{"title":"Mike Krol","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"\/products\/mike-krol-power-chords\"\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePower Chords\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e,\u003cstrong\u003e Mike Krol\u003c\/strong\u003e’s 2019 Merge release, picks up where 2015’s \u003ca href=\"\/products\/mike-krol-turkey\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eTurkey\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e left off. It traces Krol’s journey back to punk rock, harnessing both the guitar technique and the musical redemption referenced in its title. He’s wielding the same influences—Misfits, The Strokes, early Weezer, Ramones—but turning up the gravity and the gain. Indeed, Krol has gone somewhere new; yes, he bludgeoned himself with over-analysis and self-loathing, but along the way he stumbled upon a trove of intricate guitar lines and artfully mutating melodies.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMusic ruined Krol’s life. And then saved it. In chronicling that process, Krol has made his best record—painful, voyeuristic, and angry, but ultimately transcendent and timeless. It is the sound of Krol giving in to a force greater than himself, as though the chords are playing him rather than the other way around.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"mike-krol-turkey","title":"Mike Krol - Turkey","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn bowling’s hallowed alleys, a strike is the minor miracle of all ten pins falling at once. Back-to-back strikes make a double. Do it a third time and you’ve got yourself a turkey.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHistory will decide which sports metaphor to apply to \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/mike-krol\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMike Krol\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e’s first two records, \u003ci\u003eI Hate Jazz\u003c\/i\u003e (2011) and \u003ci\u003eTrust Fund\u003c\/i\u003e (2013). But as needle meets groove on \u003ci\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTurkey\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e—Krol’s first record for Merge—there is no ambiguity. A shiny black ball tumbles past the suburban strip malls of a polyestered Wisconsin and veers precariously close to an East Coast gutter before gathering momentum in a physics-defying sprint for the Pacific. California is where the headpin falls—the right velocity, the perfect geometry, the bowler’s intent beautifully realized in a noisy moment of awesome destruction.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMike Krol got his bike stolen and his heart broken. He bailed on graphic-design-as-career. He kept playing drums and guitars, and he kept writing songs about the stuff he hated and the stuff he loved. Leaving Milwaukee for Los Angeles, he took a few years’ worth of wrong turns. But when he showed up at a studio in Sacramento in March 2014, he had his affairs in order. Plug the vocal mic into a guitar amp. Plug the guitar into an overheating box of vacuum tubes. Put the computer in the closet. Roll the tape.\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"merge records","offers":[{"title":"LP","offer_id":52739197272375,"sku":"MRG539LP","price":21.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":52739197239607,"sku":"MRG539CD","price":14.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Download","offer_id":52739197206839,"sku":"MRG539digital","price":7.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0966\/3935\/3143\/files\/b414c9b29701148579c9158199c3934f88936014_91938a9f9589ac61e651618f86202b10e3dbf7fa_medium_jpg.jpg?v=1785381054"},{"product_id":"mike-krol-an-ambulance-b-w-never-know","title":"Mike Krol - \"An Ambulance\" b\/w \"Never Know\"","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"\/collections\/mike-krol\"\u003eMike Krol\u003c\/a\u003e returns to the fold in fine form with this two-song 7-inch! In his own words:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eMusic listeners of the world, I present to you “An Ambulance”: a rallying cry for anyone who has suffered from being their own worst critic, and how finding someone else in the world who listens and understands can help change your perception of yourself. The song itself is longer and a bit more technical guitar-wise than my earlier material, which I’m especially excited about since it’s indicative of what you can expect from me in the very near future. The B-side, “Never Know,” was written, performed, recorded, and mixed by me in three days. While “An Ambulance” was more carefully crafted over several months, “Never Know” was a direct retaliation to that, a self-issued challenge to complete a song as quickly as possible. I like it when B-sides have a casual immediacy to them, and I think this track accomplishes that.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eSo tell your friends—Mike Krol is back, and the best is yet to come!\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"merge records","offers":[{"title":"Download","offer_id":52739218964791,"sku":"MRG669digital","price":1.