Sean Lennon

"Friendly Fire"
from the album Friendly Fire
2006

Into the Sun, Sean Lennon's 1998 debut, was the casually jazzy album of a young New York celebrity with the talents and the means to explore any sort of music that piqued his wide-ranging 22-year-old curiosities. Then he split with his longtime girlfriend after she cheated on him with his best friend; a year and a half later, Lennon's best friend died in a motorcycle accident, without Lennon reconciling with him. These events have yielded an album of angry, guilty, sad -- and often stunningly pretty -- songs. Relying on a four-piece rock band instead of parts he overdubbed himself, Lennon maintains an ornamented, deliberate style as persuasively as his debut album jumped around. Songs like "Dead Meat" are strong meshes of smooth lyrics and melody that are based in the great tradition of Beatlesque pop tunes. Even more pronounced than the influence of Lennon's dad's band is the shadow of Fiona Apple: Like her music, Lennon's songs, with their rocked-up theater and easy cerebral nature, make complex emotions sing.

"I lfet you standing, standing in the dark," Lennon confessed in the ruined, climatic ballad "Falling Out of Love." His viola-toned voice, with its patient, Brazilian-like delivery, is sweet and distinctive. Lennon sounds strangely liberated by this album's unfortunate back story, as if the anguish of it overcame his anxieties about being John Lennon's son. Consider "All You Need is Love" the starting place -- it's just that things get complicated after that.

~ James Hunter, Rolling Stone

Scissor Sisters

"The Other Side"
from the album Ta-Dah
2006
iTunes

In a nutshell...
Glitzy, reflective, glamorous, dancin'

What's it all about?
Ta-Dah is the follow up to Scissor Sisters' stupendously successful self-titled debut. To a degree Ta-Dah is more of the same, a collection of fun and colourful pop tunes blended with some strong rhythmic ballads. However, on this record the New Yorkers get a little more daring, with tracks like "Kiss You Off" that sounds like a sexier and distorted Abba tune. "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'," co-written with Elton John, is another strong track and delivered the band their first UK number one. "Intermission" and "She's My Man" all highlight the band's confidence and ability to deliver instantly likeable songs, in their own unmistakeable style.

Who's it by?
Scissor Sisters are the irrevocably entertaining Jake Shears, the strangely delightful Ana Matronic, and the competent and stylish Babydaddy, Del Marquis and Paddy Brown. The band burst onto the music scene in 2004 with the release of their self-titled debut album. It subsequently dominated UK airwaves for over a year and sold a phenomenal amount of records for a band that had previously struggled to gain recognition.

A cover of Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb" and the first release of "Laura" in 2003 saw the band achieve moderate success. Crucially they caught the attention of the NME, a magazine that craves the occasional interesting and credible pop act. The Scissor Sisters suddenly became a cult success which was quickly transferred to the mainstream with the singles "Take Your Mama," "Mary," and the re-release of "Laura." After touring for what seemed like eternity, the band returned to their native New York for some peace and quiet, before decamping to the studio to record Ta-Dah.

As an example...
"Why'd you break down when I'm not in the mood?/ Don't feel like dancin', dancing/ Rather be home with no one when I can't get down with you."

Jake Shears commented that "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'" was the happiest song about being miserable he'd ever heard. It's a great opener and Elton John's piano work is all over this track, signalling how far the Scissor Sisters have come since being a struggling New York club act.

Likelihood of a trip to the Grammys
Ta-Dah will no doubt become a hugely successful record, "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'" will make a few "tracks of the year" shortlists and the album will be a big presence at next year's ceremonies.

What the others say
"The supermarket shoppers who picked up the Scissor Sisters eponymous debut in droves couldn't care less about long-held notions of musical cool." ~ The Guardian

"Ta-Dah sounds bigger that its predecessor and a lot more confident, but still without trying too hard." ~ Time Out London

So is it any good?
Ta-Dah picks up from where the first Scissor Sisters album left off, but adds sharper song writing and a few more intricate melodies. Babydaddy plays the bass, the banjo, a keyboard and a triangle during some songs, showing that the Scissor Sisters are prepared to raise the bar and try new things. Somehow, even though the band borrows from every trashy pop tune ever composed, these songs sound fresh and exciting. One song that typifies this point is "The Other Side," a concoction of '80s synth magnificence alongside keyboard wizardry, it's simply the most brilliant pop ballad of the year. "Kiss You Off," led by Ana Matronic, is dirty and confident and Lights is a fine example of the bands knack for putting together a great melody. Jake Shears' vocal was the icing on the cake for the Scissor Sisters' debut sound and on this record his voice is even more prominent. "Intermission," "Land of a Thousand Words," and "The Other Side" wouldn't be the great tunes they are without Shears' falsetto rocketing around the room from the first note.

The great thing about Ta-Dah is that it will find an audience with some of the most hard of hearing critics in the industry. Yet you'll still hear it in football grounds, DIY centres, white vans, roadside cafes and record executive's offices. This is what makes the UK such a special place for the Scissor Sisters and why they've struggled to achieve huge success in the US, where you often have to appear on prime time before you can start shifting albums. "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'" is already a huge favourite with the British public and there's 11 more tracks of pop brilliance on Ta-Dah. Other than having Jake and co hand deliver your '70s silver platforms, what more could you ask for?

