What music are you listening to?

[RPS]

Kaiser Chiefs

Yours Truly, Angry Mob

5.5/10

I really like the Kaiser Chiefs. Scratch that. I REALLY like certain songs by the Kaiser Chiefs. Songs like Ruby, Angry Mob, The Heat Dies are great examples of dance-orientated music. But there albums are stock full of filler. Doesn't really matter, I still love them regardless, just I'd never buy one of their albums.

Sleater-Kinney

The Woods

9.5/10

Amazing rock and roll record, from top to bottom. It is good they broke up, because their is NO way in hell they could follow this up. Lets Call It Love, an over 10 minute love song, is a classic alongside Stairway to Heaven. Too bad that these guys are chicks, otherwise they'd be hailed as the saviors of rock and roll.

[ROC]

Timbaland Presents: Shock Value - 4/10

The ultimate in top 40 pop producers, Timbaland provides an ultimately unsatisfying record for those who took notice of him in the past for his production work. To Timba's credit, he does an alright job on the production side (though, he practically has to). There are a lot of tracks that bring out some of the better elements in pop top 40 production. Unfortunately, none of the songs showcase any bit of the charm that his efforts with Justin Timberlake and Nelly Furtado held on to. Timbaland's main interest is mainly talking up his producer game and using that to make for his apparent lack of rapping skills. He just doesn't have the credible voice of a lead artist. Add to the fact that his "rock" numbers with The Hives, She Wants Revenge, and Fall Out Boy do not work at all. When the record's shining moment comes from a song featuring Tony Yayo and 50 Cent ("Come and Get Me"), there's a massive problem here, a problem that Shock Value is too ingrained in indulgences to notice.

Good Tracks: "Come and Get Me (featuring Tony Yayo and 50 Cent)", "Miscommunication (featuring Keri Hilson and Sebastian)"

[slain]

One X- Three Days Grace- Probably one of the best albums I've bought in the past year, although it does get boring after listening to it as much as I have. I recommend it to anyone trying to get into Three Days Grace 8.5/10

Three Days Grace-Three Days Grace- Probably better than One X, but only by a little bit. This one has so many hits on it, it's an unbelievable album, a must buy for any fan of these guys. 9/10

[ROC]

Menomena - Friend and Foe - 7.5/10

2006 and 2007 has become a radical time for progressive indie with groups like TV on the Radio, Tapes 'n' Tapes, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, and now Menomena gaining solid fanbases. And in the case of Menomena's latest Friend and Foe, there is a damn good reason for this fan attention. Lead track "Muscle'N Flo" brings on a TV on the Radio with softer tones vibe to their music. This type of progressive intensity is scattered in many pieces throughout the album, including stand-outs like "Wet and Rusting", "Boyskouts Sweetboyskouts", and "Evil Bee". If there is one dire flaw, it's that the record's solid tracks are great, but almost not that memorable, and while it's hard to compare one group to another, this doesn't have the killer track that say TV on the Radio's disc had to really suck you in. Maybe I'm a bit overcritical because this is fantastic music, and ultimately Friend and Foe is a worthy listen especially if you are a fan of progressive indie.

Best Tracks: "Muscle 'n Flo", "Evil Bee", "West", "Boyskouts Sweetboyscouts", "Wet and Rusting"

Edited March 27, 2007 by ROC

[OGpistolpete]

Feel Good Lost by Broken Social Scene

[RPS]

LCD Soundsystem

Sound of Silver

8.5/10

Best way for me to describe this record is the dance record just about anyone can get into. I am pretty sure my parents would dig this shit if I played it for them. Heck, my little bro would love this. Its total dance rock. Take indie rock and mix some dance beats with some pretty useless lyrics and my fucking money maker is shaking. This isn't without its bombs though. A few tracks (Someone Great and All My Friends) just seem out of place and awkward. North American Scum, however, is the new song of my life. If this was two songs shorter, it'd be perfect. Perhaps one of the most perfect dance records of all time.

[Tarheels.]

Billy Talent

Billy Talent II- 8.5/10

Very good album. It's got a LOT of solid tracks, but quite a few fillers in my opinion too. It took me a while to get to this one, I've had it on iTunes for awhile but never really gave it a proper run through aside from the ocasional Devil In A Midnight Mass, but theres much more great songs on it too. I'm looking around for their first cd too, so hopefully its as good as this one.

