Day 59: Weekly Music Review: Yeasayer - Odd Blood

I skipped a week of reviews, so here's this week gets two music reviews.

Although I hadn't heard of this Brooklyn trio, I took its recommendation from NME.com and gave it a whirl. As it turned out I had heard the song Ambling Alp before and thought it was catchy, but had no idea who sang it or what it was called. Yeasayer seems to be building on the growing trend of bands that are basically tributes or throwbacks to the 80's pop music only without the shitty 80's synth-pop haircuts or keytars. Some of the lyrics on this album are downright questionable, Ambling Alp appears to be about a f*cking 30's style boxer (think Soda Popinski) and a "wise" father giving advice to "Stick up for yourself son, Never mind what anybody else done". Yeah the lyrics aren't strong, but the songs are pretty addicting. This is the definition of a "grower" album, and while its not the best album of the year (by any means) it is a noteworthy NROP album.

Rating: 7.0 / 10

Day 58: Weekly Music Review: The Morning Benders - Big Echo

The third full album from this widely unknown Berkeley band was one of my most anticipated albums coming into the year. Their last album Talking Through Tin Cans was released in 2008 to much critical acclaim, although that failed to translate to anything tangible from a popularity perspective. The reason for their obscurity probably comes down to timing, they've got a sound that's in line with MGMT, Vampire Weekend and their ilk. While those bands are now some of the most popular indie/alternative bands out there (Vampire Weekend's second SNL appearance just capped what was maybe the best episode of the season this past weekend), at the time of their first album release this wasn't a very well recognized or accepted genre. The Morning Benders released their last album just before this new wave of "beach punk" became mainstream. Now that the genre has infiltrated the zeitgeist of modern rock, I fully expect this to be their most successful (sales-wise) album.

Now with all that being said, how does the album stack up musically? Well to be honest, I'm not sure its their best release. The vocals are outstanding as usual, Christopher Chu has one of the best voices in the business. However, I feel as though it gets a little bit caught up itself in parts especially during the songs Pleasure Sighs and Cold War; but there are most definitely some gems on this album as well. The two primary singles Excuses and Promises are definite highlights, and are certainly best played at very high volumes. There are a few other very strong tracks as well, Hand Me Downs has been getting a lot of repetition, and Stitches is my most listened to song on my iPhone right now. All in all this is a very solid release, and given the current state of music this seems like a no brainer home run album.

Rating: 8.5 / 10

Day 55: Weekly Music Review: Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More

Yes I realize its been two weeks and only four blog posts, but that will pick up soon.

This week's music recommendation goes to:

Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More

I was recently turned onto this English folk band, but immediately identified with it. I'm not sure whether its the style of the music, the banjo or the mandolin, the lyrics or even the voice of Marcus Mumford, I'm just not sure. Its a bit like a slightly more epic Band of Horses album, and if you're a fan of the latter you'll in all likelihood dig this. Marcus Mumford's "angry" tone during his songs remind me of Ed Kowalczyk (Live) which adds further to the familiarity of their sound. I wish I could say that I've been a fan of these guys for years, but it simply isn't true. My exposure to them is limited to hearing the song "The Cave" somewhere before and not knowing who sang it and having the album suggested to me yesterday. If you're looking for some new music that's a combination of traditional Irish drinking songs and Fleet Foxes with the grandiose of a Decemberists performance than look no further. The full album is solid; however, if you're one of those miscreants who needs further provocation to listen to a full album then see the two songs below--if you don't like those well then I wouldn't bother with the rest of the album.

Rating: 8.5/10

Little Lion Man

The Cave

Day 53: A New Feature - Weekly Music Reviews

Alright, so after the week hiatus, and the emotionally scarring Vikings loss I'm back and ready to turn the page. There will be some serious baseball talk coming up in the next few weeks, but until then I'm going to introduce a new weekly feature that I'll be incorporating into the blog. Once per week I'll be recommending an album for your listening pleasure. Its pretty clear where my musical tastes lie by now (see here, here, here, and here) so if you're not a fan I apologize, but maybe you'll still find something you like--anyway so here we go.

The first ever weekly album recommendation goes to:

Los Campesinos! - Romance is Boring

This Welsh band's third full album and first since they released both Hold on Now, Youngster... and We are Beautiful, We are Doomed in 2008. They've always tended more towards the power-pop genre (think New Pornographers or Vampire Weekend but with more hand claps), and this album is no different. Though that's not to say that the albums are all so similar that they sound identical (see Red Hot Chili Peppers for an example of this)--quite the contrary in fact. In each of their three albums now you can hear a sense of the band becoming more confident in their musical abilities and their exploration of their style. Each of the albums are slightly more tight than the previous, which if continued they'll start to sound like a Brian Eno produced album but hopefully they'll realize that before they sound too produced.

The stories in their songs are very memorable, but they're not told in the matter-of-fact manner of many other "indie" bands, but rather they weave their imagery using funny one-liners and whimsical lyrics. Its fairly uncommon anymore for a band to have such a strong discography after three albums, especially given the size of their Arts & Crafts label. This is an album that I've listened to four times already in the past week and a half and doesn't have any tracks that stick out as "skippable". This album flows very well and I have a feeling you'll be on board after the first listening; I know I was hooked immediately. A fantastic effort by a "small label" band, in what I consider their best and most complete album. This is going to have some serious play by me this year and I've got a feeling its going to be near the top (or maybe even at the top) of multiple lists by year's end.

Rating: 9.5/10

MySpace Album Stream