album three

EDWARD SHARPE & THE MAGNETIC ZEROS

favorite tracks:
Remember to Remember
Please!

full stream at NPR

ALBUM REVIEW: mylo xyloto

Ten years ago, who would of thought Coldplay would go mainstream- singing songs with Rihanna and Jay-Z and playing all over American television like Ellen Degeneres and The Today Show? A lot of followers and indie-hipsters may be turned off by this. But I must say that after album numero cinco--Mylo Xyloto-- I still love 'em. 

When I first heard the track featuring Rihanna (without the aid of the rest of the album) my ears began to bleed profusely. And I said to myself “why Coldpay? Why?” But the key to listening to  Mylo Xyloto is playing it straight from start to finish. Listen to it as a whole. That’s Coldplay's gift. They are able to create cohesive albums that flow from beginning to end. The theme of this album... not sure yet, but I now love the Rihanna song!

The truth is that if you’re asking for the old Coldplay you won’t get it. Elements of older sounds are evident but it's clear that they've grown. Music changes. Artists have the right to explore and experiment with new sounds. Coldplay have been doing just that but without going overboard. Mylo Xyloto is no Parachutes or Viva La Vida but its just as pleasing. I give it an 8/10.

favorite tracks: hurts like heaven, paradise, U.F.O., up in flames

ALBUM REVIEW: metals

Autumn arose and consolidated itself into Feist's Metals. It may not look like fall in south Texas but listening to Metals puts me in the autumn mood. Orange leaves, cool breezes, and all that autumn brings. Pop the tunes and suddenly I'm blind to clear blue skies and extra green vegetation- let alone the heat.

The sounds of tracks 1-12 range from folk-esque guitar strumming to uplifting choirs to a male shouting "A COMMOTION!" But don't expect Feist to make you get up and dance. These tunes are for the lethargic couch potato that yearns for not gallons but ounces of enthusiasm. I guess that's why I associate this album with autumn. Autumn has that lethargic vibe to it. Once lively leaves will begin to rot. Nature slows down. Metals will slow you down without bringing you to a complete stop. Songs like "the bad in each other" and "how come you never go there" contain enough of that vigor to keep you going. For fans of calming music and simple yet intricate melodies Metals is the answer. I give it a 9/10.

favorite tracks: the bad in each other, anti-pioneer, comfort me

ALBUM REVIEW: Portamento

 Two words for The Drums album numero deux... nailed it!

favorite tracks: days, what you were, money, hard to love

THE DRUMS - "DAYS" LIVE AT KCRW (2011)

ALBUM REVIEW: ritual union

Ritual Union by Little Dragon

I randomly came across Ritual Union today. The full-length album is featured on spinner.com's listening party, which you can still listen to now! All-in-all Little Dragon have created a compilation of feel good music. My very cool, extra-bass, over-the-ear headphones make the listening experience all more enjoyable. If you're into pop-hooks and die-hard electro-beats then you might find this album to be a 9/10.

FAVORITE TRACKS: ritual union, little man, please turn, crystalfilm, nightlight, summertearz, seconds

ALBUM REVIEW: unknown mortal orchestra

Unknown Mortal Orchestra is a Portland, Oregon band consisting of Ruban Neilson, Jake Portrait (bass), and Julien Ehrlich (drums). Listening to Unknown Mortal Orchestra's self-titled debut album, has been quite an experience. All I can say is that this album is too cool. I fell in love with 8/10 songs. I could probably listen to "Ffunny Friends" and "Little Blue House" non-stop for the next few weeks. Does this album stray far from anything you've ever listened to? Probably not, but it is definitely out there. And it is definitely on my top albums of 2011 list. Lately I've been too lazy to stream full-length albums, but something about Unknown Mortal Orchestra's sound made it difficult for me to put it aside. In the words of Unknown Mortal Orchestra, "I'm a smiling alligator" (track 3). I give it an 8/10. Stream it over at spin!

favorite tracks: Ffunny friends, Jello Juggemauts, Little Blu House

ALBUM REVIEW: cults

Brian Oblivion and Madeline Follin are the duo that make up New York band Cults. Their self-titled album Cults is set to be released June 7, 2011 and they already have a large fan-base. This duo makes cute pop music. But it’s a sort of old-school kind of pop. Cults music is the kind of pop that would appear in a compilation album with “the best of the 60s.” Their sound is definitely old school-ish. Perhaps it’s her sweet voice. From start to finish their debut album is very enjoyable. The catchy opening track, “abducted,” is reminiscent to the Supremes “where did our love go.” Track 3, “you know what I mean,” is slow, soothing, and romantic like The Flamingo’s “I only have eyes for you,” while track 10 “bumper” is hip with a shake your bum bum--old school style--vibe. Cults couldn’t have picked a better time to release this charming pop album. It will definitely be on repeat this summer. I give it a 9/10. Listen to the whole album at npr.org for a limited time.

