Taking Awhile to Review an Album

Today I was listening to Okkervil River's Black Sheep Boy and The New Pornographers Mass Romantic and I realized these were really good albums, they just got lost in the abyss of the music surrounding it. Bands such as Sufjan Stevens, Antony and the Johnsons, and The New Pornographers, Okkervil River all had great releases that year; 2005. Having listened to all of these at the time, I was just kind of sick of that unique-ness that surrounded those type of orchestration based bands. The Pornographers have a great sound that kind of hearkens back to the great pop of the early to mid 80's...The Cars, The Smiths, Blondie, The Police. Pop bands that actually played instruments and played them pretty well. Okkervil has more of a folk rock feel, but I still get the organics of a live drum and guitar. Seems that the good pop albums of the 80's were more kind of drum, guitar and bass. This is the feeling I got out of these releases...maybe I'm way off base here, this is just something I've been musing on today.

Here's the playlist:

The Cars - My Best Friend's Girl
The Police - Roxanne
Blondie - Hanging on the Telephone
The Cars - Don't Cha Stop
The Police - Message in a Bottle
The New Pornographers - Mystery Hours
Okkervil River - For Real
The Pernice Brothers - Pisshole in the Snow
The New Pornographers - Letter From an Occupant
The Police - Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic

Amadou & Mariam "Welcome To Mali"

Album Review: Welcome To Mali

Amadou & Mariam
"Welcome to Mali"
March 24, 2009
Nonesuch Records

This album is a joyous tour of the world in musical form. It sounds like the musicians stopped and recorded in every country they went to on their last tour. Influences from everywhere. So Far I have, African folk, blues, American r&b, hip hop, new wave, electronica, prog rock, pop its got god-dammed everything (even the talk-box guitar solo) all stewed together and played with a hellaciaous groove. I think its my new favorite album. (not list-worth yet, though) I really think this album has a great sound, lush and full with more instruments that I can count, but all in the right places. It has good varied pacing overall i think its a 4.5 star easy, with 5 star potential.

If you like this check out these.

Amadou and Mariam "Diamanche a Biamako"

and if you like blues and this check out
Ali Farke Toure - "Radio Mali"

Iron and Wine

" taken from Iron and Wine's website'"
"Iron and Wine is excited to announce the May 19, 2009 release of Around the Well, a 2-CD/3-LP collection of rare tracks ranging from out-of-print to never-before-released."

How much iron and wine unreleased and bootleg stuff have you got. I've amassed a pretty good collection. Highly recommend tracking down Live 10-27-07 Queen's Hall Edinburgh
1. Lovesong of the Buzzard
2.Peace Beneath the City
3.Innocent Bones
4.On your wings
5.Pagan angel and a borrowed car
6.evening on the ground (Lilliths Song)
7.Boy With a Coin
8.Sodom South Georgia
9.House By The Sea
10.Carousel
11.Upward Over The Mountain
12.The Sea and The Rythym
13.Woman King
14.Wolves (Song of the Shepards Dog
15.Resurrection Fern
16Flightless Bird, American Mouth
17The Trapeze Swinger


If you like the most accoustic type Iron and Wine, you'll like either Live at Wheaton College 2-15-08, the one i found is a good bootleg very clear, mostly just sam and guitar,

Hail to the Queen!!!!

I noticed that this blog was being neglected, so I decided to lay down a small holistic band review. Queen is one of those bands that while growing up, I never really got into. I think some of this just has to with being a kid and wanting to listen to heavy metal and country all day long. It also has to do with the fact that if you didn't dig deep, all you knew of the band was Bohemian Rhapsody and We Are the Champions. But, recently, listening to their catalog through the 70's, I realize that this was a great band. Mercury had the kind of range that most singers would just love to have and Brian May could rip the guitar to shreds with the best of them. Listening to Queen I, II and Night at the Opera (widely considered their best effort) and all the rest of the 70's catalog...you realize just how good this band was. Taking of tour of Night at the Opera, I can find influences ranging from shanty bands that you would find at local pubs in Scotland or England, Led Zeppelin, the Beatles and the harmonies of the Beach Boys and probably many more that I have yet to discover... yet, everything they have has their signature on it. They are the type of albums that can be played to hundreds of thousands of people in an arena....or can be quietly listened to on a set of headphones in your cubicle at work. The following is a playlist I have devised to represent some of their best through this time period, I am hardly qualified to give an expert opinion...but these are some of the songs that will get you started on the journey:

Doing All Right - Queen I
Great King Rat - Queen I
Liar - Queen I
Prophet Song - Queen I
Ogre Battle - Queen II
The Fairy Feller's Master Stroke - Queen II
Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon - Opera
I'm in Love With My Car - Opera
You're My Best Friend - Opera
'39 - Opera
Somebody to Love - A Day At the Races
Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy - A Day at the Races
Fat Bottomed Girls - Jazz
Bicycle Race - Jazz
Don't Stop Me Now - Jazz
Killer Queen - Sheer Heart Attack

Marquee Moon Reveiw

I just listened to this for the second time. I think that's a good point to write an initial review, I think most truly 5 star rated albums should reveal that they are great on at least the second listen, you may not fully appreciate the full greatness but you should at least be able to see that something going on here. and i think there is something going on here. Came out in the great music year of 1977. Still sounds startling fresh and relevant. and influential for a lot of 1980's stuff. plus it has some kick ass guitar work that is very different than much of the guitar sound, I think this may be a top 100 album cantidate. Thoughts?