St. Vincent - St. Vincent

I've been a fan of St. Vincent since Marry Me first came out.  With each album, she has tried something different, while still sounding like no one but herself.  She takes risks, but still maintains her sound.  I never know what I'm going to get with a new St. Vincent album, but I know it'll be different, and I know I will love it.

This album is no different.  It's heavier on synths than her past albums, and that bothered me a bit at first.  She's an amazing guitarist, so I scowled a bit at the thought of synths overshadowing her guitars.  But it didn't take me too long to get rid of that line of thinking.  The arrangements are so dense and interesting that they drew me in (and there still is plenty of guitar here, it just doesn't feel like the focal instrument).
And, of course, her voice is in the middle of it all.  She has a beautifully subtle way of singing.  It's a powerful instrument, but she knows exactly when to dial it back.  There's a great warmth in her voice.

At this state, I don't think there's anything she could do that I would hate.  I already love this album, and am excited to see what she does next.

Rating: 5/5
Favorite track: "Huey Newton"

Jake Bellows - New Ocean

I have been a huge fan of Neva Dinova since they released their self-titled debut in 2002 (amazing that album came out over 10 years ago).  So you can imagine how excited I was to find out that the lead singer released a solo album.  I tried not to get my hopes up too high.
As it turns out, I could not have set my hopes high enough to be disappointed by this.  It's a terrific album, ranking up there with Neva Dinova's best work.
If you liked Neva Dinova's work, you'll like this album.  If you haven't heard Neva Dinova, listen to this album, then grab all of their albums.  You won't be disappointed.

Rating: 5/5
Favorite track: "Two Weeks"

The Lonely Wild - The Sun as it Comes

This entire album feels like a sonic explosion occurred in the middle of a Western.  Quite a few songs start sparse, only to grow into something massive by the time it's over.  There are times I can swear I'm listening to an updated take on a Morricone soundtrack.
This is the sound of the sky falling around two grizzled gunfighters.

This one didn't hit me immediately.  It took me a few listens to really fall in love.  But now I can't stop listening to it.  At the end of the year, I'd be shocked if this didn't end up in my top 5 albums of the year.

Favorite track: "Buried in the Murder"
Rating: 5/5

The National - Trouble Will Find Me

My love of The National has been well documented.  High Violet was my favorite album of 2010.  So the fact that I positively love this album shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone.
There are moments that bring to mind Boxer and Alligator.  But, for the most part, this album is its own monster.  A beautifully-crafted, thundering monster.

Favorite Track: "Slipped"
Rating: 5/5

Kat Jones - La Rosa, La Calavera

Okay, so it's not technically a "new" album (it was originally released in 2004), but it was recently remastered, so I thought I'd talk about it for a second.
I love this album.  It's a perfectly dark little pop record.  At first listen, it's a bit surprising that half of these songs are not murder ballads.
The instrumentation is terrific here (which is not surprising, seeing as how her backing back is comprised of Frank Lenz, Richard Swift & Josh Dooley).  Lots of organ, and perfect piano flourishes.
It's no surprise that it's the songwriting and voice of Kat that really makes this album great.

And now, with it remastered, I'm hearing it in an entirely new light.  It really does sound quite a bit different, in a good way.  I was a big fan of this record before, but I'm an even bigger fan now.

Favorite track: "One More Second Chance"
Rating: 5/5

You can grab this (as well as some of Kat's other albums) at her Bandcamp page.

My Bloody Valentine - mbv

After 22 long years away, My Blood Valentine finally resurfaced a few weeks ago with their first album since their groundbreaking album Loveless was released in 1991.
And it's glorious.  Like they haven't missed a beat.
The guitars are layered and dense and massive.  And beautiful.  My first time listening to this album, I was driving through a snowstorm.  And it was perfect.

Welcome back, Kevin Shields & Co.  We've missed you.

The Gaslight Anthem - Unwritten

I'm still hopelessly addicted to this album.  I find myself listening to it multiple times a week, usually while I'm driving.  It's been pretty cold here in Kentucky recently, but I still roll the windows down and crank this album.  There's not a bad song on it.  My least favorite song ("Too Much Blood") is still awesome.
It's Springsteen by way of Foo Fighters.  I love it.
At the moment, you can download this album from Amazon for $3.99.  That's an absolute steal.

Rating: 5/5
Favorite track: "Handwritten".  Although "Mae" is creeping towards that top spot.

The Killers - Battle Born

With each album, their songs seem to get a little bigger.  More grandiose.  They're not trying to make a statement: they just want to make good, big, rock and roll.  And I can't help but love them.

Rating: 4/5
Favorite track: "Runaways"

Muse - The 2nd Law

I will start off by saying that I loved Absolution.
However, that was the last Muse album I enjoyed.
I get it.  They make huge, catchy rock anthems, with a theatrical bent.  There's nothing wrong with that.  Lord knows I listen to enough music that can fit into that description.
But not this.  Oh no...not this at all.
It's like they went into this saying, "How can we sound like a futuristic version of Queen?"  The answer is lots of synths, lots of falsetto, and more than a hint of dubstep scattered throughout.  I listened to this earlier today, and it was all I could do to get to the end.

At this point, I know what Muse is.  And I guess I'm just not on board.

Rating: 1/5

Mumford & Sons - Babel

I loved Sigh No More.  It took me a few listens to get into, but once I did, I was hooked.  Babel takes that album and steps it up a notch.  It's a little bigger.  A little darker.  A little better.  It sets a mood at the beginning, and it keeps that mood throughout the entire album.  It's sinister, yet still inviting.  I'm 4 listens in, and I'm in love.

One added note.  I had this album on while Carpenter's Halloween was on the TV, and it worked really well.  Something about the dark, driving rhythms on this album fit really well with that movie.

Rating: 5/5
Favorite track: "Below My Feet"

In the past, I've made promises about keeping up with this blog on a more regular basis.  I'm going to attempt to make that promise again.  I have found myself a bit over-my-head with blogs lately (in addition to this one, I also write about horror movies and sports), and this is the one that has suffered the most.  I'm going to try to be better about that.  And if that means a series of short reviews like this one, then so be it.  I have discovered that I'm not the greatest music writer, so shorter is probably better.