Out Of Frequency by The Asteroids Galaxy Tour

Released:  January 31, 2012
Rating:  75.38
Genre:  Scandinavian Indie Pop


This is the sophomore effort for the pop band from Copenhagen, and it's a blast.  There is no pretext to pass as serious as they put a 21st century spin on the late-'60s world of Burt Bacharach and Sly Stone.

There's reggae, middle eastern pop, Motown, prog and disco. You'll also find hip-hop beats, Southern soul, and loads of horns.  The opener, Gold Rush Part 1 could be the intro track to a remake of the Mod Squad and Cloak and Dagger would have been a great James Bond song.  Lead vocalist Mette Lindberg has a voice that's a cross between Björk and Duffy.

Give a listen to a couple of my favorites:

Major (and you'll know why Amy Winehouse them open for her) Heart Attack, or the title track, Out of Frequency.  (For a special treat, catch this accoustic take on Out of Frequency.)

Something by Chairlift

Released:  January 25, 2012
Rating:  69.09
Genre:  '80s Influenced Alt Rock

I hear influences of everything from Madonna to Annie Lennox (The Eurythmics), the Bangles to Cindy Lauper and Deborah Harry (Blondie).  Even a little Chrissie Hynde (the Pretenders) and a few things I can't place.

This is the second album from the Brooklyn (formerly Boulder, CO) two-piece band.  According to the press I can find on them, they formed in 2005 to write background music for haunted houses; and you can still here that in some of their slower tempo stuff.

Again, the reviewers seem somewhat higher on them than I am , but that's not to say it's not a really good album.  Check out Sidewalk Safari on YouTube by clicking the link.

Attack On Memory by Cloud Nothings

Released:  January 24, 2012
Rating:  70.00
Genre:  Noise Rock

Rolling Stone often under rates albums, While AMG often over-rates them.  In this case, they both gave this album the same rating and, by strange coincidence, it's the exact same rating I gave it.  However, the critics as a whole seem to be a lot more enthusiastic, with a metascore of 82.  The first half is easily the stronger. but it's definitely worth a listen.

Cloud Nothings is the band name under which an individual by the name of Dylan performs.  From Cleveland, Ohio, this is their third album in three years.  Produced by Steve Albini (who has produced Nirvana, The Pixies, The Stooges, Manic Street Preachers, PJ Harvey and Bush) his influence is very apparent.  The opener, No Future/No Past is so reminiscent of Nirvana, it's eerie; I love the intense, extended (nearly nine minute) angry jam on Wasted Days and the PJ Harvey-style Stay Useless is very cool.

(Click the hyper links to hear the full songs on youtube.)

Area 52 by Rodrigo Y Grabriela w/C.U.B.A.

Released:  January 24, 2012
Rating:  75.56
Genre:  World Music

If Carlos Santana teamed up with Otmar Leibert, and asked Ry Cooder, right off of the Buena Vista Social Club sessions, to produce them, this is what you’d get.  It just kicks! 

Click to see the album trailer on youtube or you can hear the whole album free on Spotify.

Most of the songs are reworked from their own catalog, recorded with pianist/arranger Pete Wilson and C.U.B.A. (Collective Universal Band Association) in Havana, with producer Peter Asher. Guest artists included Anoushka Shankar, flamenco and jazz bass legend Carlos Benavent, former Testament and White Zombie drummer John Tempesta, Le Trio Joubran, and Los Van Van drummer Samuel Formell Alfonso.

Guitarists Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero started, independent of one another, playing heavy metal in some of the toughest clubs in Mexico City though they also played together in the metal group Tierra Acida.  They went on to become the most recognizable flamenco duo in the 21st century.

 

 

We Don't Know Any Better by Black Taxi

Released:  January 17, 2012
Rating:  76.92

Frankly, I don't recall where I heard about this band, but it doesn't matter.  This is right up my alley.  and likely to stay in my top 10 for most of the year.  They remind me of the Virgins (who released one of my favorite albums back in '08) and I suppose it shouldn't be a total surprise, since Black Taxi is also a Brooklyn-based club band.

All I remember is they got on my 2012 list quick.  The problem was that I couldn't find the CD.  My local Dimple store didn't even have them listed and Amazon only had them (and still only have them) as an MP3 download.  I ended up at the band's website, ordering directly from them.

This is great, upbeat, fun party/dance/work out/housework/whatever you like music.

Click to check out the official video for my favotite song Tightrope and a live recording of Do What You Gotta Do, which opens with a riff from Yes and heads into Devo-esque dance tune.  (You can also hear a clean version on Spotify.)

