer ends Tuesday December 1st at midnight, Pacific Time (while supplies last).
Just Announced: Screamers November 23 2020
Words cannot express how excited we are to announce the Screamers' first ever official release.
Formed in 1977 by Tomata du Plenty (vocals), Tommy Gear (synthesizers, vocals), David Brown (electric piano) and KK Barrett (drums), the Screamers were deeply linked to Los Angeles' first wave punk scene, yet their music and high-energy performances stood apart – defying classification and evoking intense audience reactions.
As Jon Savage writes in the liner notes, "These five statements of intent transcend Punk and project forward into the future: to the analog synth wave of the late '70s and beyond. Sourced from the original reel-to-reels, they are a revelation compared to the countless copies that have been circulating by multiple generations of tape-traders. Here, for the first time, is the Screamers' initial and legendary manifesto."
Screamers Demo Hollywood 1977 features cover artwork of Gary Panter's iconic logo.
Limited edition translucent red vinyl. Also available on black vinyl.
Just Announced: Gavilán Rayna Russom's Secret Passage November 20 2020
Growing up in deindustrialized Providence, Rhode Island of the 1970s and 1980s provided NYC-based composer and interdisciplinary artist Gavilán Rayna Russom access to derelict subterranean spaces including the mile-long East Side Rail Tunnel. The tunnel's reverberant darkness would produce distinctive sensory effects and host Russom's formative experiences of interpersonal connectedness, liminality, transgender identity, anti-capitalist desire and state repression.
Secret Passage – an absorbing, memoiristic work by Russom, whose synthesis-based practice fuses information and expression into organic wholes – draws on memories of "unsupervised autonomous zones where I tasted the possibilities of a world without surveillance," as she writes in the liner notes. Inspired by "this beautifully neglected place," the music resounds with ghostlike echoes and raw pulsations.
Limited edition translucent blue vinyl. Also available on black vinyl.
Now Shipping: The Ex's First Two Albums November 09 2020
Shipping this week, Disturbing Domestic Peace and History Is What's Happening by legendary Dutch punk band The Ex. We know you waited a long time for these first-time vinyl reissues. You won't be disappointed.
Like their original early '80s release, they are packaged with a bonus 7-inch, inserts, booklets, and poster.
Now Shipping: Flaming Tunes October 30 2020
We're honored to reissue Flaming Tunes' sole album. For those who missed it before, Flaming Tunes is the sublime '80s recording project of Gareth Williams (This Heat) and Mary Currie. It's hard to describe just how beautiful and inspired this music is. As the Welsh proverb goes, beware of the friend who becomes a master.
Now Shipping: Cindy Lee's Model Express October 19 2020
We're excited to release another fine LP by Cindy Lee. Model Express, a compilation of lost hits, alternate versions and B-sides, is recommended for fans of Lesley Gore, Townes Van Zandt and Hans-Joachim Roedelius.
Limited edition gold vinyl. Also available on black vinyl.
Just Announced: Cindy Lee's Model Express September 18 2020
Model Express originally appeared as a self-released edition of 100 gold cassettes. The arch, filmic drama of Cindy Lee's songwriting – realized with keyboards, guitars, aching voice and collaged, lo-fi production – traverses a wide range of emotional and sonic terrain. The red velvet psych-pop of "What Can I Do" gives way to the fluid "Diamond Ring" like radio bursts from space. Model Express finds Flegel at both their most experimental and immediately melodic, and this first-time vinyl release recognizes the collected tracks as a pillar in the Cindy Lee catalogue.
Limited edition gold vinyl. Also available on black vinyl.
Labor Day Sale September 04 2020
Summer is almost over! We have some heavy releases coming out this fall. More announcements soon.
For this Labor Day weekend, we have 20% off catalogue titles, stretching all the way back to our very first release (Black Humor) and includes some of our best selling artists (Scientist, Brigitte Fontaine and more).
Discount does not apply to Record Store Day releases or pre-orders.
Enter promo code LaborDay2020 during check-out.
Offer ends Monday September 7th at midnight, Pacific Time (while supplies last).
Just Announced: The Ex's First Two Albums July 13 2020
Furthering our reissue campaign of Holland's mighty The Ex, we're excited to announce this iconic DIY group's first two albums from the early '80s. Disturbing Domestic Peace reveals the band's anarcho-punk roots, trailing brilliant flashes of color and fierce rhythms, while History Is What's Happening leans more in a post-punk direction: textural guitar shards, motorik drumming, thunderous bass and perfectly agitprop vocals.
If this is your entry point into Ex-music, prepare to have your mind blown. Yeah!
Just Announced: Flaming Tunes July 01 2020
We're excited to finally announce our reissue of Flaming Tunes' sole album. Originally released in 1985 on cassette, the project grew out of a collaboration between childhood friends Gareth Williams and Mary Currie.
Williams is best known as a member of English art-rock band This Heat. After leaving the group in the early '80s, he travelled to India where he studied Kathakali dance – an experience that would profoundly shape the music of Flaming Tunes. The duo created lo-fi pop melodies with oblique rhythms and densely layered natural sounds.
