Thank You!

Soundscapes will be closing permanently on September 30th, 2021.

Open every day between Spetember 22nd-30th

We'd like to thank all of our loyal customers over the years, you have made it all worthwhile! The last 20 years have seen a golden age in access to the world's recorded music history both in physical media and online. We were happy to be a part of sharing our knowledge of some of that great music with you. We hope you enjoyed most of what we sold & recommended to you over the years and hope you will continue to seek out the music that matters.

In the meantime we'll be selling our remaining inventory, including thousands of play copies, many of which are rare and/or out-of-print, never to be seen again. Over the next few weeks the discounts will increase and the price of play copies will decrease. Here are the details:

New CDs, LPs, DVDs, Blu-ray, Books 60% off 15% off

Rare & out-of-print new CDs 60% off 50% off

Rare/Premium/Out-of-print play copies $4.99 $14.99

Other play copies $2.99 $8.99

Magazine back issues $1 $2/each or 10 for $5 $15

Adjusted Hours & Ticket Refunds

We will be resuming our closing sale beginning Friday, June 11. Our hours will be as follows:

Wednesday-Saturday 12pm-7pm
Sunday 11am-6pm

Open every day between September 22nd-30th

We will no longer be providing ticket refunds for tickets purchased from the shop, however, you will be able to obtain refunds directly from the promoters of the shows. Please refer to the top of your ticket to determine the promoter. Here is the contact info for the promoters:

Collective Concerts/Horseshoe Tavern Presents/Lee's Palace Presents: shows@collectiveconcerts.com
Embrace Presents: info@embracepresents.com
MRG Concerts: ticketing@themrggroup.com
Live Nation: infotoronto@livenation.com
Venus Fest: venusfesttoronto@gmail.com

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Thank you for your understanding.

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Last Month's Top Sellers

1. TAME IMPALA - The Slow Rush
2. SARAH HARMER - Are We Gone
3. YOLA - Walk Through Fire
4. DESTROYER - Have We Met
5. DRIVE BY TRUCKERS - Unravelling

Click here for full list.

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Friday
Jun292007

YAALA YAALA RECORDS - Various Releases

pekos%20yoro%20diallo-st.jpg          va-bougouni%20yaalali.jpg          daouda%20dembele-st.jpg

Founded by Jack Carneal, an American who moved to the Mali town of Bougouni in 1999, the new Yaala Yaala label is dedicated to unearthing a very different side to the music of this African nation than the Western world is used to seeing. It makes sense that this label's albums are being released in partnership with U.S. indie stalwart Drag City, because its three introductory releases are to the World Circuit/Nonesuch catalogue (home to Mali's best known international artists) what Drag City, et al are to pop music's major labels. These three albums have no track listings, minimal artwork, and have been recorded on boomboxes simply for the sake of archiving a moment. There are two self-titled albums by Pekos/Yoro Diallo and Daouda Dembele, and a compilation entitled Bougouni Yaalali. Each of these albums is raw and pure, devoid of the sterile touches of a Western producer or studio. Microphones squeal with feedback and distort as the vocalists get excited and the results are field recordings of great impact and excitement. In this light, a debate has been made as to the validity of the work of people like World Circuit producer Nick Gold or Ry Cooder and whether their presence was something of a disservice to the integrity of Malian music, polishing it for Western consumption. That seems a touch elitist and reactionary, as though you can't enjoy both (which of course you can!). One thing is for sure, if the work of Rokia Troare, Oumou Sangare, Salif Keita and their peers has ever felt a little too safe for your liking, these recordings will blow your mind. Even if you are a fan of those artists, these albums provide a superb counterpoint. After a history of Steely Dans, the West may finally be getting its peek at some of Mali's Velvet Undergrounds. Excellent news!

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