Favorite tracks: abducted, you know what I mean, never saw the point, bumper

for those who like: Generationals, The Supremes, Camera Obscura, Tennis, Lesley Gore <<[according to guardian mag... and after listening to her song "you don't own me" I would agree]

ALBUM REVIEW: torches

California band, Foster the People, has been in the minds of many music bloggers and indie radio dj's for the very catchy dance-pop song, “pumped up kicks.” Their debut full-length album, Torches, was released on Tuesday May 24th featuring the popular tune. Upon first listen (via spinner.com) I was not the biggest fan of the album as a whole. Of course the album has its “ups” but it has its equal share of “downs”. Maybe it is because the music is very mainstream pop. In other words… nothing new. The album starts off with probably the best two songs of the entire album “helena beat” and “pumped up kicks.” It is easy to get bored after track 4. Track 7, “houdini,” is comparable to Gavin DeGraw’s “I don’t want to be,” otherwise known as the One Tree Hill theme song. The last track “warrant” features a cool ascending melody. Overall, the album is not bad. I wouldn’t mind listening to Torches a couple of more times, but eventually I know I would get bored with it because the sound can be repetitive. From a scale of 1-10 I give it a 5.95.

favorite tracks: helena beat, pumped up kicks, call it what you want, warrant

ALBUM REVIEW: heartbreaker

Automatic Weekend is my favorite hometown band. The band is: Adrian (vocals/guitar), Josh (bass), and Sergio (drums). Their cd release party occurred yesterday, Friday May 13th. The cd titled, Heartbreaker, features ten tracks of solid blues-rock music. Vocalist, Adrian Romanos, has a voice perfectly suitable to their garage-rock sound. Automatic Weekend percussion--which is disputably my favorite element of rock music--and bass riffs are flawlessly cool. Track 6, titled "take good care" is Automatic Weekend at its best. But just attend one of their live shows and see how hard it is choose your favorite song. Heartbreaker is far from being a disappointment. From a scale of 1-10 I give it an 8.7.

Favorite Tracks: daddy's litte girl, take good care, heartbreaker, lying eyes

ALBUM REVIEW: gimme some

Pb&j's third full length has a cool vibe. I've been listening to it for 4 days now via the internet. Total score 7.3. Gimme Some features catchy tracks that will surely circulate the web like wild fire all the way through summer. Overall, it is an upbeat album with fast paced drums and assertive guitar riffs. You won't find a "young folks" type of song here, but you will find its evil twin "down like me" which features sentimental lyrics about low self-esteem. Gimme Some is a cool breeze to a hot sunny day but don't expect to stay cool the entire time. Some tracks (in my case "breaker breaker" and "lies") might make you sweat uncomfortably leaving you praying for the next breeze.

Favorite Tracks: second chance, eyes, don't let them (cool off), I know you don't love me

ALBUM REVIEW: actor-caster



     I don't know if its my natural intuitive love for the Generationals but Actor-Caster--the Generationals sophmore album-- is top notch. From a 1-10 scale I give it a 9.2. Am I being biased? Maybe. Generationals have not lost their talent or style. "The Gens" are on a roller-coaster but they aren't going downhill. Actor-Caster is so good that "the gens" can keep climbing up the x&y graph. Exponential growth here! Not an ounce of dissapointment came over me as I listened to Generationals' follow-up album. If anything I sometimes thought "what!?... wow did they just go there?" but then after those thoughts I would think "they sure nailed it!" Take track 3, "yours forever," it features electronic synth sounds: as you listen to it you might wonder if the internet messed things up and changed up the artists on the playlist for Yeasayer , Ruby Suns or Million Young but then you know you're wrong when you hear Ted Joyner's voice. Generationals maintain their quirky style in tracks like "you say it too" which features some ooh-wee-ooh-wee-ooh's mimicking the sounds of the theme song of The Good the Bad and the Ugly. All I know is that I can't wait to acquire a hard-copy so that I can stream it all day long and everywhere I go. The former comment probably convinced you that I am totally biased but seriously Actor-Caster features ten good uplifting songs.


