Lily Allen: It’s Not Expected, It’s Better

So I must say that I had pretty low expectations for this new Lily Allen album It’s Not Me, It’s You seeing that her recently released singles were subpar, at least in comparison with the initial songs that made me fall for Lily.  However, after perusing this new album a few times, I’m finding that though it’s definitely a more mature (sometimes translating to boring) album, it still very solid and full of some great songs (many of which I would have suggested as singles).  Either way, good stuff.  Keep up the good work, Lily.  And please don’t go crazy, I like your new album and hope there will be more to come!

Lily Allen – Chinese

Lily Allen – Fuck You

Panda Riot: Seeing “Paper Planes” in a different light

This is an absolutely lovely cover of M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes” song.  That’s about all I can say without just letting you listen to it…. absolutely lovely.  Sans gun shots, but I think that’s a good thing for the tone Panda Riot seems to be setting.

M.I.A. – Paper Planes (Panda Riot cover)

The Decemberists: And the Bridesmaids

This was a wonderful little surprise at the Pop Apocalypse blog.  I had no idea The Decemberists were concocting this little gem, but that’s just like The Decemberists.  In this respect, I could even draw a comparison between them and Of Montreal.  Both are so full of music that they just can’t help releasing records kind of like beautiful farts that just escape from you.  This recent gas expulsion is entitled Always the Bridesmaid: Single Series and is being released in three volumes on pretty colored vinyls.  This is actually a nice concept, because they are letting their record company Capitol release this album digitally in the US, while The Decemberists and some other independent labels are handling the vinyl distribution.

Well besides the background of this album, this is a great little album.  I think it is named very appropriately.  Each one of these songs is a beautiful single, but not exactly the errr… bride.  In my opinion, the Maid of Honor would be “Valerie Plame” (if that really is her name).  And you’ll definitely want to stay until the end of the song where The Decemberists break out in this Polyphonic Spree moment.  Word on the street is that this might also be a sort of continuation to “The Bagman’s Gambit”.  You can decide what you think of this little bridesmaid below, and feel free to expound in the comments.

The Decemberists – Valerie Plame

The Decemberists – The Bagman’s Gambit

Hiatus: Searching for myself

I’m taking a little music hiatus, so expect some new and great things upon my return!  Until then enjoy the older posts with loads of goodness.

Sigor Ros: Happy people running free

I never thought I’d be writing any review for Sigur Ros, but with their latest album Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust (With a buzz in our ears we play endlessly), I’ve discovered a much different Sigur Ros than I remembered.  A few years ago I gave them their initial try, but after a few songs of slow monotony, I decided they were just not my bag, and that was that, at least so I thought.  “Gobbledigook” came along and gave me a happy slap on the face.  I swear that I did not believe it was them figuring someone got the artist wrong.  The slow depressing sound of the past Sigor Ros shed away to reveal these happy people just wanting to run free.  I think the album cover really says it all.  While there are still some slower songs on Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust, they moreso play a part in balancing the album while giving it some thoughtful contrast.  This is really a beautiful and inspiring album, and I’m thankful for its existence.

Sigur Ros – Inní mér syngur vitleysingur

Sigur Ros – Gobbledigook

The Kills: Sexy like a dare

So even though this is The Kills’ third album, Midnight Boom is my first experience with this raucous duo, and so far it’s been intense. The Kills have this sexy swagger about their music that pulls you in like a dare. What’s cool about this band is their songs’ reliance of beats to almost create the melodies but lack of an actual drum set in the band. The minimal instrumentation gives a raw and cold one-night-stand feeling to it all. The classic rock sound is infused it with a modern thrill it’s been craving since the Velvet Underground.  So basically, it’s awesome.

The Kills – Sour Cherry

Death Cab for Cutie: E for Effort

Unfortunately with Narrow Stairs I was expecting an epic album, and what I received was an album that was struggling between epic and old-school, but never quite hitting the target on either one of those. Some albums flow effortlessly, and at every song change you’re sad the last has finished but excited about the next. I actually skipped some songs halfway because I thought I might fall asleep at the wheel, which is a disgrace to my patience but also a sign of an unequal album. Slow languid songs populate the beginning of Narrow Stairs while more energetic pieces pick it up on the second half. In my opinion the second half songs are the ones that show the interesting change in the sound of Death Cab, so hopefully they’ll embrace that even more on a next album. What came as a surprise to me was the lack of lyrical complexity.  That spark that Ben Gibbard can infuse with his lyrics wasn’t shining as brightly.  But for now I will take what I can get, and enjoy it all.

