Pick Your Poison: Wednesday 10-22-14

Over the course of these last eight years, something has been missing from the musical landscape. That specific something is Sleater-Kinney, who broke up in 2006 after 12 years of playing together as a band. Corin Tucker went on to release two solo albums. Carrie Brownstein gained notoriety thanks to her team-up with Fred Armisen for Portlandia. And Janet Weiss played drums with Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, among other bands. Back in 2011, Brownstein and Weiss also teamed up with Mary Timony to form Wild Flag. They released one pretty strong album, and then made the decision at the end of last year to break up. shortly after I heard about Wild Flag’s breakup, I read an interview with Brownstein where she implied that playing in a band and playing live shows took a serious mental toll on her over the years, to the point where she wasn’t sure she ever wanted to return to that medium. Given that she’s an incredible guitarist and all-around musician, hearing that made me sad, and got me worried that Sleater-Kinney would probably never reunite. Thankfully I was wrong, and not only are Sleater-Kinney back together, but they’ve got a new album called No Cities to Love that will be out on January 20th. You can stream the first single “Bury Our Friends” right now, or even download it for free if you’re willing to give up your email address. But wait! There’s more! Not only are they reuniting and not only are they putting out a new album, but they’ll also be heading out on tour. Check their official website for details on that. I saw Sleater-Kinney perform live once back in 2005, and honestly it was one of the most exciting and memorable concerts I’ve attended in the last 10 years. They’re a force to be reckoned with, and the world is a much better place with these three musicians working together. Now then, let’s get to the mid-week edition of Pick Your Poison. Some good tracks in this set from Eight Fifty Eight, Elisa Luu, Kinetics, Mosaics, Pylo and VLMA. In the Soundcloud after the jump, stream songs from Andrew Bird & Nora O’Connor (covering Robbie Fulks), Dan Bodan, Dutch Uncles, LUH., Son Lux and more.