~ Karl Pike, inthenews.co.uk

the Lisps

"Pepper Spray"
from the EP The Vain, the Modest, and the Dead
2006

MP3 - "Pepper Spray" [right-click/save-as]



The Vain, the Modest, and the Dead is the self-released debut EP from Sammy Tunis and César Alvarez’s South Bronx band The Lisps. Five mostly cute, indie-ish songs that at first appear catchily straightforward, but actually get stranger the more you listen to them, as they aren’t quite how you remember them, the playing just slightly not what you thought it was, and the arrangements disarmingly detailed and off-kilter. The EP’s lead track, "Pepper Spray" is downloadable from the Lisps’ site, but the EP is well worth hearing on top of this for the other tracks, which include a frantic live number "Chaos" that includes the best pocket summary of chaos theory I know of -- "That’s just the way snowflakes work/ They’re never exactly the same/ But they’re never anything but snowflakes."

~ johnsonsrambler.wordpress.com

the Changes

"When I Wake"
from the album Today is Tonight
2006
iTunes

MP3 - "When I Wake" [right-click/save-as]



I recently had the pleasure to chat, via e-mail, with the Changes' vocalist/guitarist Darren Spitzer. The Chicago band's debut full-length Today is Tonight hits stores today via Drama Club Records. The following is a demonstration of my pedestrian interviewing skills. To learn more about the band, check out this post from July 2005.

Jon: There was a buzz last summer about the Changes being the only unsigned band booked at Lollapalooza in Chicago.
Darren: Being the only unsigned band was cool, 'cause it gave us playing that festival more "umph," you know? Writers need something to write about other than "such and such band is playing such and such gig." So all the press did the whole unsigned band thing if they talked about us playing that show and it was fun exposure. I ate it up!

Jon: What was that feeling like to play on the Lollapalooza main stage, in your hometown, in front of thousands?
Darren: Lollapalooza was a dream. We played the set, and they go-carted us over to this press tent where we got to answer questions from all these people at Playboy, Entertainment Weekly, that kinda shit. It was surreal. Playing one of the main stages was a real treat. And we were on that jumbo-tron video thingy and that was wild!

Jon: From the band's perspective, how does a big festival stage compare to playing an intimate club setting? How is yours or the band's approach any different?
Darren: I think when we play on a large stage our plan of attack is to try and stay as close together physically as possible. Also...that never works! I always wind up too far from [guitarist] Dave [Rothblatt] for comfort. I need to be close to him. Hahaha.

Darkel

"At the End of the Sky"
from the album Darkel
2006
iTunes



While Jean-Benoît Dunckel and his Air partner, Nicolas Godin, worked on Charlotte Gainsbourg's album 5:55 by day, at night he recorded his first solo album under the name Darkel (inspired by when he recorded it and the fact that his last name means "dark" in German).

Darkel doesn't differ greatly from his work with Air -- it's got the same mix of epic synth passages and sexy, starry-eyed pop, and his wispy, almost androgynous voice would be unmistakable in almost any setting. Songs such as "Be My Friend," "Pearl," and especially "Bathroom Spirit" could have easily been Air B-sides; they've got all the mellow, sensual atmosphere of Dunckel's main project, but not quite as much impact as Air's best work.

Fortunately, he spends more time breaking away from that sound than he does emulating it, and the quirkier, more whimsical, and personal tracks make up the heart of Darkel. The sharp-edged, new-wavey "Beautiful Woman" and playful "TV Destroy" are some of the most rock-oriented sounds to come from Dunckel, even if they're more witty than hard-hitting. At the opposite spectrum is the languid "Some Men," a beautiful, piano-based love song that rivals the quality of many Air tracks, but works even better in this more intimate context. Interestingly, even with lyrics like "We are in bed and that's the best place I know," the song comes off more romantic than Air's trademark sensuality does.

"How Brave You Are" is another standout, a breakup song with one of Dunckel's most captivating melodies in recent memory. Darkel also goes in a direction that's far poppier than even Air's most immediate moments, with delightful results. "At the End of the Sky" is particularly wonderful: with its lilting, liquid guitars and vaguely psychedelic haze, it sounds like a cybernetically enhanced George Harrison song, and the way Dunckel sings "Oh darling" is utterly charming. "My Own Sun," meanwhile, makes full use of the pun in its title and manages to be silly and elegant at the same time.

Sometimes Darkel seems in danger of floating away on its flights of fancy, suggesting that Godin gives some of Dunckel's more whimsical ideas some grounding when they work together as Air. Nevertheless, this is a lovely working holiday, full of songs as shimmery and delicate as bubbles, and their slightness doesn't make them any less enjoyable.

~ Heather Phares, All Music Guide

Favourite Sons

"Hang On, Girl"
from the album Down Beside Your Beauty
2006
iTunes

MP3 - "Hang On, Girl" [right-click/save-as]



"I was a lonely man, in a lonely bar, in a lonely city, in a lonely world, when she came in on the devil's arm," sings Favourite Sons' Ken Griffin during the opening verse of "Hang On, Girl." While the droning, driving song describes a man and woman who find each other and fight their way through the daily grind, the opening lines could just as well describe Griffin's situation as a songwriter -- or simply as a human being.