Favorite Tracks: ten-twenty ten, you say it too, dirty mister dirty, greenleaf, please be it


The album is officially out March 29 (Park the Van Records) but you can stream the entire album here (KCRW's website) or here (AOL listening party) for a limited time.

ALBUM REVIEW: wounded rhymes



Lykke Li's sophmore album, Wounded Rhymes, was available for full streaming exactly two weeks ago via SoundCloud making this album review way overdue. But I did however get the chance to spend more time with the songs and repeat the tracks I liked most. So overall I gave Lykke Li's Wounded Rhymes a 6.68 out of 10. So there are a lot of great songs on this album but there are also songs that are passable like "jerome" and "silent my song" which could be easily skipped for catchier tracks like "get some" and "I know places." The song that bears the album name is the sweet melody called "sadness is a blessing" in which Lykke Li sings "my wounded rhymes make solid cries tonight." In terms of diversity Wounded Rhymes nails it. If you're looking to be consoled by a sad song or looking to get up and dance or in the mood for a poetic song with great lyrics then you will find what you're looking for in this album.

Favorite Tracks: Love out of lust, Get Some, Sadness is a blessing, I Know Places

***You can still listen to the entire album here.

I Know Places

 I Know Places - Lykke Li by lilapit

ALBUM REVIEW: the king of limbs

I'll make this quick. Radiohead's newest release is transcendental and dynamic. As a whole the album is diverse with some instrumental tracks. "Codex" is a song adequate for the soundtrack to a melancholy day while "Lotus Flower" is fueled with energy. From the echoes of Thom Yorke's voice to the fast-paced percussion, The King of Limbs ceases to disappoint. Is it their best? Maybe not. Is it executed wonderfully? Yes. From a scale of 1-10 I give it an 8.4.

Favorite Tracks: Little by Little, Lotus Flower, Codex, Give up the Ghost

***Bored?Listen to the entire album for a limited time here. Enjoy.
***By-the-way, the album art is pretty.

ALBUM REVIEW: desert etiquette



Floating Action is a band from Black Mountain, North Carolina. Their latest release is Desert Etiquette. I don't know much about Floating Action's music other than the catchy song "don't stop loving me now" [click the link for a listen on youtube.com].

My impression of the album ... cool. From a scale of 1-10 I give it a 9.3. There are many interesting sounds from start to finish. Like the sitar in the entrance song "well hidden" or the playful glockenspiel sounds of "modern gunslinger." Its a relaxing listen. In spite of the calming sounds Desert Etiquette keeps me awake. There are hints of quirky soulful blues as in "the balance" and the closing song "rogue river." This album sounds like a late afternoon at the desert. As the day begins to close, you rest against your vehicle and stare at the western sky as the earth revolves around its axis. Goodbye sun.

Favorite Tracks: well hidden, the balance, modern gunslinger, ambientador, rogue river

***Bored? listen to the entire album at: http://floatingactionmusic.bandcamp.com/

ALBUM REVIEW: the people's keys



I don't know much about Bright Eyes other than that one song "bowl of oranges." So I thought I'd check out their tenth studio album release since it was available on NPR. From a scale of 1-10 I give it a... 6.1634. The coolest thing about The People's Keys is the discourse at the beginning, middle, and end. The male speaker says things about sumerian aliens, the cosmos, and knowledge. The songs aren't dissapointing either, some of the better songs on this album feature catchy percussion beats (one for you one for me), and classic/gothic piano (ladder song). Conor Oberst's voice isn't the most beautiful out there but he can definitely carry a song, like in "haile selassie." I reccomend this album to anybody, but especially to those of you in an inbetween state of mind. If you're neither zealous nor lethargic then this album will fit your needs.

Favorite tracks: shell games, haile selassie, ladder song, one for you one for me

The People's Keys can be heard in its entirety for a limited time at npr.org.

ALBUM REVIEW: barton hollow

Barton Hollow by The Civil Wars

From a scale of 1-10 I give it a 8.01. This is really good stuff. Reminiscent of Robert Plant and Alisson Krauss grammy award winning Raising Sand. I hear a bit of Celine Dion's voice. Barton Hollow is relaxing, it's calming, and its not boring (although it can be if you're in the mood for upbeat music). This is the soundtrack to your trip back from a busy day in the city. Pop and play this album during a two-hour drive back home and feel like you are floating as you pass through the rural landscape and the car bounces up and down as the black-paved highway curves inward and outward. I am impressed. I feel this duo has the chemistry of Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová of the Swell Season. Not only are the voices of this female/male duo pleasing but so are the instrumental piano/guitar solos, such as the one in "the violet hour."

