“Watch Footloose with the biggest bottle of vodka in the world…” Eleanor Friedberger is best known for her work in The Fiery Furnaces. Last Summer ($14) is her solo album, and we’re playing it in our top-secret headquarters right this very minute, and we like it a lot. Supposedly it was released in July of last year, but this is the first we’ve heard of it. I guess we haven’t been reading Pitchfork enough?
Chances are, the (slightly) nerdy girl in your life is a Leonard Cohen fan. And his new album, “Old Ideas,” will be released on January 31st. You could pre-order her the the CD ($10), or you could spring for the Vinyl + Lithograph Collector’s Package ($64), featuring a 12″ x 12″ lithograph numbered and limited to 5,500.
Vinyl. As a medium it has been superseded by the 8-track, cassette tapes, compact discs, mini discs, MP3s and who-knows-what-else. Yet she still craves it: the physical object of a vinyl pressing, the smell of it, the liner notes, the warm tones, the act of selecting an album and setting the needle… Try the affordable-but-classy Crosley CR40 Mini Turntable ($90) or hit up your local record shop/audiophile friend for a recommendation.
