Past Life Martyred Saints by EMA

I picked up eight CDs in April and it was a smokin' month, with four of my top ten so far this year.  The Kills look like a favorite to finish the year in front.  There were also great releases from the Foo Fighters, Joan As Police Woman and TV On The Radio.  Elbow is back with a solid album and the Gorillaz showed what can be done on an iPad.  So let's get May rollin':

Released:  May 10, 2011
Rating:  73.33

Past Life Martyred Saints is the debut album for singer, songwriter and guitarist Erika M. Anderson (a.k.a. EMA).  The South Dakota native moved to Los Angeles in the '90s and has played in a variety of bands.  Allmusic.com compares her to Patti Smith and Cat Power; I'll buy that.  The sound is lo-fi and the emotions seem to be intense.

There's a lot of good stuff here and only one song that left me flat.  Give a listen to Milkman (it's a pretty cool video too) or the low key. lo-fi Grey Ship.