The former voice and brains behind two incredible and almost wholly forgotten 1990s bands, Rollerskate Skinny and Kid Silver, the Irish-born Griffin was a New York City bartender at the turn of the millennium, carving out a meager existence, his music dreams all but snuffed out. "Justin found me lost and slowly dying," Griffin has said of his bandmate, guitarist Justin Tripp, late of the psychedelic rock band Aspera. In 2004, Griffin and Tripp, along with fellow former members of Aspera, formed Favourite Sons. The fruits of Griffin's creative rebirth can be heard on this month's Down Beside Your Beauty, an album that, according to Griffin, "confront[s] the big stuff: love, regret, fear."

While he displayed almost operatic vocal fluctuations in Rollerskate Skinny, Griffin sounds more like Echo & the Bunnymen's Ian McCulloch during the chorus of "Hang On, Girl." The music charges along in the spirit of Radio Birdman or the Stooges, reveling in the grimy spirit that inspires so much rock 'n' roll, while simultaneously crushing those dark places with words that break on through to the other, brighter side.

~ Christopher Porter, NPR.com

the Album Leaf

"Always for You"
from the album Into the Blue Again
2006
iTunes

MP3 - "Always for You" [right-click/save-as]



In the wake of a solid eighteen months spent touring in support of 2004's In a Safe Place, the Album Leaf's Jimmy LaValle sequestered himself for six months in his San Diego house solely to write for his next record.

For LaValle -- whose wildly varied experience includes stints with instrumental artisans Tristeza, post-hardcore spastics the Locust, contorted punk-funk ritualists GoGoGo Airheart, shadowy conjurers the Black Heart Procession and Iceland’s celestial menagerie Sigur Rós -- such a surfeit of time was an unprecedented luxury. The upshot of this well-earned downtime is his fourth full-length, Into the Blue Again.

Recorded in December 2005 at Bear Creek Studio, a converted turn-of-the-century barn outside of Seattle, Into the Blue Again sees a return to the Album Leaf's conception with LaValle handling the bulk of the vocal and instrumental duties. After tracking at Bear Creek, LaValle then took the concentric billows of feathered keyboards, filmy strings and chiseled drums to Iceland for three weeks of mixing to tape to maintain Brian Eno-informed translucence.

Having shared so much time and space with others on the road, LaValle proves with the personally charged Into the Blue Again that the Album Leaf resonates most profoundly when he goes it alone.

~ Sub Pop Records

Tally Hall

"Taken for a Ride"
from the album Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum
2005
iTunes

MP3 - "Taken for a Ride" [right-click/save-as]



The Ann Arbor-based group Tally Hall may be the only good thing ever inspired, at least in part, by a strip mall.

The self-described "wonky rock band" that makes "odd pop" has quickly morphed from a frat party/ bar band into an intelligent, irreverent ensemble poised for much more -- including a full-length album and national tour. It's a cliché to say a local band is building buzz, but Tally Hall definitely is.

The fortunes of this quirky, charming quintet took a turn a couple of years ago, when member Andrew Horowitz, a University of Michigan School of Music graduate, scored a $10,000 scholarship and lunch with Yoko Ono by taking first place in the BMI Foundation's annual John Lennon songwriting contest, with his song "Good Day."

"That's the point when we had reason enough to see we were on the right track and that if we kept at it, we could do something special," says guitarist-vocalist Rob Cantor. "Right now, it's a no-lose situation for the band, but at the end of two years, we'll have to make a final decision about our future." Two years is the amount of time four band members have been granted by the University of Michigan to decide whether to resume their academic careers.

"These guys are one audition away from hitting it big," says ardent fan and animator Keith Alcorn, who created the Oscar-nominated film "Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius" for Paramount. Alcorn, like thousands of Internet users, happened upon the video that guitarist-vocalist Joe Hawley created for his song "Banana Man" by following links posted on sites frequented by college kids and creative types.

"These guys are so clever. Their material is so smart and so elaborate. Somehow it all makes sense, but I don't know why," Alcorn says.

Tally Hall's music is hard to describe. In a single song, you might hear moments of rap, rock or smooth harmonies straight out of the 1940s. Subject matter includes the Olsen twins ("Two Wuv"), romance ("The Bidding") and the band themselves ("Welcome to Tally Hall"). Tunes take unexpected turns, yet the lyrics are easy to follow. You'll hear all kinds of influences -- the Beatles, Queen, XTC quickly come to mind -- yet the songs hold up under repeated listenings. The "Banana Man" video, a class project for Hawley, is both silly and highly sophisticated.

The band's back story is as fascinating as its music. The five -- Cantor, Horowitz, Hawley, drummer Ross Federman and bassist-vocalist Zubin Sedghi -- came together while students at U-M, though there are two pairs of high school buddies in the band. Three are Michigan graduates, with two of them delaying their admission to medical or business school for two years. The other two are taking a two-year hiatus from working on their undergrad biology degrees. They range in age from 20 to 23. Four of the five grew up in Oakland County, which helps explain the band name and the CD title.

"Tally Hall was the name of a new mini-mall on Orchard Lake Road in Farmington Hills when we were growing up. At this mini-mall was Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum, this strange, eclectic place we liked to visit," says Hawley. Though Tally Hall the mini-mall is no more, the museum, which features old-school coin-operated games and other amusements, remains a popular attraction. The band got permission from Marvin himself to do some field recording there, which is sampled on the CD.

