The latest in the string of Broken Social Scene satellite sirens to splinter forth from the fold into solo album orbit, Haines takes the restrained red velvet torch singer route previously trod by Leslie Feist, with less than successful results.
With 16 songs clocking in well over an hour – including the final track which is over nine minutes long – it becomes fairly obvious that there’s a lack of economizing thought. Along the way, the constant name dropping of rappers The Game idolized gets a bit tiring. Those moments throughout seemed contrived, if not plain silly, but the beats are damn good enough to keep one coming back for more Game.
“It’s been a long time coming” coos Nellie McKay on double album Pretty Little Head and you have to admire her honesty. Let’s face facts: after three release dates for this follow up to 2004’s Get Away From Me had come and gone, you’d have been forgiven for giving up on her.
Endless Highway pays great respect to one of the greatest songwriting groups of all time, and serves as an even better introduction to those otherwise unfamiliar with The Band's legendary songbook.
Although Infradig’s Clinical Indifference/The Psychology of Breathing purports to be a jazz rock record, it comes across more as mood-making electronic rock, pop, and hip-hop. T
By now you probably know Patty Griffin as a talented singer/songwriter through her connections with Emmylou Harris and The Dixie Chicks or her timeless albums like Impossible Dream, 1000 Kisses, or Living With Ghosts. And although Harris does appear on the flaming red head’s new album, Children Running Through, on the soft “Trapeze,” it’s only Patty Griffin who you’ll remember after the disc is finished playing.
Two words best describe the quartet’s sound – groove and hook. Albarn’s tinkery piano chops, combined with his suave British crooning, joined at the hip with Simonon’s dub bass lines, make The Good, The Bad & The Queen an identifiable weapon.
Although Wincing the Night Way may not offer much to grab onto lyrically, The Shins have created a new wall of sound that will surely keep them relevant and James Mercer as just another guy in The Shins.
Kunek doesn’t belong in the ambient bin, as it’s a bit more Badly Drawn Boy with a couple of Beatles moments thrown in, but most fans of the genre would appreciate the album.
Love Arcade’s self-titled release puts a new face on power pop fun. Incorporating the tenets of ‘80s pop icons like Kajagoogoo, Dead Or Alive, and Animotion, the outfit's music is light-hearted fun with an infectious party bounce reflective of Kill Hannah, Valencia, and The Flaming Lips.