Favorite Tracks: 20 Years, My Father's Father, The Violet Hour, Falling

ALBUM REVIEW: cloud nothings

• Scale of entire album from 1-10..... 3.79.
• first impression: noisy, a bit annoying. So far this[ :S ] is what I feel for tracks 1-2. 
• Track 3: its like something you'd hear in a  90's teen movie in the scene when the kids are entering the school, and the cheerleaders are doing back flips in the entrance and then the camera comes in at the average joe that is about to undergo a monumental moment that will be the highlight of his adolescence. Sounds like teenage rebellion. 
• Track 4: mainstream alternative/rock, nothing new. 
• Track 5: again i'm getting that old/late 90's rock vibe. And i'm hoping that it won't come back. I never was into that music. It makes me anxious like "get me out of this car now! I can't breathe" anxious. 
• Track 6: kind of grows on me, except when it says "i don't have a heartbeat why don't you" over and over again! Then I start disliking this album again. 
• Track 7: I like. Fun, seems true, sounds raw, especially the voice.
• Track 8: bearable, probably rocks live. 
• Track 9: annoying! But the track does get kind of better after the first half. I'm feeling this. Again music of the immature teenage rebel.
• Track 10: nothing new.... not eargasmic.... just there. I mean props for the artist, he's a talented multi-instrumentalist but I'm just not into the music. 
• Track 11: closing track... the song hasn't even started and I'm excited that i'll be able to move on to the next cd. Again nothing new.... please get me out of the 90's now.
• ALL IN ALL... I'm sure it sounds great live but I don't think i'll be buying this cd or mp3 album because i'd be shaking my leg the whole time, eager to listen to something new and less monotone. I don't understand, is this the same artist that released "Hey Cool Kid"? Now that's a song I like. I'm disappointed with the album because it's not what I expected.

favorite tracks: understand at all, rock

ALBUM REVIEW: cape dory

Tennis' debut album, Cape Dory, was released today, Tuesday 1/18 via Fat Possum Records. I have not bought it, however, thanks to spinner.com I can stream the whole album for free. So far I have played the album from start to finish three times and its two thumbs way up. From a scale of 1-10 I give it an 9.49. There's something about her voice that makes me want to keep listening. I also like that the songs are upbeat but kind of mellow at the same time. I was a bit surprised to see that the track "Baltimore" was slightly altered. The tempo was turned down a few notches and it's not as noisy as the original version. It's certainly not a disappointment. Listen to Cape Dory while surfing the web, doing math homework, looking through magazines, driving through town, painting your nails, or getting through another day of work, and you'll see that it was worth the listen. Cape Dory equals ten tracks of musical bliss.

Favorite tracks: take me somewhere, cape dory, marathon, pigeon, baltimore

Listen to Cape Dory for a limited time at spinner.com.

http://www.spinner.com/new-releases#/5

ALBUM REVIEW: dye it blonde

I am browsing the web as I listen to Smith Western's sophomore album Dye it Blonde. So far so good. Smith Western's signature guitar style is evident across the entire album. It's a repeat worthy album for sure. I give it a 7/10. I'm really liking the fast paced track "dance away." I like the diversity in this album. Its not just a compilation of ten songs that sound like "weekend." Each song stands apart. I guarantee that I will be able to identify them by ear after six listens.

favorite tracks: weekend, still new, all die young, only one, smile, dance away, dye in the world

Listen to the entire album at NPR for a limited time.
http://www.npr.org/2011/01/09/132715250/first-listen-smith-westerns-dye-it-blonde

ALBUM REVIEW: Come around sundown

As I do my homework I am listening to the new Kings of Leon album titled Come Around Sundown which was just released Tuesday October 19. Right now I am on the 10th track out of 13. From what i've heard so far I'll give it a 6.5 out of 10. Its good but not spectacular. I'm not hearing anything that makes me go WOW, as I reacted the first time I heard their third release Because of the Times. But I don't want to be a hater cause there's no doubt that these guys are talented and there are some good songs on here. Although, they aren't songs that I'm dying to download because I must have them on my ipod.

Favorite tracks: Back Down South, Beach Side, Pony Up, Mi Amigo

*album can be heard at spinner.com for a limited time