And yes, the color coding. Tally Hall's onstage uniforms consist of identical black shoes and pants, bright-white dress shirts and vivid solid-color ties, each member with his own color. Even the CD booklet is color-coded. "We wanted a visual element to set us apart. Something that looked classy, not overtly silly," says Cantor. With their sleeves rolled up, these guys are ready to get going.

~ Kim Silarski, Detroit Free Press

Constantines

"Soon Enough"
from the album Tournament of Hearts
2005
iTunes

MP3 - "Soon Enough" [right-click/save-as]



Constantines may be the heaviest band currently working the indie rock circuit. They aren't the loudest, the fastest or the punkest outfit around, but like Tournament of Hearts' cover, their music is as simple, solid and rough as a pile of rocks. A start-to-finish listen, like a sixty-hour work week, will leave you exhausted, panting and calloused, but enriched in a way that only a time-and-a-half paycheck can achieve. The most remarkable thing about Tournament of Hearts is that technically, it is the Constantines' slowest, jazziest, most countrified release to date, but it doesn't give an inch of intensity when it's compared to their self-titled debut or the landmark Shine a Light. Much of this can be attributed to the ferocity of their musicianship, but mostly it's just a testament to the fact that no amount of distortion, speed or power chords can ever truly replace the potency of raw emotional honesty.

Bryan Webb's I-just-gargled-broken-glass vocals have long been the most recognizable element of the Constantines' music. There's enough texture in his voice to sand an entire armoire into a breadbasket; his most aggressive moments make him sound like Lemmy from Motörhead, but at his prettiest, he can match Tom Waits for sheer wounded balladry. The space between the two extremes has gotten much smaller this time around, as most of Tournament of Hearts' tunes land somewhere between DC post-punk and Springsteen-style blue-collar rock. The extreme juxtaposition of the genres was one of Shine a Light's most intriguing qualities, but it isn't missed on Tournament of Hearts. Frankly, as the band has shortened the distance, they've come closer to finding a sound that's uniquely their own -- loud, rough, beautiful and exhausting, all at once. "Draw Us Lines"' brutally simple tribal rhythms, for example, would never qualify as punk rock, but when drummer Doug MacGregor finally delivers the two call-to-arms snare cracks that usher in the explosive walls of guitar, the song grows heavy enough to sink a small boat. Even when the Constantines are applying their technical chops to different genres, like in the jazzy rhythms of "Love in Fear," it still sounds like jazz played by monsters -- every note carries the urgency of an entire Germs album.

Every great album has one truly great song that works as a fulcrum to balance and ground the rest of the music. Tournament of Hearts has the remarkable "Soon Enough," whose sad country tinges wrap up the album's wounded maturity in one simple line: "Your Gentleman father would pray for a daughter / as he walked from room to room saying / 'Women are winning the tournament of hearts. Somebody's got to lose...' / Soon enough, work and love will make a man out of you."

~ Philip Stone, Splendid Magazine

the Decemberists

"Summersong"
from the album The Crane Wife
2006
iTunes

Thanks to its baroque, heavily orchestrated pop sound and detailed lyrics that delve into folklore and mythology, the Decemberists were an unlikely lot to receive a major-label advance.

But on October 3, Capitol Records will release the band's new album, The Crane Wife. Like all the Decemberists' work, it's an oddly melodic album with frontman Colin Meloy finding lyrical inspiration in Japanese folk tales and World War II.

"We were talking to more boutique labels ... that one would think would be more open to an experimental-type record," Meloy says. "But Capitol happened to be the ones who met us on our terms. That surprised us."

Key to those terms -- a label that would allow the band to remain signed to Rough Trade in the United Kingdom, and a right of refusal on "pretty much everything," Meloy says.

The artist also believes the band's ambitions had outgrown the financial constraints of Kill Rock Stars, which issued its three prior albums. The label, previously home to Sleater-Kinney and Bikini Kill, generally keeps recording budgets at around $2,000, Meloy says.

"That's what makes (Kill Rock Stars) such a fantastic label," he says. "It has a great roster of bands, artists who are willing to take those risks. Unfortunately, we're all about carving out big slabs of orchestral, cinematic pop, and we just can't do that on $2,000 per record."

The Decemberists are just one of many indie-friendly signings over at Capitol of late. In addition to recently picking up ex-Matador act Interpol, Capitol's roster has also been bolstered by singer/songwriter Kevin DeVine, U.K. rap phenom Lily Allen and rock act Sound Team. They join LCD Soundsystem, the Magic Numbers, and Fischerspooner -- all well-reviewed artists who have yet to score any major mainstream success.

"I'm interested in the avant-garde," label president/CEO Andy Slater says. "I wouldn't classify all of this as avant-garde, but I'm interested in things outside the mainstream as well as the mainstream. So I'm lucky that people find Capitol to be a home for their work."

The Decemberists bring to Capitol a solid fan base, with its Kill Rock Stars finale, Picaresque, having sold 123,000 units in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The Crane Wife is a highly anticipated album within the indie-rock world, and has already leaked to file-sharing networks.

As Capitol has been gingerly releasing watermarked copies of the album to the press, it is being dissected track by track on the Web. Meloy saw a similar response unfold with Picaresque, and it has him wondering if the idea of a release date is a bit antiquated.

"When a blog is excited about a record, whether it's a leak or not, it's a good thing," Meloy says. "Release dates might become an ancient apparatus, and it might be something that needs to be torn down and rebuilt. The record is out right now, and I don't know what to do. It's silly and pointless and hypocritical for me to get mad since I use that technology, too."

