February 17th proved to be a generous day in the world of hard-copy music. Most notably for locals, Tuesday saw Drag City’s release of Death‘s “…For The Whole World To See“. For those not in the know, Death were a fantastic proto-punk band from Detroit in the mid 70′s. They only ever released a single in their day. These guys were ahead of their time, and a growing interest in their music has culminated with the reissue of their single and an un-released album, all recorded in 1975. It’s fantastic. If you’re not aware of their local significance, pay more attention.

More surpisingly, I found myself enjoying the new Beirut double ep, which also came out on Tuesday. The initial Beirut euphoria that accompanied their prior releases passed me by. Despite my ambivilance, I quite enjoy “March of the Zapotec“. It is comprised of an ep that sounds typically Beirutian and another ep with a heavily pronounced electronic element. If you’re like me, newly embraced electronic elements don’t set your anticipation alight. Fear not, it works.

Of course, how could a new release day be truly notable without a contribution from everyone’s favorite middle-aged, crooning icon of 80′s brit-pop? Morrissey‘s “Year of Refusal” dropped this week and it i’s a gem! Morrissey is now a three-album hot-streak. Who would have thought this guy would pull himself out of his late 90′s gutter and emerge as one of the most cherished elder-statesmen of whiner-rock?

Also, Street Fighter IV came out this week and that rules too.

Ciao.