Standout Tracks: Fallen Leaves, Red Flag, Devil In A Midnight Mass, This Suffering, Pins and Needles

[ROC]

Amy Winehouse - Back to Black - 8/10

The British bitch invasion that began with ringtone maestro Lady Sovereign and Lily Allen in late 2006 manages to get its freshest light in dirty soul artist Amy Winehouse. Back to Black is her second record stateside and easily is a more listenable album on first play than either Sovereign or Allen's efforts, not to mention the hoards of "pop princesses" who profess a dirty image but bring none of the goods. Winehouse's persona of a drunk promiscuous woman trapped in the body of a 50s soul crooner works in spades here. It helps that the lyrics feel very personal to Winehouse, to the point of admitting her own flaws and not apologizing for her bawdy manner. Most importantly, her voice fits along with the jazz and soul ballads, which are beautifully instrumented. Admittedly, this will only appeal to those willing to buy the old soul callbacks and get over Winehouse's media persona, but if you can, take the trip because Winehouse will send you on the trip through hell Lily Allen wished she sent you through first.

Solid Tracks: "Me and Mr. Jones (Fuckery)", "Tears Dry On Their Own", "Addicted", "Some Unholy War", "Rehab"

[Rashid]

Pink Floyd - The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn: 9.5/10

I wasn't expecting early Pink Floyd to be this awesome. Lyrically, this one of my favourite albums. Very light hearted, very fun to listen to. 'Bike' is my 2nd favourite Floyd song (just behind 'Comfortably Numb'), it's just amazing.

[Turbo Yannis]

"You're a Woman, I'm a Machine" - Death From Above 1979

My review:

[ROC]

"You're a Woman, I'm a Machine" - Death From Above 1979

My review:

[Steeb]

Silverchair - Young Modern

Upon hearing 'All Across The World', I thought this would be a terrible, terrible album. Upon hearing 'Straight Lines' I was sure of it. I had low expectations for this album after that. However, it pleased me. It's a good album. It's not really 'like' them, but it is a really good, accessible but interesting album.

The problem is that it's following Diorama, possibly their finest album. Which just means it pales in comparison.

7.5/10

Maybe it'll grow on me.

[Rashid]

Pink Floyd - Meddle: 7.5/10

Kind of a let down. Of the 6 songs, there's not one that's really superb. 'One of these days' is probably the best song on the album, it's great. 'A pillow of winds', 'Fearless' and 'San Tropez' are all pretty good. 'Seamus' is mediocre, the weakest song on the album. 'Echoes' was good but let me down. I love 'Shine on you crazy diamond' so I now Floyd can do really long songs that are amazing. But 'Echoes' has many boring moments.

[ROC]

Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank - 8/10

To no one's surprise, Modest Mouse's first disc post-mainstream success, is a rousing sales success, debuting at #1 and lead single "Dashboard" making rock radio its bitch. But what's more surprising is just how good the record is. There's just more awesome shit thrown into the mix and anyone, even the most pretentious cynic, would be hard pressed to find a Modest Mouse in as good a form as they are here. As the album opens with "March Into The Sea", a much more vocal Isaac Brock sings his lungs out in a deliberate effort to avoid sounding "mainstream". He croons and shouts like no one else here, and his lyrics have a pop charm, but are smoother and dare I say better than most of the Good News album, especially "Fire It Up", "Florida", "Fly Trapped in a Jar", and "Education". That's not to say Good News was bad but to say that WWDBTSES impresses from beginning to end. The album's only problem is that the tracks do seem to be forgettable here and there, but at least it is cohesive and it's certainly an easy listen.

Key Tracks: "Education", "Fly Trapped In A Jar", "Steam Engenius", "Fire It Up", "Florida", "Dashboard"

[Ananas]

Abdominal - Escape From the Pigeon Hole - 8.5/10

I don't usually give ratings, but holy shit, I needed to drive home that this is going to be one of the best hip-hop records of the year. I've been waiting for the Abs full length since DJ Format's "Vicious Battle Raps", and although I don't think their are any songs that awesome, his performance is just amazing. The 16 bar verse in one breath on "Breathe Later" is an amazing moment, and Abs' creative and interesting rhymes establish him as one of Canada's most talented MC's. It doesn't hurt that he's also a friend of some of the best DJ's in hip-hop, with production work from DJ Fase, DJ Format and Cut Chemist lining 6 of the album's 14 tracks. A breath of fresh air in an indie scene that takes itself way too seriously.

