Titus Andronicus
The Monitor
XL Recordings
2010
The best way to describe this record is epic! New Jersey’s Titus Andronicus are following up their 2008 punk debut with a rock concept album about the Civil War. As weird as the idea sounds, they pulled off the ambitious task with flying colors. The new album also features guest appearances by members of The Hold Steady, Ponytail, Wye Oak, Hallelujah and Vivian Girls.
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Groove Armada
Black Light
O.M. Records
2010
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1. “Look Me In The Eye Sister” (feat. Jess Larrabee)
2. “Fall Silent” (feat. Nick Littlemore)
3. “Just For Tonight” (feat. Jess Larrabee)
4. “Not Forgotten” (feat. Nick Littlemore)
5. “I Won’t Kneel” (feat. SaintSaviour)
6. “Cards to Your Heart” (feat. Nick Littlemore)
7. “Paper Romance” (feat. Fenech-Soler & SaintSaviour)
8. “Warsaw” (feat. Nick Littlemore)
9. “Shameless” (feat. Bryan Ferry)
10. “Time & Space” (feat. SaintSaviour & Jess Larrabee)
11. “History” (feat. Will Young)
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I used to get mildly annoyed at so many current bands injecting so much 80s synth sound into their music, but whatever. I give up. I get that nostalgia pretty much defines this Generation Y (or whatever they’re being called these days) and I’m tired of lazily not-really pushing against that entire movement. I still play Nintendo, so who am I to judge?
And I guess it’s not all bad. M83 and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs use the sound well, and now so does Groove Armada. I haven’t followed this band very closely, only really appreciating the great use of “Hands of Time” in both Collateral and Tell No One. However, that song sounds like nothing on Black Light, which makes me wonder if Groove Armada enthusiasts will hate this album for changing up their style. But that’s okay. It’ll give them something to do, I guess.
Anyway. Very great, very catchy work.
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“I Won’t Kneel”
“Paper Romance”
Johnny Cash
American VI: Ain’t No Grave
American/Lost Highway
2010
1. “Ain’t No Grave (Gonna Hold This Body Down)” (Claude Ely) – 2:53
2. “Redemption Day” (Sheryl Crow) – 4:22
3. “For the Good Times” (Kris Kristofferson) – 3:22
4. “I Corinthians 15:55″ (Johnny Cash) – 3:38
5. “Can’t Help but Wonder Where I’m Bound” (Tom Paxton) – 3:26
6. “A Satisfied Mind” (Red Hayes, Jack Rhodes) – 2:48
7. “I Don’t Hurt Anymore” (Don Robertson, Walter E. Rollins) – 2:45
8. “Cool Water” (Bob Nolan) – 2:53
9. “Last Night I Had the Strangest Dream” (Ed McCurdy) – 3:14
10. “Aloha Oe” (Queen Lili’uokalani) – 3:00
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Mojo Marshall: What more can you say about the legend of Johnny Cash? Working again with producer Rick Rubin, Cash posthumously released his final album, American VI: Ain’t No Grave. The majority of these songs were recorded after his wife June’s death and shortly before Johnny’s own passing. Not surprisingly a lot of these songs deal with death, love, and goodbyes. The opening track “Ain’t No Grave” is a chilling and powerful piece. A great way to open the album. My favorite track from the record, a song that brought me to tears, was his cover of Tom Paxton’s “Can’t Help but Wonder Where I’m Bound.”
Well, I had a little girl one time, she had lips like sherry wine
And she loved me till my head went plumb insane.
But I was too blind to see she was drifting away from me,
And my good gal went off on a morning train.
The album ends with a cover of the Hawaiin tune “Alohe Oe” which is a light and strangely fitting way for Johnny to say goodbye.