 

El Camino by The Black Keys

Released:  December 6, 2011
Rating:  80

The Black Keys are a twosome from Akron Ohio, with Dan Auerbach on Guitar and Patrick Carney on drums.  They have a brilliant, trashy, blues-rock sound.  There is definitely a nod to classic rock here, updated for the 21st century.

My only challenge with this album was to decide, for each song, if I was totally blown away, or just loved the song.  The biggest competition for each song was the next song.

This album screamed up to my top 3 for 2011 and  I can't say it too strongly: if you don't already have it, get it.  If you need some convincing, try a couple of the songs by clicking the links to youtube for the official videos of Lonely Boy or Gold On The Ceiling.

I suffer from the affliction of many music snobs: if I really like a band that nobody knows, and then they become popular, I become a little disenchanted. I'm trying to overcome this and the Black Keys are helping. It also helps that my guy, Danger Mouse, produced this album.

To be fair to my fellow music fans out there, this is their 7th album and I've only been a fan since 2008's Attack and Release (another Danger Mouse produced album). The world seemed to take notice in 2010, when Brothers was nominated for 5 Grammies and won 3, including Best Alternative Music Album.

This wraps up 2011!  Time to start the 2012 collection.

Undun by The Roots

Released:  December 6, 2011
Rating:  78.18

The surprising thing about this album isn't that it's only my second rap album of 2011, or that it's my second rap album in a row.  Not even that it's rated so highly.  The surprise, for me, is that it's a December release.  December usually stinks for good music.  It's a great month for box sets and bubble gum pop, but I haven't bought a December release in 3 years!

I hope you're aware of the roots.  They are amazing.  Formed by ?uestlove and Black Thought in 1987 as street rappers in Philidelphia, they're now Jimmy Fallon's house band.  (Full disclosure:  I only became fully aware of them last year with the incredible How I got Over.)

I would urge that you give them a chance, regardless of your musical leanings.  Try a couple of my favorites by clicking on the links below to youtube:

• The tragic Sleep.
• The cool funk of Lighthouse.

If you want something totally different from a hip-hop crew, search out the calssically orchestrated Redford Suite.  A series of 4 instrumental tracks featuring strings, piano and ?uestlove's drums.

And now a note about the rating: I combined the rating for the Redford suite into a single rating of 3 stars (I like it a lot).  If each track had been rated independently, the sum total would have been closer to 75.

No Kings by Doomtree

Released:  November 22, 2011
Rating:  75.00


A mostly-white rap group? From Minnesota?  Are you kidding?  No, I’m not, and neither are they.  If you have any appreciation for rap or hip-hop, you need to give this album a spin.  This is my first rap album for 2011 and it deserves to be on the list.  A couple of key cuts include Bolt Cutter or String Theory.

They’re actually a hip-hop collaborative as they are five independent MCs (four men, one woman) and two producers.  Depending on who you ask, this is either their second or fourth proper studio album.

50 Words For Snow by Kate Bush

Released:  November 21, 2011
Rating:  70

This is one of the few arbitrary ratings I've given this year.  I'm torn between wanting to love this album because the critics are raving about it, and liking this album because it's just really pretty.  (Note that a 70 from me is probably equivalent to most critics' 80, or 4 out of 5 stars.)

The album consists of only 7 songs, but comes in at over an hour's playing time.  There's no filler.  The first 3 songs, and the last, are pretty much piano and vocal with some very subtle rhythm from bass and/or percussion.  In between are three, up-tempo songs; the 5th, Snowed In At Wheeler Street, is a duet with Elton John.

It's all good, so take your pick.  Click the song titles for a hyperlink to the songs:  The mournful Lake Tahoe (about a woman's ghost that haunts the lake) or the up tempo Wild Man ("They call you an animal, the Kangchenjunga Demon, Wild Man, Metoh-Kangmi". Better known to most of us as the Yeti or Abominable Snowman.)

Surprisingly, for me anyway, this is my first Kate Bush album.  She's been around for a long time.  Heck, she's two years older than me!  With help from David Gilmour (Pink Floyd guitarist) Kate Bush signed her first record deal at the age of 16, and released her fist album 3 years later, in 1978.  She's released 9 more studio albums since.

Strawberry by Wussy

Released: November 15, 2011
Rating: 75.00

I love this 4 piece band out of Cincinnati.  Jangly guitars, thrashy vocals and great hooks.  Just my cup of tea.  I didn't think the cumulative score based on songs (71) gave a fair picture of the overall album.  I loved 7 of the 11 tracks here and there was only one that I call filler.

There is something very Midwest about Wussy.  A little bit melancholy and a little bit "get over it and have some fun".  Give a listen to the slow burning: Asteroid (about getting dumped Way out/beyond the asteroid/that's where you took my heart and left it floating in a frozen void) or the rockin' Chicken.

