What are the origins of Le Disquaire / What is your background in music?

When we opened in 2006, there was no independent record store in Saint-Brieuc anymore. We've grown up with such places (and we had been working for several years in that type of shop) where music may be something more than just a product. We wanted to share our passion and experience.

What does the store do particularly well — any specialty genres or formats?

We sell all kinds of music and all formats (including lots of vinyl), which means having the artists that you don't find anywhere else. That's what make us different and that's why we work with many labels and artists (mainly French for the moment).

What is the musical community like in your area?

We are lucky to have a rich musical community in Western France. There are a lot of events all over the year. Les Transmusicales in Rennes may be the the most important. [For] a few years, many bands in all kinds of styles have contributed to this vitality. You may have heard of Yelle, friends of ours; they will release their second album in March and will start their American tour in Coachella.

Which albums has your store sold the most over the past month?

Agnes Obel: Philharmonics (PIAS, 10/4/10)

Timber Timbre: s/t (Arts & Crafts, 1/13/09)

Sufjan Stevens: The Age of Adz (Asthmatic Kitty, 10/12/10)

Funeral Party: The Golden Age of Knowhere (Sony Music, 1/24/11)

What is the "Showcase" series?

The Showcase series consists of having artists playing live in the store (album-release party or acoustic set before a concert in the evening). Since 2006, we've had over 80 showcases with artists such as Emily Jane White, Yelle, Radio Moscow, Laura Veirs, and almost all the local bands.

Any big future plans for Le Disquaire?

We hope to be able to go on the way [that] we do as long as possible, even if it's hard to be independent (as much in France as in the States, I guess…), and to celebrate our fifth birthday at the end of 2011.

Early last decade, iconic vocalist Mike Patton moved to Italy and did his best to blend with the locals. He picked up Italian, fell in love with Bologna, and, at some point, realized that he needed to add something else to his never-ending list of projects.

That addition turned into Mondo Cane, a full-scale orchestral homage to Italian cantautori (singer/songwriter) tunes of the 1960s and '70s.

Originally planned only for live performances, the covered oldies — roughly two dozen — are now being released from carefully assembled pieces of three separate concert recordings. Mondo Cane is the first of two such installments, and it presents mostly faithful recreations — with certain new flavors and tinges — of powerful pop songs.

Cantautori crooners Gino Paoli, Luigi Tenco, and Fred Bongusto are honored with potent and colorful renditions of "Il Cielo in Una Stanza," "Quello Che Conta" and "Ore D'Amore." Film-scoring guru Ennio Morricone is recognized with one of his pop numbers, the theme for Danger Diabolik, which barely edges out "Il Cielo…" as the most stirring of the disc's first half.

Patton's comprehensive range isn't tested too much, but his vocal intensity is on display in "Urlo Negro," a poppy psych-rock track seemingly about a former slave's grief. "L’Uomo Che Non Sapeva Amare," Nico Fidenco's version of the theme to The Carpetbaggers, soon follows, and Patton delivers one of the album's most beautiful covers.

Fans of Patton's wild exploits may be disappointed if they're expecting something akin to the Fantômas Director's Cut album, but lovers of emotion-packed ballads will embrace this disc of orchestral pop.

Mike Patton: "Il Cielo in una Stanza"
Mike Patton: \"Il Cielo in una Stanza\"

Flying Lotus: Cosmogramma (Warp)

Electronic producer Steven Ellison, known as Flying Lotus, made waves two years ago with his Warp debut full-length, Los Angeles, an atmospheric psych-hop affair that was augmented with white noise, blippy sci-fi scales, and a deep bass underpinning.

Its immersive sound was built around endless samples and a love of texture. That MO holds true for Cosmogramma, Ellison's brilliant new collage, but the endowments of Los Angeles have been surpassed by an ever-burgeoning skill for composition.

Beautiful and wild runs of harp, bass, and classical guitar are present from the start, contrasting but not conflicting with cuts of sharply buzzing guitars, train whistles, and deep-space synths. String swells and chopped vocals slide in and out of the mix, layering atop glitch, dance, and drum-and-bass beats; rubbery dance-floor passages disappear into symphonic swaths.

A guest spot by Thom Yorke will garner some appropriate attention, but make no mistake: Cosmogramma marks Ellison's ascension to being one of the top minds in electronic production.

Flying Lotus: "Computer Face / Pure Being"
Flying Lotus: \"Computer Face / Pure Being\"

The Austerity Program: Backsliders and Apostates Will Burn EP (Hydra Head)

Two guys and a drum machine — The Austerity Program proves that it doesn't take more to power out brawny alt-rock with brainy rhythms.

Though the duo has operated under this moniker for more than a decade, it didn't release its first full-length until Black Madonna in 2007. Everything else since that time has appeared on an EP or compilation, generally titled "Song [insert number here]."

Backsliders and Apostates Will Burn follows the same tried-and-true Austerity formula: distorted, down-tuned bass guitar teams with the drum machine's deep kick hits and rapid-fire triplets, forming a muscular frame for guitarist Justin Foley's high-register riffs, feedback squeals, and Steve Albini-esque vocals.

The band's basic premise hasn't changed, but its skills are being honed to realize its full potential. Backsliders… is another firm step in that direction.

The Austerity Program: "Song 26"
The Austerity Program: \"Song 26\"

Rudi Zygadlo: Great Western Laymen (Planet Mu)

One of Planet Mu's latest signings, Rudi Zygadlo is a young Scottish songwriter who fuses electronic music with pop structures and classical aspirations. Raised by artist parents who helped nurture an early interest in music, Zygadlo has created a brilliant debut album that touches, however lightly, on themes of church and religion.

