Each of the albums in my current Fave 5 have been mentioned here on Midgets! so there aren't any real surprises, I just wanted to reiterate my love of these albums for you, dear reader.
Clinic Do It! - I wrote a full review of this album previously on Midgets! and since then have been listening to this album a LOT. I've tried to come up with a better description of the sound, and I'm not sure there is a good way to properly describe the sound of this band. On our way to Lake Powell recently, the Redhead and I were trying to come up with a good way to tell people what they sound like, and we agreed that we couldn't really label it. Sure, it's indie rock, but it isn't your standard stuff. They have driving riffs that are more of a trait of hard rock, they use strange instrumentation that is a trait of more experimental bands. It's like the crossroads of indie-folk-psychedelic-metal-rockabilly-and others. They even dedicate the album to the 600th Anniversary of the Bristol Charter (some Googling revealed that it's not the 600th Anniversary, and that is is closer to the 900th, but who's counting?). If you don't like this album, I literally feel sorry for you. This album is available now on iTunes, Amazon.com and finer record stores. Visit them at clinicvoot.org and myspace.com/clinicvoot.Standout tracks: Memories, Tomorrow, Winged Wheel
Duffy Rockferry - This was first mentioned on Midgets! in a best of 2008 1st quarter recap. As was mentioned there, she's been featured in SPIN, Rolling Stone, and more recently Paste promoted the Welsh songstress, too. She performed on the Tonight Show as her first American television appearance, and is starting to get some attention from radio. If you have a place for a a strong, soulful voice in your heart, this will fit nicely. Her voice is absolutely stunning and the production by former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler as well as Jimmy Hogarth and Steve Booker, compliments both her voice and the general mood of the vocals so well as to make this one of the few truly complete albums of the digital age. This album isn't available in the states until May 13th, but you can download a couple singles on iTunes, or pre-order the album there or at Amazon.com. Visit her at iamduffy.com and myspace.com/duffymyspace.Standout tracks: Mercy, Warwick Avenue, Sleeping Stone
P.O.S. Audition - Another prominently featured album on Midgets! I have been rocking to this rapper-cum-punker a lot lately. His consciousness surpasses a lot of current music by light years. His flow doesn't every get stale, mostly because he changes it nearly every song. And his production, by Doomtree, is spotless. Appearances from Atmosphere's Slug, Bouncing Souls' Gret Attonito, the Hold Steady's Craig Finn among others don't hurt the album, only adding to the overall aesthetic of the hip hop-meets-punk ethos. On some tracks he is bitterly angry, while on others he shows a softer, more loving style. He name drops and references several punk bands, but doesn't ignore the obvious genre he belongs to. If you like punk, you will like this. If you like hip hop, you will like this. If you don't like either, give it a try anyway. You never know, right? Audition is available on iTunes, Amazon.com and at any self respecting record store. Visit him at myspace.com/posisruiningmylife.Standout tracks: Half-Cooked Concepts, Bush-League Psych Out Stuff, Living Slightly Larger
Black Tide Light From Above - Metal. That's all I really should have to say about this album, but I'll say more. Like, they're all teenagers, the lead singer is 15, and they shred better than anything this side of ...And Justice For All. There hasn't been a band as melodic and heavy as this since Metallica went all Black Album on us and started sucking. Like other albums on this list, Midgets! first met Black Tide in the 1st quarter review. In that I said that Black Tide are "like Metallica with Sebastian Bach fronting." I stand by that now. There is such an insane level of talent in this band, members of which are 15, 16, 18 and 19. They've been together for more than 4 years and could easily out-shred anything that you think is metal today. This album is melodic, orchestral, and fucking metal. I can't quit listening to it. Pick it up on iTunes, Amazon.com or any record store worth spitting on in a fire. Visit them at blacktidemusic.com and myspace.com/blacktide.Standout tracks: Warriors of Time, Show Me the Way, Let Me
We Are Scientists Brain Thrust Mastery - I gave a bit of an opinion on this album when Midgets! posted their video for "Chick Lit". I'm listening to this album a lot lately, and it's weirdly enjoyable. This seems to be much more of a breakup album than their previous work on Love and Squalor, but the catchiness of the songs is undeniable. These Brooklyn cats sound like they're from Essex or something (for those of you not paying attention, that's where Bloc Party is from), but bring with them a very American feeling. The album is available May 13th on iTunes, Amazon.com and any record store worth shopping in.Standout tracks: After Hours, Chick Lit, Lethal Enforcer
Honorable mention:
Nine Inch Nails The Slip - This album was released with out any pre-promotion, not to mention it was absolutely free. Midgets! reported the link to download the album which was quickly followed by a premature review. This album is quickly moving up my personal chart and will soon supplant one of the top 5 listed above. It's a damn good album, and when I have a minute, I'll write a full review.
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2 comments:
there should be a place for comments under EACH record....jimmy hogarth loves workin w/ those song birds, eh? amy winehouse, sia....paolo nutini.....thats a girl, right?
not to mention James Blunt...that dude is TOTALLY a chick!
he's also worked with Corinne Bailey Rae, KT Tunstall, Suzanne Vega and others.
Check it: http://www.nativemanagement.com/producers_songwriters/jimmy_hogarth/
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