The Weakerthans - Left and Leaving

The Weakerthans have been one of those bands for me [at an increasing rate] over the last few years that I love a little more every time I listen to them. The way that the lyrics are crafted and the clever combination of genres that have little to do with one another lends to the love that I feel for this band. Left & Leaving is no exception, though far from my favorite album in The Weakerthans' discography. If you like what you hear, then be sure to download Reconstruction Site which is by far their best to date.

Tracklisting:
1. Everything Must Go!
2. Aside
3. Watermark
4. Pamphleteer
5. This Is A Fire Door Never Leave Open
6. Without Mythologies
7. Left & Leaving
8. Elegy For Elsabet
9. History Of The Defeated
10. Exiles Among You
11. My Favourite Chords
12. Ships And Tangles

Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More

Welcome to your new favorite band. Take equal parts Avett Brothers and Fleet Foxes and add in a touch of Neutral Milk Hotel and a dash of Noah and The Whale to taste and you have Mumford & Sons. Also and strangely enough, vocalist Marcus Mumford's voice is so similar in tone to Dave Matthews that you would think it were the latter singing rather than the former. This, however, should not serve as a deterrent as Mumford & Sons has as much in common with Dave Matthews [with and without his band] as do Bob Dylan and U2.

Sigh No More is Mumford & Sons' debut album and it is an incredibly strong release. The songs are lush with layered instrumentation that move and shift and take on a life of their own. Do yourself a favor...

Tracklisting:
1. Sigh No More
2. The Cave
3. Winter Winds
4. Roll Away Your Stone
5. White Blank Page
6. I Gave You All
7. Little Lion Man
8. Timshel
9. Thistle & Weeds
10. Awake My Soul
11. Dustbowl Dance
12. After The Storm

Sufjan Stevens - Run Rabbit Run

And here we have yet another new Sufjan Stevens album that nobody cares about. Maybe that's a little harsh, but as far as I'm concerned, no number of "newly imagined revisited albums" can hold me over until the next State album comes out. This makes the second album to come out within the last month, and still I feel cheated.

That's all I have to say about it.

Tracklisting:
1. Year Of The Ox
2. Enjoy Your Rabbit
3. Year Of The Monkey
4. Year Of The Tiger
5. Year Of The Dragon
6. Year Of The Snake
7. Year Of The Horse
8. Year Of The Sheep
9. Year Of The Rat
10. Year Of The Rooster
11. Year Of The Dog
12. Year Of The Boar
12. Year Of Our Lord

She and Him - Volume One

THere isn't a whole lot that I can say about She & Him other than I'd like to hear a whole lot more of "him" than I would "she". The band consists of the incredibly prolific songwriter M. Ward and actress Zooey Deschanel. While the album is good, I feel like it was more of a Zooey Deschanel-fest rather than what the name of the band would suggest. There are moments, too, when the band sounds like a cheap ripoff of Rilo Kiley [ex. "This Is Not A Test" - and is that a kazoo?] Not a bad album though, despite these obvious flaws.

Tracklisting:
1. Sentimental Heart
2. Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?
3. This Is Not A Test
4. Change Is Hard
5. I Thought I Saw Your Face Today
6. Take It Back
7. I Was Made For You
8. You Really Got A Hold On Me
9. Black Hole
10. Got Me
11. I Should Have Known Better
12. Sweet Darlin'
13. Untitled

Sufjan Stevens - The BQE

Well what do you think? About time, eh? I'd say so. Even if The BQE is completely devoid of Sufjan's signature voice and at-times tongue-in-cheek lyrics. Even if it is an accompaniment to a project that few of us have heard of, and fewer still have seen, still, it's good to hear something.

While the rumor well has been pretty dry concerning Mr. Stevens, we do know that his next effort is a re-imagining of his debut album, Enjoy Your Rabbit [which isn't very enjoyable]. But there has been no news on which state is next to be featured in his "50 States" venture, if there even is one. Forgive me if I sound somewhat bitter, but I have been waiting patiently since 2005 for a proper album, and all we have gotten is a b-sides album, a collection of Christmas songs, a film soundtrack, and now a reworked version of an album that wasn't that great to start with. When, oh when will we finally have a new album to enjoy and obsess over? This is getting a little ridiculous.