Aloha-oe, aloha-oe, ikeona ona noho ikanipo
One fond embrace ahoea ea
Until we meet again
Until we meet again
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Richard Gill: Like the country music Tupac Shakur, Johnny Cash graces us this year with his 3rd posthumous release of new music. Unlike Shakur however, Cash’s output has been more hit than miss in the six years since his death. Like his previous collaborations with Rubin Ain’t No Grave is heavy on the covers (9 out of 10 tracks) but it doesn’t matter because Cash had a way of taking every song he sang and making it his own. Whether it be top ten singles by the biggest bands in the world (NIN’s “Hurt” and U2’s “One”) or forgotten gems by his contemporaries (Waylon Jennings’ “Field of Diamonds” or “Why Me Lord?” by Kris Kristofferson) you forgot that the song had been performed by another artist the moment you heard Johnny Cash’s version. Fittingly, this album is heavier on the latter. Tom Paxton and Ed McCurdy might not be household names for the hipster sect but true roots music fans will recognize and appreciate the nod these great artists.
It’s a strange phenomenon listening to this record. You are listening to an artist who is making his last album ever and you can hear it in his voice. And not only that, you can tell that he knows this is most likely his last recorded output and he’s at peace with that fact. I could write for the next several hours about the in’s and out’s of this record but I’d rather just have it speak for itself.
One final note though. Tomorrow (Friday the 26th) would have been Johnny Cash’s 78th birthday. Wear black for The Man In Black that day.
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Hot Chip
One Life Stand
Astralwerks
2010
I’ve always been on the fence about British electro-pop band Hot Chip. Their last couple records had a few good singles on them, but as a whole the records didn’t really do anything for me. Their newest record is a different story. It’s great from beginning to end and actually feels like a complete album for the first time. If you weren’t a fan of their music before I recommend you give the guys a second chance and listen to One Life Stand.
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Beach House
Teen Dream
Sub Pop Records
2010
http://www.myspace.com/beachhousemusic
I’ve only been a moderate fan of Beach House in the past, but their newest album Teen Dream is amazing! A band that can hopefully expect some crossover mainstream success like Grizzly Bear, Phoenix, and Animal Collective were able to achieve last year. I fully expect this record to end up in my top 3 of the year. If not, we’re in for an awesome year of music. It’s already off to a great start.
Description of Teen Dream from Sub Pop:
Recorded in upstate New York, in a converted church called Dreamland with producer/engineer Chris Coady (who has worked with TV on the Radio, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Blonde Redhead, and a bunch of others) Teen Dream is the third album from the Baltimore-based duo Beach House, and their Sub Pop debut. The new album gives voice to a full universe of unbridled imagination, and the manifestation of Teen Dream has been a welcomed and all-consuming obsession for Beach House the past 9-12 months. Both the CD and LP formats of Teen Dream will arrive packaged with a companion DVD featuring a video for each song on the album, each by a different director.
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Four Tet
There is Love in You
Domino
2010
It’s been five years since a proper Four Tet LP came out, but it was well worth the wait.
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Owen Pallett
Heartland
Domino Records
2010
http://www.owenpalletteternal.com/
Owen Pallett (aka Final Fantasy) released his thrid LP a couple weeks ago and I finally got around to giving it a good listen. A lot of really beautiful string-pop arrangements that’s easy to get lost in.
Listen:
Lookbook
Wild at Heart
Self-Released
2009
http://www.myspace.com/lookbookmusic
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1. Over and Over
2. Yesterday’s Company
3. Way Beyond
4. The Only Ones
5. True to Form
6. All My Best
7. Warm Coats
8. Free Your Man
9. Passenger
10. Wild at Heart
11. Surprise
My favorite local record of the year comes courtesy of the synth-pop duo Lookbook. Grant Cutler on guitars/electronics and Maggie Morrison on vocals have crafted a debut album that runs the electronic gamut from moody new wave to mid-tempo electro-rock to dance-your-crazy-ass-off pop. The tracks on Wild at Heart sounds like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, other times it’s cheesy-awesome pure 80’s fun, and the rest of the time it’s everything in between. Another amazing record to come out of the diverse musical landscape in Minneapolis.