Capitol head of marketing Sharon Lord says the leak won't affect the label's plans. "This will be a real word-of-mouth record," Lord says. "People will hear this and like it and spread the word."

Slater insists that a significant increase over the sales numbers of Picaresque will not be a measure of the Decemberists' success on Capitol. He points to such current chart hits as Cherish, Letoya and Corinne Bailey Rae, and says the label's mainstream achievements allow Capitol the opportunity to sign more adventurous, underground artists.

"We're lucky that we've had success with enough things that we can invest in the artist community in a certain way," he says. "I didn't necessarily go into this thinking it's going to work on a larger level. I just think this has value and is original. On its best days, a major label has an opportunity to be something like a great art gallery."

~ Todd Martens, Billboard

the Rapture

"Get Myself Into It"
from the album Pieces of the People We Love
2006
iTunes



MP3 - "Get Myself Into It" [right-click/save-as]

Pity the Rapture -- they're damned if they do, and damned if they don't. When it became apparent that they would be leaving the nurturing arms of their formerly symbiotic producers the DFA, many people assumed that the New York four piece would sink, that they'd be nothing without the people who gave them their sound. So it's almost no surprise that it's taken them three years to follow-up Echoes, their much-trumpeted but faintly disappointing major-label debut, a period during which bands like Franz Ferdinand, Bloc Party and Arctic Monkeys have seemingly had entire careers. It must've taken them much of that time just to figure out how to approach their sophomore effort. Repeat the sound of Echoes and be lambasted for not developing? Overhaul their aesthetic and be accused of running away from what made them great in the first place?

The answer, of course, lies somewhere between the two. Teaming up with Bloc Party knob-twiddler Paul Epworth, UK remix guru Ewan Pearson, and the ubiquitous Danger Mouse, the Rapture's third album was written and recorded during gaps in their hectic touring schedule over the last 18 months or so, and you can tell -- Pieces of the People We Love is a record of almost ruthless efficiency, a straight-up, no-nonsense dance attack which suggests that three years of heavy gigging have taught the group exactly how to work a crowd into an adrenalized frenzy.

Lead-off single "Get Myself Into It" is taut, smooth, and ultra-funky, its enormous bass, relentless groove and irresistible horn hook make for probably the Rapture's best single to date, vaguely redolent of Stereo MC's now-ancient classic "Connected."

The problem that will no doubt have people complaining is the album's complete vapidity. "Don Gon Do It" stutters in on backwards loops and super-processed vocals before dropping in some fat bass and retro keys, upon which cue Luke Jenner warbles "High/ High as the sky/ Low/ Low as a ghost/ Purple dragons fly into your eyes/ Milkshake shimmy cry and cry and cry" -- complete and utter nonsense, yes, but with immaculate handclaps and low-end throb. "First Gear" seems to be about nothing other than driving a fast car to a disco. How deep!

Sonically, Pieces is pretty remarkable though -- smoother than you'd ever imagine the Rapture could sound, their cheese-grater guitars sandpapered down to fine, funky upstrokes, while drums thump, bass resonates unbelievably low and far, and layers of micro-percussion and electronic filler maintain a fascistic momentum -- even Jenner's vocals are thankfully lowered a tone or five from the brittle yelp of yore. And yes, there’'s cowbell. The album's also cohesive enough to not feel like the work of three producers, although that may be something to do with the somewhat limited songwriting on show...

"The Sound" is a jarring, schizo-disco episode of history-telling, Jenner warbling about LA, big producers, and looking for "the sound," which the song then slashingly erupts into, while "Live in Sunshine" suffers from exactly the same fault as a handful of tracks from Echoes -- which is that when they slow down and aim for profundity, the Rapture start firing blanks. "Calling Me" winds down in greater style, but much more effective are the likes of the title track and the rather deftly-titled "Whoo! Alright - Yeah... Uh Huh" -- they may be dumb, but they sure are funky.

"People don't dance no more, they just stand there like this, they cross their arms and stare you down and drink and moan and diss," the band observes at one point. It's only nine years since Dismemberment Plan wrote “Doing the Standing Still,” but, y'know… perhaps the kids still need to be told. Pieces of the People We Love is a great funky dance record with guitars, and not much more. Luckily, it doesn't need to be.

~ Nick Southall, Stylus

the Damnwells

"Heartbreaklist"
from the album Air Stereo
2006
iTunes



After garnering critical acclaim with their 2004 major-label debut, Bastards of the Beat, Brooklyn's the Damnwells spent a lot of time on the road. The ups and downs associated with the long-distance love life of a musician are reflected in the band's latest album, Air Stereo. Singer-guitarist Alex Dezen's moody melodies and heartfelt lyrics are smooth enough to touch even the toughest cynic. Dezen obviously has been on the receiving end of a few breakups himself, which he best reflects in "Heartbreaklist" and "Shiny Bruise," songs that both show the singer's jaded outlook.

"Golden Days" (Stereo's first single) and "You Don't Have to Like Me to Love Me" are radio-friendly, summery tunes that venture close to Jackson Browne territory but still retain the band's trademark Americana style. Dezen also injects humor into Air Stereo; on "I've Got You," he sprinkles a few classic song titles into his own work: "I've got you babe/ don't stop believin' babe/ more than a feelin' babe/ I want you to want me babe/ kickstart my heart babe." A tour this year opening for Top 40 darlings the Fray may not be the best influence for the band's continued musical development, but it will undoubtedly give them some well-deserved exposure. With Air Stereo, the Damnwells seem ready for whatever success comes their way.

