Ken Avery is the proprietor of MOTORCYCLE FACE RECORDS. He lives in Lower Allston.

His TOP TEN reissues:

Arthur Russell – World of Echo:
Record store day vinyl re-reissue, originally released in 1987, featuring Russell’s hushed vocals drifting over barely-there cello scrapings and other looped and rubbery ephemera.

Fred McDowell – The Alan Lomax Recordings:
Vinyl release (on the estimable Mississippi Records) of previously released field recordings from 1959. The fidelity of these remastered tracks is pretty remarkable.

Beach Boys – The Smile Sessions:
Long, long awaited official release of Brian Wilson’s follow-up to Pet Sounds. Includes the alarmingly beautiful “Surf’s up,” a song that never seems to last as long as it should.

Sightings – Michigan Haters:
Just fucking brutal.

Scrotum Poles – Revelation:
Dulc-I-tone reissue of this Scottish band’s 7” EP from 1980. “Pick the Cat’s Eyes Out” is catchy as hell.

http://www.myspace.com/scrotumpoles/music/songs/pick-the-cat-s-eyes-out-22812270

Juv – Juv: Dense, heavy, and consistently compelling.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COmkl0Yr72U

Chrisma – Hibernation/Chinese Laundry:
Weird, dark cabaret tunes abutting buzzy, propulsive synth tracks from the late 70s. Both of these records are pretty amazing. Reissued by Medical Records LLC.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwpUEda7KTw

Tom Ze – Brazil Classic 4:
The best of Tom Ze: Reissue of Luka Bops 1990 compilation of some the Ze’s earlier albums. Excellent introduction to Ze’s always inventive take on Tropicalia.

Sympathy Nervous – Automaticism:
Collection of released and unreleased tracks by this Japanese minimal wave outfit affiliated with the Vanity label. This record, released by Minimal Wave, doubles a benefit album for Yosihumi Niinuma whose life’s work was wiped out by the March 2011 Tsunami.

Bruce Gilbert – This Way to the Shivering man:
2xLP reissue combining Bruce Gilbert’s (formerly of Wire) “This Way” (1984) and “The Shivering Man” (1987).