CORPUS CHRISTI — Electronic artist Pretty Lights has gone two years without a new studio release (although he has put out a pair of remix albums during that time). But for a guy (Derek Vincent Smith) who released three full-length CDs between 2006 and 2009 and then three EPs in 2010, this has been a considerable gap.

But once one learns a bit about the new CD that's nearly finished, it's easy to see why it's taken Smith two years to make his latest album.

For one thing, rather than recording digitally straight to computer that's common these days, he went old school — to the point of pressing the parts recorded to tape onto vinyl. He then took the tracks from vinyl and incorporated those tracks into the finished songs.

Another time consuming part of the project? Recording the music itself from scratch instead of sampling from other tracks and making beats and other musical parts on a computer.

"It was so cool getting to work with over 60 different musicians and singers, actually having to communicate with them and communicate my ideas across," Smith said. "That's what made it so different was it's like every sound that is on the record also was a person that I was working with … It's a project that's very unique. It's never quite been done like this before."

Quick Hits

Toby Keith will be back with a new CD, "Hope On The Rocks," on Nov. 13.

Papa Roach has dropped off the Uproar Festival tour. Singer Jacoby Shaddix needs surgery to remove a nodule on his left vocal cord.

Singer/songwriter Mark Mallman is experimenting again with the concept of creating the nonstop song. From Sept. 15-22, he will travel coast-to-coast in a van wired to webcast proceedings as he performs nonstop for 150-plus hours. With special technology, Mallman will be wired while he sleeps to continue creating music while he's off in dreamland. At various stops in major cities, musicians will be invited to join in the jam with Mallman. If all this sounds a bit outlandish, think again. In 2010, Mallman (with 110 guest musicians joining in) performed a 78-hour song. Oh yes, Mallman has a new CD, "Double Silhouette," set for release on Oct. 9. One assumes he'll be rested up by then to promote that new album.

The long-running punk band the Adicts will release its 10th album, "All The Young Droogs," on Tuesday.

Larry Graham and Graham Central Station will release its first album in more than a decade, "Raise Up," on Sept. 25.

Mediski Martin & Wood will release "Free Magic," a live disc documenting the trio's 2007 acoustic tour, on Sept. 25. The group has shows set for Oct. 3-14.

Gary Moore will release a DVD and CD of a 2007 concert in which he played a set of Jimi Hendrix songs. The release, "Blues For Jimi," which features appearances from Hendrix band members Mitch Mitchell and Billy Cox on three songs, will be released on Sept. 25.

"Concerto For Group And Orchestra," the rock-and-orchestra piece written by the late Deep Purple keyboardist Jon Lord, will be released on Sept. 25. Lord finished the final mixes shortly before his death in July from pancreatic cancer.

Dragonette will release its third studio CD, "Bodyparts," on Sept. 25. The band has shows set for Sept. 11-28.

Rafiq Bhatia will release an EP, "Strata," on Sept. 25, followed on Oct. 23 by a full-length CD, "Yes It Will."

The band Rosco Bandana will release its debut CD, "Time To Begin," on Sept. 25. The band has shows set for Sept. 20-Nov. 4.

Miggs will release its fifth CD, "15th & Hope," on Sept. 25. The CD was produced by Phil Ramone (whose credits include Paul Simon, Billy Joel and Frank Sinatra among others).

Other acts releasing CDs on Sept. 25 include: Apollo Run ("Here Be Dragons, Vol. III"); As I Lay Dying ("Awakened"): At Sea ("A New Machine"); The Bad Plus ("Made Possible"); Sera Cahoone ("Deer Creek Canyon"); Anat Cohen ("Claroscuro); Jason Collett ("Reckon"); Django Django ("Django Django"); Efterklang ("Piramida"); EKTOMORF ("Black Flag"); Handguns ("Angst"); Heaven's Cry ("Wheels Of Impermanence"); Lavender Diamond ("Incorruptible Heart"); Lavek ("Look a Little Closer"); Michael McDermott ("Hit Me Back"); Murder By Death ("Bitter Drink, Bitter Moon"); The Outlaws ("It's About Pride"); Tristan Prettyman ("Cedar + Gold"); Rumer ("Boys Don't Cry"); Satan's Wrath ("Galloping Blasphemy"); Sweater Girls ("Sweater Girls Were Here"); Trapper Schoepp & the Shades ("Run, Engine, Run"); Angie Stone ("Rich Girl"); Unnatural Helpers ("Land Grab"); Wahid ("Road Poem"); The Wedding ("No Direction"); and Winterfylleth ("The Threnody Of Triumph").