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“Over and Over”
“The Only Ones”
Lucero
1372 Overton Park
Universal Republic
2009
Side A:
1. Smoke
2. What Are You Willing to Lose?
3. Sounds of the City
4. Can’t Feel a Thing
5. The Devil and Maggie Chascarillo
6. Sixes and Sevens
Side B:
1. Goodbye Again
2. Johnny Davis
3. Darken My Door
4. Halfway Wrong
5. Hey Darlin’, Do You Gamble?
6. Mom
Favorite Tracks: What Are You Willing to Lose, Can’t Feel a Thing, Goodbye Again, Darken My Door, Mom
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Note: This is kind of a companion piece to my Lucero show review which can be found HERE.
Fucking shit, man. I just don’t even know where to start with this album. I bought it a few days back and it has not left my turntable since. It’s pretty much the only thing I’ve listened to all week.
This is Lucero’s first release on Universal Republic and with the switch from an indie to major label comes a definite change in sound as well. Gone is the cry in your beer soaked country (although elements of it are still very much apparent) and in its place is beer in the air sing-along rock n’ roll and small town bar ballads. It’s interesting to hear a Lucero album with a major label recording budget behind it because it doesn’t really sound any different than the older records. Sure, it’s a little more polished and they’ve added a horn section that really kicks ass but at the heart of it all you still have Ben Nichols whiskey and broken glass charged voice which is really the backbone of Lucero’s distinct sound.
As far as the actual songs go, it’s a mix of Hold Steady style “story” songs and heart on your sleeve songs of love and love lost. Nichols has a way of pulling you in with his songs and making you wish you had written them since you feel like you’ve lived through them. From raucous songs of drunken youthful abandon (“Smoke & “The Devil and Maggie Chascarillo”) to quiet slow dance numbers (“Darken Your Door” & “Darlin’ Do Ya Gamble”) to songs about just wanting to make sure your mother knows your alright (“Mom” – which incidentally is a great companion piece to The Evening Rig’s “So Many Things”) you can’t help but think of your own life when listening to them. And really, when it comes down to it, that’s the mark of a truly great songwriter. It’s not about selling a million records, it’s about having the ability to connect with your audience, and Lucero has that in spades.
To even connect more with their audience, Lucero let a dozen of their fans each make a video for one song off the record and then posted them on the Lucero website. They range from very silly to very heartfelt (truth be told I got a little choked up watching the video for “Mom”) but they’re all surprisingly well done. I’ve linked to them at the top of the post so you can check them out yourself.
I tend to over romanticize things that I love but I can say without any hint of exageration that I identify with this album more than anything else I’ve heard in the last few years. It’s weird when you hear a line like Bastard from the start but a charming one at that. Bad reputation but I really ain’t that bad (from “Can’t Feel a Thing”) and think to yourself “Shit, I think I’ve actually said that to people”. See what I mean? The ability to connect with your audience.
I said in my show review that Lucero may end up being remembered as our generations version of The Replacements but after hearing this new record I’ve changed my mind. I think Lucero will end up being remembered as our generations’ best “real” rock n’ roll band. Sorry The Hold Steady, you’ve been dethroned.
Artist: Cheryl Cole
Song: “Fight for This Love”
Album: 3 Words, releases in the UK next week, probably never in the US. (but you can probably find it online *wink*)
Fuck Buttons
Tarot Sport
ATP
2009
1. Surf Solar
2. Rough Steez
3. The Lisbon Maru
4. Olympians
5. Phantom Limb
6. Space Mountain
7. Flight Of The Feathered Serpent
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I’m a bit torn on this album. On the one hand, it’s quite a disappointment, considering last year’s Street Horrrsing. But then, that album is one of the best of the decade, so it’d be unfair to judge solely against that. On Tarot Sport, the Fuck Buttons drop their more experimental tendencies and aim for more of an easy-listening experience, but it’s still nicely layered and enjoyable.
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“The Lisbon Maru”
“Olympians”
“Space Mountain”
