Record Reviews: It Hugs Back, Micachu & the Shapes, Red Red Meat

This week's Detour New Music Guide is up and finally up to it’s full 12 album glory. Like most Tuesdays I wrote three of the 12 reviews. The first one being It Hugs Back, a new 4AD band that clearly loves all the same old 4AD bands that I do. Maybe that’s not a good reason to like something, but it works just fine for me. The second is Micachu and the Shapes – a record that all those lap top pop lovin’ blog folk are sure to eat up. The third is Sub Pop’s deluxe reissue of Red Red Meat’s Bunny Gets Paid. As somebody who has very fond memories of working at an indie record store and shopping at countless others, I do indeed still love the physical product – be it vinyl or CD. So I guess that’s why I love the idea of breathing new life into classic records (and expanding the notion of what qualifies as "classic") the way a good reissue does – it gives people the chance to discover something they may have missed the first time around, or to replace their crappy sounding, well worn CD copy with a better sounding (and looking) upgrade. Bunny Gets Paid does exactly that, and Sub Pop’s decision to reissue that particular record says they totally get it. Because frankly, I can’t get enough of 90's indie rock lately, and by and large, what I own is on CD and sounds like shit. I’m just saying it is a good way to get me to part with my money for music – by making old stuff new, interesting and available again. Keep it up Sub Pop.