Tracklisting:
1. Prelude On The Esplanade
2. Introductory Fanfare For The Hooper Heroes
3. Movement I: In The Countenance Of Kings
4. Movement II: Sleeping Invader
5. Interlude I: Dream Sequence In Subi Circumnavigation
6. Movement III: Linear Tableau With Intersecting Surprise
7. Movement IV: Traffic Shock
8. Movement V: Self-Organizing Emergent Patterns
9. Interlude II: Subi Power Waltz
10. Interlude III: Invisible Accidents
11. Movement VI: Isorhythmic Night Dance With Interchanges
12. Movement VII (Finale): The Emperor Of Centrifuge
13. Postlude: Critical Mass

The Cave Singers - Welcome Joy

The Cave Singers are a band that are nothing like what you would expect. Rising from the ashes of bands like Pretty Girls Make Graves, Hint Hint, and Cobra High, the band [sounding nothing like its predecessors] has the innate ability to create lush and beautiful folk songs.

The Cave Singers' debut album Invitation Songs was good, but nothing that caught my attention quite like their sophomore effort, Welcome Joy. Joy to me is on par with The Winetree's Kentucky. There's something that I cannot explain about it, other than that it is an incredible album that came to represent a time in my life that is long since past, but still visited frequently in my mind. This album has that same feel to it; like it will be the soundtrack to some momentous occasion in my life.

Tracklisting:
1. Summer Light
2. Leap
3. At The Cut
4. Shrine
5. Hen Of The Woods
6. Beach House
7. Vv
8. I Don't Mind
9. Townships
10. Bramble

A.A. Bondy - When The Devil's Loose

A.A. Bondy is quickly becoming one of my favorite songwriters. His last album was great, but this new album is simply amazing. I don't exactly know what it is, but there is something about his strained voice and his soft melodies. There is something about the way he wraps his voice around his guitar, leaving little to be desired from any sort of backing instrumentation.

Honestly, this album has done well to leave my stereo for longer than a little while at a time.

Tracklisting:
1. Mightiest Of Guns
2. A Slow Parade
3. When The Devil's Loose
4. To The Morning
5. Oh The Vampyre
6. I Can See The Pines Are Dancing
7. False River
8. On The Moon
9. The Mercy Wheel
10. The Coal Hits The Fire

Monsters Of Folk - Monsters Of Folk

[copied from Pop Apocalypse]
I thought Monsters of Folk would be a sure thing. How could it not be when it's a supergroup with three of my favorite singer/songwriters (Jim James, Conor Oberst, and M. Ward) and Oberst's right hand man (Mike Mogis)? Well, clearly, something went wrong along the way, because this self-titled debut does not live up to the hype, instead it tiptoes around it. The blippy opening track ("Dear God (Sincerely M.O.F.)") sounds more like a boy band single than a song written by four talented folk songwriters with its falsetto chorus and pensive "What is G-O-D all about, y'all?" lyrics. Even the best songs on this record aren't too memorable, sounding more like b-sides from their respective MOF contributer than a well thought-out collaborative effort that started five years ago (seriously, they've been working on this since 2004 and this is what we get). I'm not angry; I'd just rather listen to My Morning Jacket, Bright Eyes, and M. Ward's solo albums than get involved much further with this mess of a collaboration that wishes it was a Traveling Wilburys record.

This self-titled record is one that I have looked forward to for quite a few months now. I have to say that upon listening, I was somewhat disappointed. That's not to say that the songs contained within are bad because they certainly aren't. The problem is that when you're talking about 3 of the most prolific songwriters of the day coming together with one of the most accomplished producers in the indie world [and former Bright Eyes member as well], you should be able to expect a meshing of styles resulting in brilliance that is yet to be seen. The opposite is true. Much like Anna Apocalypse said, the songs sound like B-sides from each of the respective projects. Unfortunately, I was actually hoping for more from Jim James, but it seems as though Conor Oberst and M. Ward had the majority of the b-sides.