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0966\/3935\/3143\/files\/ef47a7b7d473f6bd11f6d0732c2486af14c7870c_cf2911b980fab646548a980d61895e6f8cb8d353_medium_jpg_2371530d-986f-439e-8d44-8baa7aa2b20e.jpg?v=1789600422"},{"product_id":"mike-krol-power-chords","title":"Mike Krol - Power Chords","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCD:\u003c\/strong\u003e Housed in a 4-panel digipak. Includes full-color poster-style insert with lyrics.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLP:\u003c\/strong\u003e Black vinyl inside a sleeve with printed lyrics, housed in a heavyweight jacket. Includes 24” × 36” foldout poster and digital download.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePeak Vinyl:\u003c\/strong\u003e Pressed on limited-edition clear vinyl. Includes 24” × 36” foldout poster and digital download. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003ePower Chords\u003c\/i\u003e can also be found at your \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.recordstoreday.com\/Stores\"\u003elocal record store\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003ePower Chords\u003c\/i\u003e, Mike Krol’s new Merge release, picks up where 2015’s \u003ca href=\"\/products\/mike-krol-turkey\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eTurkey\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e left off. It traces Krol’s journey back to punk rock, harnessing both the guitar technique and the musical redemption referenced in its title. He’s wielding the same influences—Misfits, The Strokes, early Weezer, Ramones—but turning up the gravity and the gain. Indeed, Krol has gone somewhere new; yes, he bludgeoned himself with over-analysis and self-loathing, but along the way he stumbled upon a trove of intricate guitar lines and artfully mutating melodies.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMusic ruined Krol’s life. And then saved it. In chronicling that process, Krol has made his best record—painful, voyeuristic, and angry, but ultimately transcendent and timeless. It is the sound of Krol giving in to a force greater than himself, as though the chords are playing him rather than the other way around.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"merge records","offers":[{"title":"LP","offer_id":52739220963639,"sku":"MRG609LP","price":21.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":52739220996407,"sku":"MRG609CD","price":14.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Download","offer_id":52739221061943,"sku":"MRG609digital","price":7.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0966\/3935\/3143\/files\/bd91b6d9855129544411af4f0289fcf53fef3fa3_77ede7e806eab9c31862d15c527c7f9afba54c26_medium_jpg_7dbfbdf4-31d7-4ad5-b0ab-0cdda2d56f32.jpg?v=1789600430"},{"product_id":"mike-krol-mike-krol-is-never-dead-the-first-two-records","title":"Mike Krol - Mike Krol Is Never Dead: The First Two Records","description":"\u003cp\u003eOn \u003ci\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMike Krol Is Never Dead: The First Two Records\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e, we catch up—with the past, that is. Indeed, \u003ca href=\"\/products\/mike-krol-turkey\"\u003e\u003ci\u003eTurkey\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e, released in 2015, is Chapter 3 of the Krol saga; here are its long-lost predecessors. Self-released in 2011, \u003ci\u003eI Hate Jazz\u003c\/i\u003e was the opening salvo of World War Krol. Only 500 copies were pressed; they were given away to anyone who showed interest (and many who showed none whatsoever). Including Krol classics like “Fifteen Minutes” and “Like a Star,” the record had long been unavailable. \u003ci\u003eTrust Fund\u003c\/i\u003e followed in 2013; its 500 copies sold out on the ensuing tour, fueling a mini-mania that would elevate it to cult status.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA few words from Mike on the extra tracks, an illuminating selection of digital outtakes, demos, and b-sides:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eEverything on here was recorded and mixed by myself on either a 4-track cassette recorder or the free version of GarageBand that comes on an Apple computer. I never learned how to record properly, never took a single guitar lesson, never thought in my #wildestdreams that these songs would be heard by anyone other than my close friends (and definitely not released on \u003cu\u003ethe\u003c\/u\u003e record label I so deeply admired during my formative years recording them). But that never stopped me from having fun and trying to express myself through a personal creative process. So with that, I hope you guys enjoy them.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"merge records","offers":[{"title":"CD Box Set","offer_id":52740186833207,"sku":"MRG589CD","price":19.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"2-LP (Black)","offer_id":52996576674103,"sku":"MRG589LP","price":32.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Download","offer_id":52740186767671,"sku":"MRG589digital","price":11.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0966\/3935\/3143\/files\/a5188939f97f40279523b2479207e719853bd4cb_1b03b9a54b8db0c2388ec1974a7ca22957c187bc_medium_jpg.jpg?v=1789600377"}],"url":"https:\/\/mergerecords.com\/collections\/mike-krol.oembed","provider":"Merge Records","version":"1.0","type":"link"}