Great Western Laymen takes the mid-tempo lurch and chunky bass lines of dubstep and marries them to glossy, mutating pop songs. Zygadlo sings on almost every track, and his voice, which he claims is "there more for its instrumental value rather than its poetic value," features prominently as a lead instrument.

The vocals are omnipresent, panning everywhere, usually multitracked, pitch-shifted, timestretched, vocoded, and tweaked beyond intelligibility. They fight with wonky basslines for supremacy in a crowded (but never cluttered) midrange. Though many of the tracks would play well in a club setting, Great Western Laymen also makes for excellent headphone dubstep.

Most dubstep albums don't have half as many hooks, and most pop albums don't have this level of head-nodding funk. Zygadlo set forth to combine what he loved about dubstep and IDM with song structures that borrowed from jazz, pop, and classical, and he's succeeded marvelously.

Rudi Zygadlo: "Manuscripts Don't Burn"
Rudi Zygadlo: \"Manuscripts Don\'t Burn\"

Broken Social Scene: Forgiveness Rock Record (Arts & Crafts)

Somewhere over the past decade, Toronto's Broken Social Scene became a shining example of both indie-rock success and excess.

With its diversity of sound and buoyant energy, 2002 album You Forgot It In People was a slow-building breakthrough, and tracks such as "KC Accidental," "Stars and Sons," "Almost Crimes," and "Pacific Theme" have made countless cameos ever since.

But all the band's creative input, whether from its main songwriting sources or from contributors, has led to greater interest in or commercial viability of side projects, and Forgiveness Rock Record is its first album in nearly five years.

Co-produced by Tortoise’s John McEntire at Soma Studios in Chicago, the album is one of the band's most vocally driven recordings. Album opener "World Sick" sounds right at home in the BSS catalog, but the next track, "Chase Scene," expands its reach with a vintage synth sound evocative of Goblin's gentler moments. The song adds a wafting violin line, wah-pedal guitar chords, and a driving high-hat cadence — recalling, fittingly, a chase sequence from an '80s film.

There are plenty of other highlights over 14 tracks, including "Forced to Love" with its churning electric bass, sparkling electronics, and pizzicato and strings, or "All to All" with its mounting effects and vocal harmonies. Fans will have no reason to be disappointed, and even though they may refer the uninitiated to You Forgot It In People, this is a fine introduction to an acclaimed catalog.

Broken Social Scene: "Chase Scene"
Broken Social Scene: \"Chase Scene\"

Honorable Mentions

Ben Goldberg Quartet: Baal: Book of Angels vol. 15 (Tzadik)

Dimlite: Prismic Tops (Now-Again / Stones Throw)

Jason Ajemian’s Daydream Full Lifestyles: Protest Heaven (482 Music)

Marching Band: Pop Cycle (U&L Records)

Minus the Bear: Omni (Dangerbird)

Ufomammut: Eve (Supernatural Cat)

Like many great concerts, the true highlight of the Broken Social Scene set at Chicago's The Vic on Thursday, October 9 was the closing number. Kevin Drew, hunkered down firmly front and center, elevated the evening's balance of fan favorites and new gems by closing the set with "It's All Gonna Break."

The song, an arduous nine-minute anthem from the collective's second full-length self-titled LP, raised the already enthusiastic spirits of the sold-out crowd. Before beginning the tune, Drew said, "I initially wrote this song about your country. I guess it's all coming true," and indeed, although the joke was humorous, it also highlighted the anxious nerves of the audience members.

Those around me groaned before chuckling to their companions about the near-cataclysmic state of the country coinciding with their great fortune in seeing a band that eagerly established themselves as innovators in the "indie rock" genre upon the release of You Forgot It in People (Arts & Crafts/Paper Bag) in 2002.

Throughout the over two-hour set, the touring lineup produced a concert experience for the eager fan. The upbeat selection seemed hand picked for prime audience interaction. As "Cause=Time" began, it became evident that the audience and the band were equally enthralled.

Although the technical difficulties of The Vic and raucous hum of the audience sometimes made Drew's voice inaudible, what could be heard sounded as crisp as ever. Unfortunately, after attempting to play "Superconnected" twice, technical difficulties ultimately won and ended the song. Thankfully, the night was not completely ruined.

The utterly orgiastic "KC Accidental" and "Fire Eye'd Boy" were executed with zest.

Despite the limitations of a relatively small touring group, many of the band's strongest songs were sung by or in collaboration with Liz Powell from Land of Talk. Powell jumped in and out of many of the songs, giving the songs richer layers then on their original recorded versions.

The frenetic cornucopia of "Shampoo Suicide" read like a melodramatic yet stunning ballad. "7/3 (Shoreline)," originally featuring Feist seemed to be a test for both Powell and the audience, with Powell performing with gusto. The exquisite "Anthems for a Seventeen Year Old Girl," was a clear fan favorite and Powell performed song as if battle cry for the female half of the audience.

Throughout the night, the group gave equal opportunities for the various musicians performing under the Broken Social Scene umbrella to highlight some of their own work with seasoned tunes by Drew being spliced with songs such as the near-sing along "Hit the Wall" by Brendan Canning.

It was apparent that many members of the audience were unfamiliar with the members' solo projects, but the overall family-like atmosphere within the venue coupled with the fervor of the band made the evening a more worthwhile experience.

-Britt Julious

Broken Social Scene:www.brokensocialscene.ca
Arts & Crafts: www.arts-crafts.ca
Paper Bag: www.paperbagrecords.com