Limited edition clear vinyl with color sleeve (a nod to the original release's hand-colored covers).
Nivhek live in San Francisco May 22 2020
Please join us for a special online concert of Nivhek, the latest project from Oregon-based artist Liz Harris.
Featuring video projection by Takashi Makino, this immersive performance was captured in San Francisco on the first day of Winter 2019 at The Lab, a nonprofit arts organization founded in 1984.
For a more shared experience, we encourage viewing today at 5pm Pacific in whichever timezone you are.
Nivhek's album, After its own death / Walking in a spiral towards the house, will be available from our virtual merch table at a reduced price for this Memorial Day weekend (offer ends Monday May 25th at midnight).
Just Announced: Ike Yard's self-titled LP May 08 2020
Hope everyone is hanging in there. Today we're announcing the first release on our label since the shutdown.
Ike Yard's self-titled LP is one of our all-time favorite records. It is simultaneously ahead of its time and the perfect soundtrack to NYC circa 1982. For those unfamiliar, the entire album is streaming for free right here.
This vinyl reissue is available online only. We have it in stock, shipping from San Francisco.
In the coming weeks, we will announce more online-only titles. Eventually, some will have wider release. Until then, we're doing the best we can under the circumstances to get this music to you. Stay safe.
SV Bandcamp May 01 2020
We hope you're staying safe and sane. Since the shops are closed, we've been catching up on projects, etc.
One thing that we've been meaning to do forever is a Superior Viaduct Bandcamp page. Now seems like a good time to tell you about it, since Bandcamp has decided to waive their fees for today. That's very kind of them.
More rarities will be added in the near future. In the meantime, check out our digital catalogue at the link below.
Spring Catalogue Sale March 27 2020
First of all, from everyone here at Superior Viaduct, we hope that you are healthy and safe during these crazy times. While our shops have been closed the past two weeks, we've continued to ship with a skeleton crew. Thank you everyone who wrote in with words of support. We appreciate your patience, especially right now.
Spring is finally here at least (even if we're all stuck indoors), so we're commencing with clearing some room.
For this weekend only, we have up to 50% off our back catalogue. Basically, everything we've ever put out, except the most recent releases. Now is your chance to fill some conspicuous holes in your collection.
No promo code needed. Prices have been marked down on the site for this limited-time sale.
Offer ends Sunday March 29th at midnight, Pacific Time (while supplies last).
Now Shipping: Jon Gibson and Ellen Fullman February 21 2020
Shipping this week, double LP archival collections from two trailblazers of 20th Century minimalism.
Since the mid-1960s, Jon Gibson has played a key role in the development of American avant-garde music. Songs & Melodies brings together recordings from 1973 to 1977 (mostly previously unreleased), featuring prominent figures in New York's scene including Arthur Russell, Barbara Benary and Julius Eastman.
Ellen Fullman began developing The Long String Instrument in her St. Paul, Minnesota studio in 1980. In The Sea features music from two rare 1987 cassettes as well as a previously unreleased piece from 1988. Droning, organ-like overtones that are as unique in the world of sound as her vision of the instrument itself.
Pre-Spring Cleaning Sale February 07 2020
Getting ready for Spring, we've got a bunch of releases in the coming months. Stay tuned for more news soon.
To make some room, we have 50% off select items from the SV catalogue including titles by Spacemen 3, Faust, The Fall, Suicide, The Mekons, This Kind Of Punishment and more ... for this weekend only!
No promo code needed. Prices have been marked down on the site for this limited-time sale.
Offer ends Sunday February 9th at midnight, Pacific Time (while supplies last).
Just Announced: Cindy Lee's What's Tonight To Eternity December 10 2019
We're excited to announce the latest offering from Cindy Lee on our W.25TH imprint.
What's Tonight To Eternity features ethereal snowdrift pop with sly nods toward classic girl-group motifs. Patrick Flegel's songwriting bends further toward high atmospherics and bracing melodies – a unique space where splendor naturally collides with experimentation.
Closing with the song "Heavy Metal," dedicated to the memory of former Women bandmate Chris Reimer, the album continues the bold and rewarding path on which Cindy Lee has embarked.
Cyber Monday 2019 December 02 2019
For one day only! We have 20% off all Superior Viaduct releases – a perfect time to catch up on the catalogue.
Use discount code CyberMonday2019 during check-out. (Sorry, offer does not apply to pre-order items.)
Offer ends December 2nd at midnight, Pacific.
Just Announced: Terry Fox's Linkage November 01 2019
Terry Fox was a first generation Bay Area conceptual artist. Beginning in the 1970s, he worked extensively with sound, especially the use of piano wires detached from their native instrument and anchored between opposing walls of the performance space.
Linkage, Fox's first album, was originally released in 1982. Pulsating drones dissolve into rhythmic patterns that sound almost synthetic in origin. As noted in the LP pamphlet (reproduced for this edition), all these sounds were strictly acoustic; the only electronics involved was the recording equipment.
This first-time reissue is limited to 750 numbered copies.
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