~ David A. Cobb, Houston Press

Mew

"Special"
from the album And the Glass Handed Kites
2005 (2006 US)
iTunes

Although Sufjan Stevens has ostensibly cornered the market on the "concept album" these days, Mew, a prog rock outfit out of Denmark, is reviving and improving upon the rock opera concept with their latest release, a grandiose -- and often ostentatious -- album that is true to epic form. And the Glass Handed Kites is a dense odyssey that borders on being mathematical with intricate and deliberate compositions and unexpected changes in meter and rhythm.

At times, Mew evokes My Bloody Valentine's characteristic fury of reverb-laden guitar riffs layered over earnest pop melodies. Through all of this carefully calculated commotion, Jonas Bjerre's vocals soar sweetly and majestically, resulting in an equally ethereal -- if not slightly more decipherable -- Sigur Rós lyrical experience.

And the Glass Handed Kites not only pays homage to the gods of prog rock's past by delivering a brand of balls out, full-throttle rock, but it is also an amelioration of generic conventions of both rock and pop, elegantly fusing both into a dark and dreamy atmospheric soundscape. "Circuitry of the Wolf" -- the album's opener -- clambers to a start with rhythm-less cymbal crashes and hesitant guitar squeals, teeming with bottled energy that is finally released when the drums explode into two solid minutes of hard thumping rock sans vocals.

From there And the Glass Handed Kites takes off and never looks back. “Why Are You Looking So Grave?” is a dark yet hauntingly uplifting track that is Mew's nod to early Radiohead's more-rock-less-computers Pablo Honey and The Bends era, while "Special" and "The Zookeeper's Boy" are paradoxically aggressive and docile rock that are threaded with sensitive narrative lyrics and honey drop vocals.

And the Glass Handed Kites is an unabashedly over-the-top and ambitious effort, the innovation of which reminds us that intelligent, calculated rock -- that doesn't take itself too seriously -- still exists.

~ Jenny Miyasaki, SF Station

Beck

"Nausea"
from the album The Information
2006
iTunes

Beck wants to have a little fun with the artwork for his upcoming album, The Information, and he wants his fans to contribute.

The set, due October 3 via Interscope, will feature blank packaging and one of four sets of sticker sheets designed by artists from the United States and Europe, allowing consumers to customize the cover however they wish.

Although details have yet to be announced, a contest is in the works to select the best album cover creation, with final approval coming from Beck himself. Plans also call for displaying the sticker designs at select art galleries.

In addition, The Information will include a video for each of its fifteen tracks, led by a Michel Gondry-directed clip for "Cell Phone's Dead." A video for the thumping first single "Nausea" that incorporates footage from the Beck-scored skateboarding documentary 1st and Hope is already making the rounds on YouTube, but it appears a different video will appear on the DVD.

"Nausea" and album track "Strange Apparition" are now streaming on Beck's website. The project also features such tracks as the echo-laden, psychedelic "Movie Theme," the bass-heavy, Midnite Vultures-esque "1000 BPM," the strummy "No Complaints."

Beck's lone upcoming U.S. show is September 30 at the San Francisco-area edition of the Download Festival, although a fall tour is in the works.

~ Billboard

Division Day

"Colorguard"
from the album Beartrap Island
2006
iTunes

MP3 - "Colorguard" [right-click/save-as]



Division Day's history is filled with lots of quirky events that have only gone on to help shape the band into what they've become today. From moving into the same house without having ever played a note as a band, to traveling all the way to San Francisco to record, Division Day haven't necessarily followed the indie rock template. Those experiences have helped make Division Day truly a band that are far from the norm.

That is especially evident on their latest release, Beartrap Island. Sounding something like Aloha mixed in with a more colorful Elbow or a moodier Doves, Division Day take a sidestep away from writing typical the typical indie rock songs that litter the bins. Instead the band prefers to infuse their songs with obtuse arrangements, that at times hint at jazz while at others hint at a nervous breakdown. The delicate nature in which each song is crafted hints at the deep thought process and the many moods at work here.

Beartrap Island manages to be frail and intricate while remaining interesting and entertaining. The songs seem constantly on the verge of shattering into pieces but are miraculously held together by the bands connectivity to them. The band, it would seem, are the songs' glue and with a exquisite touch they wonder their way through the twelve songs on the album without sending the tunes into little pieces.

As Beartrap Island plays on it becomes glaringly obvious that Division Day understand the nature of being finicky and volatile at the same time. From the nearly bleak, "Dayenu," to the beat driven, "Tap-Tap, Click-Click," Beartrap Island is a record with a delicate heart but a mind that wants something more. It's a record with a lot of sad things to say and plenty of moody musical images to carry those thoughts along. It's a record of hurt, of despair, yet it tries to pull something positive out of all this fragility. Somehow someway, Beartrap Island manages to do that.

Division Day are not the bog standard 21st century indie rock band. Their psychiatric bills are way to expensive for that and Beartrap Island sounds like the result of many hours of therapy. It's a quirky and doleful record, yet it manages to holdfast and pulls something good out of something bad. Beartrap Island wins the listener over because you can't help but cheer for its success. It will tug at your heart, it will make you think, it might even make you cry and that's why one can't help but become attached to it. How many records or bands can you say that about?