In “Your New Twin-Sized Bed” Death Cab produces a refreshing beat they haven’t done on a previous album. It has this nice groove that is smoothed out by Ben Gibbard’s relaxing vocals. I love ironic songs when happier beats collide with sad subjects, and this song illustrates that perfectly as it portrays the defeat of loneliness in the form of a twin bed all set to a summery beat.

You look so defeated lying there in your new twin size bed
With a single pillow underneath your single head
I guess you decided that that old queen was more space than you would need
Now it’s in the alley behind your apartment with a sign that says it’s free (lyrics)

Death Cab – Your New Twin Sized Bed

And if that’s not enough Death Cab for you, Ben Gibbard did an interesting article for Paste on the meaning of life (and he did not conclude it to be 42) in which he lived life in the shoes of Jack Kerouac.

Arcade Fire: Extra dark chocolate

Sometimes you have to be in the right place in your life for an album to really speak to you, and with Neon Bible and me that time is right now. This album has been making waves for a while now, but it’s just currently been rocking my boat like crazy. I’m all about emotion in albums, and this album is emotion. The quiet buildups lead to these incredible releases characterized by layers and layers of “awesomeness” dense with feelings. The feelings themselves are intense and bitter yet incredibly beautiful, extra dark chocolate to the ears.

“Windowsill” and “No Cars Go” were the standout songs to me. “Windowsill” had this quiet restrained buildup that stays restrained even at it’s most intense moments. I was waiting for this burst of crazy uncontrollable vocals at the end, but they left that to the instruments and layering. One verse at the end of “Windowsill” really capped off this song, though it’s hard to hear at first listen:

MTV, what have you done to me?
Save my soul, set me free
Set me free, what have you done to me?
I can’t breathe, I can’t see
World War Three, when are you coming for me?
Been kicking up sparks, we set the flames free
The windows are locked now, so what’ll it be?
A house on fire or a rising sea?

“No Cars Go” hits the intensity with the vocals that I was wanting in “Windowsill”. This incredible strong and deep chorus, reminiscent oddly of Coheed & Cambria’s “In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth:3“, guides the end of this song. The best part of it all is this great trumpet riff that sounds at about 3:15 into the song and continues on randomly in the background. All in all, Neon Bible is a lovely moving experience.

Arcade Fire – Windowsill
Arcade Fire – No Cars Go

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin: House Fire

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin’s album Broom is a recently rediscovered album for me. I was introduced to it last year by a friend and it held its own in my car stereo for a few months. Now it is back from its hiatus and I almost had forgotten why I loved it so much in the beginning. It’s a great background music album with enough variety in song styles and within the songs themselves that it doesn’t get boring. What is most unexpected is that little indescribable something (some call it a spark) that distinguishes them from all the other “almost” bands. At times you can definitely feel an old Phantom Planet or Weezer vibe. I’m quite curious to see what their next album what will have in store.

Sometimes all it takes is one line to make a song. “You know I still find you dashing” was the one that made “House Fire” for me. The verses are simple, sweet and tinted by sadness, but the chorus comes in and the Phantom Planet connection can really be made in the strong strums and rhythm. The verses bemoan the demise of a relationship while the chorus attempts to rectify the situation with advice creating a nice balance so as to not leave the listener wallowing in a pit of sadness. That was thoughtful.

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin – House Fire

She & Him: You Really Got a Hold on Me

Ever since Zooey Deschanel sang “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” with Will Ferrell, I’ve been waiting for Volume One to come out! I was planning on loving this album, but instead felt completely apathetic towards it. The first thing that stuck out was the pure lack of emotional connection with the songs, at least from an audiences perspective. She & Him experimented with lots of different sounds, but never owned any of them. A little bit of trying too hard to the point of never getting emotionally involved would be my diagnosis, but then maybe I was just expecting too much.

Enough with the criticisms, because there were some really enjoyable songs on the album especially involving the vocals of M. Ward. My personal favorite was “You Really Got a Hold on Me”. The chemistry of the two finally created the emotion you’d been craving all along. The angst and yearning vocals of Deschanel come to a head on this song creating a sense of believability lacking in others. While the single “Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?” is quite catchy, “You Really” takes you straight into the heart behind this entire project. Hopefully we’ll be hearing more soon.

She and Him – You Really Got a Hold on Me