The name Sun Ra and the term “free jazz” can conjure up all manner of strange musical imagery, especially amongst those unfamiliar with his music. Alternate identifiers such as “free improvisation” and the more umbrella-like “modern jazz” might ease those anxieties, but the reality is, a lot of Ra’s spirited music is not as random and difficult as some might think. Read Mark Smotroff’s Short Cuts combo review that focuses on five new and recent 180g Sun Ra-centric vinyl releases that we hope will intrigue listeners to explore this fascinating artist’s music with fresh ears and open minds. . .
Here’s an instance where the concept of “trickle down” is a positive thing across the board. Today, February 13, 2025, noted British manufacturer Origin Live announces their new MkV tonearm range, which promises “significant trickle-down tech” from their high-end tonearm designs. Read on to see just what tech is being added to the MkV arm range, and why. . .
Make way for the mighty Clipper! In this case, we’re referring to JICO’s Clipper moving magnet (MM) cartridge, which is purported to be the world’s first dual-fitting model, and it features a tapered S-cantilever that is said to be inspired by the designs of Audio Empire and Swing record needles. Read on to see all the specs and features of the noted Japanese cartridge and vinyl accessory brand’s new Clipper MM cart. . .
In an official press statement, Musical Surroundings has just announced that Chris Thompson has joined the company as their Service and Product Manager. Read on to learn more about Chris’ background, and his new duties with the company. . .
If it’s post-Super Bowl Monday, then it must be time for a good cleaning. (Work with me here.) Regardless of how you watched (or avoided!) the spectacle that was Super Bowl LIX, it’s always a good idea to begin with a clean slate the day afterward — especially if you choose to spin some cherished LPs, old and/or new, to shake off that final-game grit and get the post-NFL season underway (as we’re doing right now, in fact). To that end, we turn our eye to the Degritter Mark II ultrasonic record cleaning machine to help with our prospective cleaning. Read on to see all the cool features and specs of the Mark II RCM. . .
Impex Records’ new 1STEP 180g 45rpm 2LP edition of 1950’s Sing and Dance With Frank Sinatra has been 74(ish) years in the making — and it was well worth the wait. Read Shanon McKellar’s in-depth review to see just how the Impex team brought new life to Sing and Dance. . .
If I could wave my magic wand, I’d set every unofficially released Rush track free — oh wait, it looks like the band’s parent labels read my mind (well, mostly). To that end, we’ve been informed that, on March 21, 2025, UMe/Mercury and Anthem Records collectively plan on celebrating the iconic Canadian trio’s half-century milestone marker with Rush 50 — a.k.a. R50 — a wide-ranging 50-track anthology that will be available as a 180g 7LP/4CD Super Deluxe Edition and 180g 7LP Deluxe Edition (among other configurations), and it will include a number of rare and unreleased Holy Grail tracks to boot. Read on to see all that R50 entails, and how to get any/all versions of it. . .
When I say footfalls, you say. . .? Yeah, we can’t post that kind of response here — but anyway, how many times have incessant footfalls and other maddening, gear-internal, vibration-incurring incidents interrupted a few too many listening sessions of our favorite LPs? One way to combat those aural irritations is by deploying anti-vibration footers, and noted Polish manufacturer XACT have just introduced their oh-so-perfectly named Immotus series to help with exactly that issue. Read on to see all the features and specs for the XACT Immotus CRX and CL footers. . .
At High End Munich 2024, we were immediately enamored with Korf’s TA-SF9R 9-inch tonearm, so we just had to review it as soon as we could get one in hand — along with its companion HS-A02 ceramic headshell in tow. Read Ken Micallef’s review of the TA-SF9R arm to see if it performs on par with, or even surpasses, a classic, comparable Jelco arm. . .
The 67th Grammy Awards — sorry, I meant the all-caps GRAMMY Awards — were handed out in Los Angeles last night, February 2, 2025, and we applaud the wide range of actual, great-sounding winning recordings, as evidenced by what we’ve heard of their vinyl incarnations. Over the past year(ish), we’ve indeed reviewed some of those key, Grammy-winning LPs and songs here on AP, so if you’re keen on finding out if they make the grade on vinyl and are worthy of your hard-earned dollars and/or valuable listening time, then read on. . .