~ Paul Zimmerman, First Coast News

Archie Bronson Outfit

"Dart for My Sweetheart"
from the album Derdang Derdang
2006
iTunes

MP3 - "Dart for My Sweetheart" [right-click/save-as]



There's a palpable humidity to London's Archie Bronson Outfit. Their sophomore album Derdang Derdang is a freewheeling, carnal ride through fat cherry lips and love's bloodied claws. "There is this underlying sex in there," admits singerguitarist Sam Windett. "We didn’t want to make it too heavy so we kept some lighter moments but it’s still about the dark and hidden path of relationships."

The trio is comprised of Windett, bassist Dog Hobday and drummer Arp Cleveland, who writes all the lyrics. What you won't find is anyone named Archie Bronson. Windett explains, "It comes from a very old Buffalo Bill comic book a friend gave me years ago. Archie Bronson is a character in one of the stories and he had an outfit of ruffians and cowboys. I saw it and a name was born. People thought we were a jazz band for a while. It's not really a classic rock name."

While their 2004 debut was produced by the Kills’ Jamie Hince, they traveled to Nashville to record the follow-up with Jacquire King (Kings of Leon, Tom Waits, Modest Mouse) at Alex the Great, a studio built by the MC5's Wayne Kramer. Some of the MC5’s brutal spirit permeates the new songs, which also recalls elements of the Black Keys and Public Image Ltd. ABO is a rough cascade that pours out with a desperate howl, the modern descendent of '60s psych-rockers that tore it up at the Fillmore East.

"We all enjoy records where you can hear the atmosphere around them -- field recordings and old blues records," says Windett. "The bones of the songs were recorded live. We gradually started out in different corners with lots of foam around us, protecting each individual sound. Then, we suddenly got rid of all the foam and moved in to a couple of meters of each other. I think it's kind of important for us to record like that."

Derdang Derdangexpands their palette with "bits of clarinet, chorale-y things and gospel-y stuff." As far as the title's concerned, Windett comments, "It doesn't really mean anything. It’s an onomatopoeia for guitar strings, strumming and going 'derdang, derdang.' Maybe it'll become a household expression for geek girls. [laughs] We wanted a name people could query over and bring their own meanings to. Some people think it sounds quite German. I quite like names like that. I've always loved that [Sonic Youth] record Goo. It can mean something to the band but it's one of those words that quite nonsensical."

Change is the only constant in their sound, something Windett says will continue. "We talk about never repeating ourselves, never doing the same album twice. It's always sad when bands do that. It's always kind of evolved but I don't know where it's going. It's more interesting to go to one extreme or another rather than do the same thing again."

~ Dennis Cook, Harp Magazine

Small Sins

"Stay"
from the album Small Sins
2006
iTunes

There seem to be lots of fairytales of late of one-man bands taking their bedroom demos to a whole new level, adding a full band and record label to their already well crafted songs. Canada's Small Sins could be one of those bands.

Thomas D'Arcy named his band Small Sins after his old band's record title. The songs on Small Sins' debut self-titled release are a collection of songs recorded by D'Arcy, who wrote the songs, played all the instruments, and sang. The addition of a band has made things "fun" for D'Arcy, as he says a dozen times in the band's MySpace bio.

As for the music, you could compare Small Sins to Death Cab for Cutie. Sensitive acoustic guitars and ultra-emo vocals a la Death Cab's Ben Gibbard describe Small Sin's music in a pinch. The lyrics are uber love letter quality (or hate letter depending on your interpretation). "You can stay if you want to," sings D'Arcy on "Stay" in a chorus of harmonized voices, "but you can't sleep in my bed."

On "She's the Source," D'Arcy splashes on guitar country slides and thickens the Death Cab vibe. D'Arcy introduces us with more detail to the girl who broke his heart. "That little junkie girl/ You're playing right into her hand you know." On "Small Sins Big Within," the keyboard effects are at large, and give more of a Postal Service effect. Nothing but keyboards and drums lace this track as D'Arcy convinces himself that his love is dead.

The final track, "Threw It All Away," is more brooding lyrics and sadness. D'Arcy sings the true words of a musician; "All of my friends have no direction/ They've stopped dreaming of more." I don't think D'Arcy has thrown it all away as he says, though his emo soul has told him so. Small Sins, signed to Astralwerks (along with many a band that they'd fit too well with as an opening act) are well on their way to something big.

Another bedroom demo fairy tale realized.

~ ES, MySpace Music Review

Oneida

"Up With People"
from the album Happy New Year
2006
iTunes

MP3 - "Up With People" [right-click/save-as]



Reflecting the cyclical nature of earth and life itself, Oneida's eighth full-length album Happy New Year presents ideas of death and rebirth, and the continuity, and yet tenuousness, of existence. It's a poetic work of circling guitars and melodic phrases and vocal lines repeating and layered like monastic chants. "Up with People" and "History's Great Navigators" offer suggestions for improvement as the band grooves along with quick drums and purposeful noise; it's all very much planned, controlled, with Oneida, acting as Virgil, guiding listeners along. Though the screeches and rumblings that occur in some of the songs may occasionally seem arbitrary -- though as an album, Happy New Year is much less hard than what the band has previously produced -- in fact, everything is very tightly contained. The idea of messiness is only put there to add effect, not because Oneida are losing control of their message and their statement. The record may not promise happiness or salvation, but it does propose ideas that can be contemplated in the time between the winding melodies and riffs, and perhaps one day, we too, like the Pilgrim, can continue on alone.