Wussy has been around since 2001 and this is their 5th (or 6th, I can't quite figure it out from the web searches) proper album.  They were formed by Guitarist and vocalist Chuck Cleaver from alt-country band The Ass Ponys (nice name guys).  Of course, one of the alluring things for me is that almost no one else has ever heard of Wussy.  Just compare the link for Asteroids with 2121 views vs Tom Waits (another name that's not known to all) Satisfied with 714,369 views.

Mylo Xyloto by Coldplay

Released:  October 25, 2011
Rating:  69.09

I can't decide if I'm disappointed, or just underwhelmed.  I loved Coldplay's last album, Viva La Vida, so I suppose I was pretty anxious to hear this one.  It's good, but nothing really lit me up.  I read once that Coldplay kept a poster of U2 in their practice studio to remind them what their goal was.  I read recently that they've taken a different direction.  Maybe they should have stayed on track.

A couple of worthwhile tracks include Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall and The Princess of China, featuring Rhiana.  Click the hyper links to watch the videos on YouTube.

Bad As Me by Tom Waits

Released:  October 25, 2011
Rating:  73.85

Who's Tom Waits?!?!  He's released 30 Albums since 1973; been honored with 19 tribute albums; contributed to 58 movies as a composer and/or actor; won two Grammys and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2011; his songs have been covered by Bruce Springsteen, the Eagles and Rod Stewart.

He has to be one of the most dramatic performers in all of music and this album would probably be rated higher, if I was a better judge.  In fact the average (normalized) review by the real critics was 88 out of 100, making it the best reviewed album of new music in all of 2011.

He has a tremendous cast of musicians that vary throughout the album, including, among others, Keith Richards on guitar, David Hidalgo (from Los Lobos) on almost everything, Flea (from the Red Hot Chili Peppers) on bass, Charlie Musselwhite on Harmonica and his son on drums.

My favorites include Talking At The Same Time and his response to the Rolling Stones' (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction, Satisfied where he sings "Now Mr. Jagger and Mr. Richards/I will scratch where I've been itchin.'"  (Richards is playing guitar on this song.)

Chesapeake by Rachael Yamagata

Released:  October 11, 2011
Rating:  72.00

This is my second album by Rachael Yamagata's and her third studio release.  (She recorded this album utilizing the fan-funded music platform PleadgeMusic - another interesting side story you can read about at http://www.pledgemusic.com/site/about.)

Rachael Yamagata lists Carole King and Roberta Flack amongst her influences, and that comes through loud a clear on Chesapeake.    I also hear influences from Sheryl Crow, Nora Jones and others.  Lot's of great piano and a hip stand-up base on Stick Around.

A couple of my favorites are the Elton John-esque Piano Ballad Full On and the very cool Starlight.  (Click the song titles to hear full length recordings on youtube.com.)

Raised in New York City and Washington DC by divorced parents, she went to college, in the mid ‘90s, at Northwestern and Vassar where she majored in French and Italian Theatre, respectively. She returned to Northwestern for her Junior year where she joined a local band. They recorded three albums over 6 years and in 2001 Yamagata decided it was time to go out on her own and released her first solo album in 2004.

All Things Will Unwind by My Brightest Diamond

Released: October 11, 2011
Rating:70.91

This is Chamber Pop. Mixing elements of opera, cabaret, chamber music, and rock, My Brightest Diamond is the project of singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Shara Worden (from Ypsilanti, Michigan.) This album, her fourth as MBD, is a collaboration with the acclaimed yMusic chamber ensemble - an interesting enough story in their own right (follow the hyperlink to learn more about them).

Check out the official videos for High, Low, Middle;  it has a sort of gypsy beat; or try my favorite, the sort of tribal chant Be Brave.

It's no no surprise she got part of her inspiration from one of my favorite quirky artists – Antony and the Johnsons.
Her career began with her 2001 release, under the name of Awry.

Metals by Feist

Released:  October 4, 2011
Rating:  70.00

This is my first album by Leslie Feist, though it's her 4^th solo studio release.  She's also been an active member of 4 different bands, starting with a herSchool punk band, that opened for the Ramones.  She was born in Novia Scotia,  relocated to Calgary and finally settled in Toronto.  

I would use the words sweet, smoky and gentle to describe this album.  My opinion seems to line up, in general, with the critics.  It's a really pretty album and much of it reminds me of Annie Lennox.

Give a listen to live versions of  Bittersweet Memories or Caught a Long Wind.

