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I’ve had the MP3s for Home, the forthcoming third LP from Durham's Midtown Dickens, for just more than an hour, and that is nowhere near enough time to digest any record. But after only one listen, this much is evident: Home is a great step forward for the band. The album drops Feb. 28 via Chapel Hill’s Trekky Records, in the label's signature CD+LP+MP3 format.

The duo of Catherine Edgerton and Kym Register, which expanded to a quintet in the lead-up to 2010's Lanterns, now numbers four; multi-instrumentalists Will Hackney (who co-owns Trekky) and Jonathan Henderson contributed in many facets of the record’s creative process. The twee essence of the band’s early work has been steadily subsiding for a while now, and that transition continues on Home. There’s still a certain cuteness to Edgerton and Register’s wordplay, but here they’ve wrapped their songs in mature folk-rock arrangements—at times spare, at times lush, almost always smart.
Scott Solter (The Mountain Goats, Spoon, St. Vincent) produced the record, and his well-trained hand shows through in a mix of traditional Appalachian sounds and grand psychedelic accouterments. For a taste, see the video below, which comes scored by an absorbing instrumental swell that uses mostly acoustic instrumentation to reach a state of ruminative bliss; Home is filled with such transformative moments, making it an early reason to get excited for Triangle music in 2012.

Tracklist:
1. Home All Ways
2. Elephant
3. No More Reason (To Pine)
4. Only Brother
5. Apple Tree
6. Resting
7. Crocodile Mile
8. Walk, Don't You Run
9. Volcanoes (Covered In Snow)
10. Cross My Heart
11. This Is My Home

Midtown Dickens | Home from Trekky Records on Vimeo.

Southern Culture’s new Halloween-themed release, Zombified, is a look back as well as forward. That’s because eight tracks are remastered versions of a SCOTS 1998 Australian tour EP, Zombified, joined by five new songs. Befitting the theme, SCOTS exchange their usual fascination with redneck living for a horror movie set dressed in vampires, witches, zombies, undertakers and even a “Swamp Thing.” The EP dates to keyboardist Chris Bess’ time in the band, and the presence of his Hammond organ is a striking reminder of those old days. Since becoming a trio prior to 2004’s Mojo Box, they’ve (necessarily) pursued a more rock-oriented sound.

The keyboard’s effect is subtle—the low, tinkling piano rag in the corners of “She’s My Witch,” the haunting organ peals of the girl group goth-torch “Torture”—but it’s quite the welcome mood-setter. The latter is one of the disc’s highlights, showcasing bassist Mary Huff’s beautiful breathy alto. The slow-burn psychobilly of “Undertaker” is another gem; Miller’s reverb-laden surf/rockabilly guitar work shines particularly brightly here, thanks to some great snaking bluesy leads. Indeed, his playing throughout the entire album is stunning. Miller’s finest moment comes during the instrumental cover of Credence Clearwater Revival’s “Sinister Purpose.” His compact slashes of guitar distortion counterpoint Bess’ soul-soaked keyboards driving each other through the songs’ greasy grooves.

The new tracks match the tone and theme of the original EP, but they aren’t especially fetching. The performances are sharp, but the songs are lacking. Only the instrumental “The Creeper” really stands out. Much of SCOTS’ music’s been unjustly marginalized for the alleged gimmickry of its trailer-park satire, but this release truly is a novelty, suited mainly for its holiday conceit. But if not on par with their best, fans will still appreciate the terrific playing and smirking good humor.

Southern Culture on the Skids plays Motorco Music Hall tonight, Friday, Oct. 28. Their Halloween Hullaballoo features The Straight 8s, The Tremors, The Wiley Fosters and Ormon Grimsby's 3D movie. The 9 p.m. show costs $13—$15.

“Revolution of the Mind,” the new song from influential and underrated indie rock progenitors the dB's, does not sound like the work of a band that hasn't released new music since 1994. The tune, the band's first since the “classic” line-up began playing together again in 2005, is a burst of pop-rock energy with punk overtones and a rebellious message. Click here to download the MP3.

A leftover from the sessions for Falling Off the Sky, the band's forthcoming 2012 reunion album, the Peter Holsapple-fronted track rides a guitar lick that mimics a European police siren. It ricochets off of rock-solid bass and a backdrop chug of drums and rhythm guitar. Holsapple challenges modern notions of security, lashing out at his fellow 40-somethings for losing the revolutionary vigor of their youth: “Buying a Chevrolet is not a revolutionary act,” he taunts. An all-star effort by both local and national standards, the song features supplementary guitar work from Yo La Tango's Ira Kaplan and background vocals from The Old Ceremony's Django Haskins.

Feeding off the times, the band released the song in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street movement. One of the song’s two music videos is directly tied to the spirit of the protest. Directed by Raleigh's Mike Allen, the clip splices footage of the occupation with other defiant acts, both fictional and historical, and a curiously placed black-and-white cartoon.

“The OWS movement, and similar movements throughout the country and the world, implies to me that, when something is wrong, you can't sit around wringing your hands and hoping for someone to activate change,” Holsapple says. “You have to take the matter into your own hands and make it happen yourself. Hopefully, as with OWS, you will find like-minded individuals who can add to your number, and with that burgeoning number you can feel a certain amount of strength that what you are doing is valid and right and important.”

Future Islands and Lonnie Walker will release a limited-edition 7" next Tuesday via Baltimore's Friend Records. We've got the Lonnie Walker track right here, for your downloading pleasure.

Christina Aguilera’s stunning 2007 Grammy Award show performance of James Brown’s “It’s A Man’s World” reinterpreted the Godfather of Soul’s declaration and turned it into a womanly rebuke. Few could have done it better. 9th Wonder’s female rap threat, Rapsody, who's signed to his It's a Wonderful World/Jamla group manages to cut her own improved, reinterpretation of the epic James Brown tune and does so without the B-girl pageantry that you might expect given her spot as the leading lady of her group, Kooley High.

Impatiently, we’ve been waiting for her and 9th to expose her new material. This track, “Man’s World,” from her upcoming Prelude to the Return of the B-Girl mixtape, is a temporary but burly fix. For now, we can all ignore the antagonisms that exist between the few female rappers and the largely dominated male hip-hop industry, which Rapdiddy touches on with the line “It ain’t ‘bout Big or J/ it’s ‘bout Lyte and Lauryn”. Just notice how she trounces all over what sounds like producer AMp's best imitation of 9th Wonder's famed Jay-Z “Threats” beat and blurs those gender lines like a pro, even if she claims to be “rookie of the year like I just started practice."

For those still trying to make sense of Little Brother’s announcement that Leftback will be the duo’s final LP, the Khrysis-produced lead single “Curtain Call”—released this week via, err, MySpace and available for download here—should debrief you, if not relieve you. The exit doesn't seem to rattle Phonte and Pooh here, both of whom sound satisfied with the precedent they set for newer rap acts like J. Cole, Wale, Pac Div and Jay Electronica, to name a few. “You mad wit’ me/ tough tittie/ get a training bra," spouts Phonte, foreseeing the disappointment that many of us going to be harboring when we wake up the day after Leftback’s release and realize that there are no more Little Brother albums. Much like LB’s career, “Curtain Call” is an elegant, but short showcase of the the husky fellas’ honest rap offerings, delivered on top of one of Khrysis’ gentler concoctions—a perfect fit for a denouement as heartfelt and funky as this one.