~ Marisa Brown, All Music Guide

Placebo

"Infra-Red"
from the album Meds
2006
iTunes



They are undoubtedly one of British rock's international success stories but Placebo seem to almost slip under the "Cool Radar" every single time they release a record. The London trio have achieved a notable and prolonged career by maintaining their ability to progress just enough from the last album, be it in style or quality, to keep their existing fanbase happy while still providing something a bit different.

Meds's pseudo-goth indie-pop treads a familiar path, its reasonably standard mixture of radio-friendly songs ranging from the fast-stomping keyboard-led numbers to the heartstring-tugging, slow almost-ballads. There is the odd track, such as "Space Monkey," that shows a bit of experimentation and this is no accident. Interestingly sampling their own back catalogue ("Leni"), this electronically-styled song is reminiscent of Bauhaus, and while it shows no shift in focus, their willingness to test new waters is reassuring in this world of bland assembly-line music.

Placebo's work has definitely progressed solidly over the past decade gaining intricacy and improving the level of songwriting immeasurably from the days of the simple classic "Nancy Boy" (from 1996's Placebo). Sadly Brian Molko's lyrics have not matched the same level of advancement, and so we still have to bear witness to his implementation of some ridiculous rhyming strategies in his songwriting. The entirety of the ambling "Follow the Cops Back Home" results in the goth dwarf ending each line of every verse in something that fits in with the Jimmy Choo/ Shampoo/ You/ Through/ etc style. It starts to grate after a while.

Luckily, there are also tracks like "Infra-Red" and "Post Blue" in attendance. They are the kind of tracks that really remind you of what classic Placebo is all about: a stomping rhythm section features throughout while Molko's laconic, disinterested vocal style only really comes alive during the invigorating chorus. When you consider the quality of the duets as well –- VV from the Kills and Michael Stipe –- it shows the esteem that their peers hold them in. Indeed, Stipe's gentle appearance on "Broken Promise" is both eerie and calming at once, his warm voice complementing Molko's nasal whine perfectly as the song repeatedly erupts into an explosive chorus.

While there is nothing even marginally groundbreaking here, Placebo have still returned with another steady record in Meds. Building on their past fortunes without too much expectation or discomfort, this is a band who know their weaknesses, but ultimately this is a band that knows their own strengths, however limited they may be, and they display them with an adequate execution.

~ Raziq Rauf, Drowned in Sound

the Colour

"Devil's Got a Holda Me"
from the EP Devil's Got a Holda Me
2006
iTunes

At the start of this year the Colour packed up and left beautiful Southern California in order to record a new album in Tennessee. Now here's a band with some promise; not only is this EP the perfect teaser to what I hope is a stellar album, but they even transform well live. However, the story that goes behind their live show will be saved for another time.

The Devil's Got a Holda Me EP shows that the Colour know how to learn from their influences and transform that knowledge into their own style of modern delta blues rock 'n' roll that's preached out in stereo. Tracks like "Chariot of Gold" and "Devil's Got a Holda Me" can keep any dance floor grooving and any car stereo at full volume. "Save Yourself" took a few spins to blossom into a regularly repeated track, but in retrospect how can you turn away from these lyrics "Tell me how are you gonna save me, when you can't save yourself"?

This four-track EP is a fabulous glance into the Colour's upcoming release Between Earth & Sky (due out January 2007) and is available now on iTunes and in stores everywhere.

~ Chelsea Schwartz, High Voltage Magazine

Camera Obscura

"Lloyd, I'm Ready to Be Heartbroken"
from the album Let's Get Out of This Country
2006
iTunes

MP3 - "Lloyd, I'm Ready to Be Heartbroken" [right-click/save-as...]

On their first two albums, Glasgow six-piece Camera Obscura drew entirely justified and, but for the occasional "twee" tag, mostly favorable comparisons to Belle & Sebastian, Glasgow's other indie-pop band to specialize in melancholy, grandiose retro-styled pop songs. Their third full-length album, Let's Get Out of This Country, finds Camera Obscura stepping out from the considerable shadow cast by Stuart Murdoch and pals, brimming with a newfound confidence and a bolder, more ambitious sonic palette than they've heretofore displayed. Working with producer Jari Haapalainen (who produced the Concretes' devilishly catchy throwback of a self-titled record), the band still looks to the 1960s for their songs' basic frames, but their songs are no longer retro simply for the sake of being retro. Instead, songwriter and frontwoman Tracyanne Campbell taps into the sad undercurrent in the songs of Lloyd Cole and Connie Francis, giving the 10 songs she's written for Let's Get Out of This Country a singular vision. Backed by the lush, atmospheric arrangements, standout tracks like "Country Mile" and lead single "Lloyd, I'm Ready To Be Heartbroken" run from devastating to arch, all while capturing the same desire to flee from a love gone wrong. While the songs are undeniably beautiful and even fun, the music provides a vital balance to the album's substantial thematic heft, and it's that combination that makes Let's Get Out of This Country one of the year's best pop albums.

~ Jonathan Keefe, Slant Magazine