The Whole Love by Wilco

Released: September 27, 2011
Rating: 75.00

I'm still struggling to decide if I really like this album, or if I love it.  Every time I listen to it I like it more.  I think if I waited a few more weeks, it might climb into the top 10.

Wilco, formed in 1994 by Jeff Tweedy, after the break-up of Uncle Tupelo, has released their 10th studio album. I think this is the best thing they've done since 2004’s A Ghost Is Born and it's brought me back into the fold of Wilco fans.

Tweedy has never shied away from the influences of the 70's and they're here in abundance: hints of John Lennon and George Harrison, Gram Parsons, Pink Floyd, Simon and Garfunkel, Randy Numan, and any of a number of 70's power pop bands.

Check out the poppy I Might or the spacey Art of Almost.   (click the song titles for a link to live versions of the the full songs from Letterman on youtube)

As a side note, and it should not be held against the album, The Whole Love has been nominated (announced November 30) for the 2012 Best Rock Album Grammy.

The 2012 Grammy Nominations Are Out

And I am unsurprisingly underwhelmed.  Last year's Album of the Year nod to Arcade Fire was mind blowingly cool.  For this year, I'm left to root for:

Based strictly on the nominees:
Record of the Year:  Nothin' in this category I care about

1. Song of the Year:  Same here.
2. New Artist:  And again...
3. Album of The Year:  I'll be pulling for the Foo fighters Wasting Light, which made number four on my list for 2011.
4. Pop Solo Performance:  See number 1.
5. Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.  This is a bit more encouraging.  I like both the Black Key's Dearest (which was from the Rave On Buddy Holly tribute album) and Cold Play's Paradise.
6. Dance Recording:  Nothing floated my boat at all this year, so I really don't much care.
7. Dance/Electronica Album:  See 7.
8. Rock Performance:  I'll be pulling for the Foo Fighters.  I like Coldplay, but rock performance?
9. Hard Rock/Metal Performance:  Again, go Dave Grohl!
10. Rock Album:  I'd be happy to see a sweep by Dave and the Foos, but I wouldn't be upset if the Red Hot Chili Peppers or Wilco took this home.
11. Alternative Music Album:  This should be my category, but...  Foster the People?  Alternative?  Really?  I would take, in order of preference: My Morning Jacket's Circuital (currently in a 5-way tie for tenth for 2011) Radiohead's King of Limbs or Codes and Keys by Death Cab for Cutie.
12. Traditional R&B Performance:  I loved Good Man by Raphael Saadiq!
13. And I almost missed that Danger Mouse is nominated as Producer of the Year for Rome!

I've only heard one rap album I've liked this year (A November release I haven't picked up yet).

Velociraptor by Kasabian

Released:  September 20, 2011
Rating:  74.55

So there's a bit disturbing about Kasabian, starting with their name (from Charles Manson's getaway driver, Linda Kasabian) to the demented expression repeated around the album cover.  On the other hand, there's a lot to love once you get the disc in the player.  In fact, it's one star from breaking the current tie for the final spot on my 2011 top ten.

Although this is the fourth proper album for the British band, it's my introduction to them.  A lot of different influences show up; Velociraptor reminds me of David Bowie and La Fée Verte feels sort of gypsy influenced to me.  However, in the end, it's good ole rock and roll: play it loud!

My favorite song is the electronic I Hear Voices.  I also love Acid Turkish Bath (Shelter From The Storm (the orchestra is a very nice touch.)  Click on the songs to hear them, in-full, on youtube.com.  Better yet, find full album and listen to it!

West by Wooden Shjips

Released: September 13, 2011
Rating: 70

Another San Francisco band (and no, the J in Shjips is not a typo).  Although they've been around since 2003, released 2 other albums and 10 EPs and singles, this is my first introduction to the band.

I'm not completely comfortable with the rating as the album is much more than the sum of the songs.  It should probably be about a 75.  This is 1960's psychedelic garage rock moved into the 21st century.  Lot's of organ and fuzzed out guitar with a vocal track obscured by the trance-like melodies.  If you were around and loved that sound, you'll love this.  If you weren't (and I barely was) you might love it any way.  Try the opener Black Smoke Rise or Flight.

Father, Son, Holy Ghost by Girls

Released: September 13, 2011
Rating: 74.55

This is the sophomore album for the San Francisco based duo (FYI, there are no girls in the band).  I loved their first album, 2009's eponymous release, and I like this one even better.  It's a little more approachable with some really pretty ballads (Just a Song and Jamie Marie) some straight ahead rock 'n' roll (Die) and a little R&B (Love Like a River).  My favorites (click to listen via youtube.com) include the bitter-sweet and simple, jangly-guitar pop Saying I Love You and the rocker, Die.