Best Tracks: "Breathe Later", "T-Ode", "Radio Friendly", "Abdominal Workout", "Open Relationship"

[ClaRK! Kent]

Various Artists - Garden State Soundtrack

Yummy. This is possibly the most awesome mix tape I've come across in the past... God knows how long. It's a really good selection of songs, all well-paced and placed, I believe in chronological order from the film but they seem to flow on disc very well too. Right from the word go you're battered over your noggin with sweet tune after sweet tune, ranging from Coldplay's only touching song through to the acoustic vulnerability of Simon and Garfunkel, on the way taking in the soulful crystalline sound of Zero 7, the lollipop weirdness of The Shins, and the mastery of all things that is Nick Drake.

A fantastic album in its own right, and a great soundtrack. 8/10

[ZJ Penn]

Just managed to get hold of 'The Best Of Blur' 'Language, Sex, Violence, Other' from the Stereophonics and 'Tea For The Tillerman' by Cat Stevens. All for a combined £15 so even if they're duff it won't be that bad. I'll edit my opinions in later.

[ROC]

Dntel - Dumb Luck - 7.5/10

Jimmy Tamborello resurrects the Dntel name for his latest record, another electronica-meets-indie type affair and one that hits more than misses. First, the misses. Well, Conor Oberst sucks so naturally "Breakfast in Bed" is hardly a great track. "Natural Resources" also sort of falls apart. However, Tamborello's record has some fantastic songs tucked away, including "Rock My Boat", "Roll On" (the track with Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley ), and the album's smooth finale "Dreams". Ultimately, the nine-track effort works. Now, Mr. Tamborello, go team up with Gibbard again and give us more damn Postal Service!

Key Tracks: "Roll On (featuring Jenny Lewis)", "Rock My Boat (featuring Mia Doi Todd)", "The Distance (featuring Arthur & Yu)", "Dreams (featuring Mystic Chords of Memory)", "To A Fault (featuring Grizzly Bear)"

[Rashid]

Rob Zombie - Hellbilly Deluxe: 8/10

-A great hard rock album. Contains one of my favourite intros to an album ever. 'Dragula', 'Superbeast', 'Living Dead Girl' and 'Demonoid Phenomenon' are the highlights.

Rob Zombie - American Made Music To Strip By: 7.5/10

-Very good, but just unnecessary.

Rob Zombie - The Sinister Urge: 8/10

-The songs aren't as well known as the ones on Hellbilly Deluxe, but their just as good. 'Never Gonna Stop', 'Feel So Numb', and 'Scum of the Earth' are the highlights.

Rob Zombie - Educated Horses: 7.5/10

-'Foxy Foxy', '17 Year Locust', 'American Witch', and 'Scorpion Sleeps' are all great songs. The 2 instrumentals are decent, but kind of slow the album down. The remaining 5 songs are pretty good.

[ClaRK! Kent]

Goldfrapp - Black Cherry

Had this one on whilst just generally mucking about this evening, having not really listened to it in a while. I've been getting into Zero 7 and the 'softer' side of electro-pop for a while, so it was very refreshing to go back to what is frankly Goldfrapp's best album. Felt Mountain, whilst it does have some of their best songs on it (Utopia and Paper Bag to name just two) just doesn't have the production values that Black Cherry does, whilst Supernature is somewhat overblown and is almost suffering from 'difficult second album' syndrome, which they seem to have had postponed... by God. Yeah, God held off the creative rut long enough to kick Allison and Will in the butt and get them to produce possibly the most gorgeous, lick-filled album the genre has ever seen. It's that good.

From the moment that Crystalline Green starts up, you know you're in for a fucking awesome ride. This has some of the best songs they, or anybody in the genre, has ever produced - Black Cherry, Train, and the ubiquitous Strict Machine to name but a few - and this is the Goldfrapp album where the 'Weimar sheen' is most in evidence, and they almost manage to capture the delicious pleasure of one of their live shows. Halfway through Train, you swear you can hear Allison's stilletos stabbing at the ground, and it's that kind of atmosphere that makes this album such a joy to listen to. It's not the fact that the band has the best electro singer since Donna Summer, that each track has more sweet layers than a full English trifle, or that the musicianship is some of the strongest around, it's that Goldfrapp do this better than anybody else, and this is a complete, all-enveloping experience, like being drowned in cream underneath a disco ball with Prince DJing in the corner.

Sublime. 10/10