Should they decide to do another album, I certainly hope that they take the time to figure out what their sound together is, rather than using it as a means to pawn off songs that didn't make the cut for their respective albums [and for the record, I really don't like the song "Man Named Truth"].

Tracklisting:
1. Dear God (Sincerely M.O.F.)
2. Say Please
3. Whole Lotta Losin'
4. Temazcal
5. The Right Place
6. Baby Boomer
7. Man Named Truth
8. Goodway
9. Ahead Of The Curve
10. Slow Down Jo
11. Losin Yo Head
12. Magic Marker
13. Map Of The World
14. Sandman, the Brakeman and Me
15. His Master's Voice

The Avett Brothers - I And Love And You

Personally, I'm not the world's biggest Avett Brothers fan. I like, to some extent, the stuff that I have heard from Emotionalism, but I wasn't impressed enough to post it. This sentiment, however, is not shared with the Brothers' newest forthcoming offering. I And Love And You is an incredible album full of anti-folk pop gems. Now, I know that this album has quite a few people worried, the majority of which being diehard fans. Fret not! Though it is their major label debut and is produced by Rick Ruben, it is still stripped down and true to their sound. Great album.

Tracklisting:
1. I And Love And You
2. January Wedding
3. Head Full Of Doubt, Road Full Of Promises
4. And It Spread
5. The Perfect Space
6. Ten Thousand Words
7. Kick Drum Heart
8. Laundry Room
9. Ill With Want
10. Tin Man
11. Slight Figure Of Speech
12. It Goes On and On
13. Incomplete and Insecure

Chad Serhal - Hey, Hey, Hey, Now!

Well I know that it's been a while, but considering the lack of feedback, I wouldn't be terribly surprised if the number of people that frequent this little blog of mine were dwindling considerably. Regardless. For you [if there is a you out there] I have not only an amazing album by my good friend Chad, but this is also my 200th post, which is something to celebrate.

Concerning the album, though, today we are looking at Hey, Hey, Hey, Now! by former Calibretto 13 bassist [and my current neighbor - I'm doing this with permission] Chad Serhal. Chad and I have gotten to be friends through my fiancee who was one of his co-workers. Every now and then, he'll show up at my house with another of his albums for me to listen to and while I'm blown away by all of them, Hey, Hey, Hey, Now! immediately jumped to the top of the list. According to Chad, it was his first and only attempt at recording an album anywhere other than home. The record is lush with catchy tunes that are carried along with percussion and pianos, where his other efforts are limited to instruments that he plays himself. The production has little to do with how much I appreciate this record though. It is the quality of the songs contained within and how they are perfect for listening to on long drives in the car.

For those of you who know Calibretto 13, please do not expect their sound. The closest comparison that I can make to Chad's sound is a folkier Elvis Perkins. Except for "Two-Headed Boy" which is a cover of a Neutral Milk Hotel song and therefore has a distinctive NMH sound to it. Once again I say, regardless. Just download it, learn it, and love it.

Tracklisting:
1. One Last Kiss
2. So Familiar
3. Cigarettes Don't Fail You
4. Love Gets Me So Lost Sometimes
5. Two-Headed Boy
6. Love At First Sight
7. The Glow Of The City
8. We Could Get To Know Each Other
9. Better Off Without Me
10. Wish You Were Here
11. Songs Of Things That Don't Even Matter
12. A Good Wife

Ben Kweller - Changing Horses

I have never been a huge Ben Kweller fan. I like the song "Sundress" pretty well, and I like how he has a certain Beatles-esque sensibility about him from time to time, but he has never been one to catch my attention for more than a few minutes. That is, until I heard Changing Horses of course. Dubbed as his first official foray in the country genre, Changing Horses is, in my humble opinion, Kweller's strongest effort to date.

Thank you, Rachel for getting me hooked.

Tracklisting:
1. Gypsy Rose
2. Old Hat
3. Fight
4. Hurtin' You
5. Ballad Of Wendy Baker
6. Sawdust Man
7. Wantin' Her Again
8. Things I Like To Do
9. On Her Own
10. Homeward Bound