Music Blogs

They say that the earliest scents you encounter in a lifetime are the ones that stay with you the longest--aromas that burrow themselves deep into the nooks and crannies of the brain, waiting to emerge with an unexpectedly powerful burst of recognition many years later. Your grandmother's cupboard? Vick's VapoRub? Calamine lotion? Take a whiff today and you'll swear you were back in diapers!

Likewise, take a good long look at these, the most compelling of this week's new music-related releases. Study them. For, indeed, this is the first indication of the best 2009 will have to offer!

Smell them!

Who knows? By next December we may be clamoring for the good old days of January!

Glasvegas: Glasvegas (Columbia)  Usually when I compile a list of the week's 10 spotlight releases, the lead item is a no-brainer! This week, however, everything's so good I don't know where to start! Why not begin with one of the latest UK buzz bands, Glasgow's Glasvegas? They've assembled a catchy, deliberately anthemic batch of songs featuring a prominent lead singer who is undoubtedly colorfully opinionated, and they like evoking that early '60s Wall Of Sound thing that Phil Spector popularized years ago! Good for them! Though their more recently recorded megahit-to-be ""F*ck You It's Over" can't be had here, there are two songs unavailable on the UK pressing--including a cover of the Korgis' "Everybody's Got To Learn Sometime," sure to strike a chord in America's brutish heartland! Perhaps they'll be the next big thing!

BPA: I Think We're Gonna Need A Bigger Boat (Southern Fried)  I would be remiss in not mentioning this new release--an exclusive via Amazon.com, mind you--by BPA, better known as the Brighton Port Authority, or Fatboy Slim, or Norman Cook, or that guy from the Housemartins, or the guy who will soon take on one name too many and we'll start confusing him with Norman Whitfield and that'll be it for his concert career! Joining the man here are several well-known guests including David Byrne, Iggy Pop, Dizzee Rascal, and Martha Wainwright, all of whom will undoubtedly be pleased to be featured on an album containing the timeless track "Should I Stay Or Should I Blow." Apparently a good time was had by all! Special bonus: The term "historic masterpiece" can be found in this album's product description!

Erin McCarley: Love, Save The Empty (Universal Republic)  A nice collection or material marks the debut of young Ms. McCarley, who has counted Texas, Nashville and even San Diego as home during her brief career. In today's world of getting a song in a TV show or movie soundtrack and establishing a long-term career for one's self, that may well be enough! She recently came up to our offices and sang for us and was quite good--though perhaps I volunteered too much when I mentioned she reminded me of the star of The Sarah Conner Chronicles. Heck, I'm into robots, isn't everybody?

Neil Sedaka: Waking Up Is Hard To Do (Razor & Tie)  As a longtime fan of Mr. Sedaka I am more than thrilled to mention any new release by the man, but this is completely tops! The dude's made a kiddie album featuring redone versions of some of his biggest hits--if the title track doesn't make that clear, "Lunch Will Keep Us Together" should! It is completely, in the parlance, "ear-delicious"! Even if today's younger parents don't remember the original hits, Sedaka's new versions will do the trick regardless! Highly recommended!

Sesame Street: Elmo Loves You! [DVD] (Sesame Street)  While we're at it, let's not forget this new DVD--which, aside from boasting the finest title of any new release of the millenium also features guest appearances by R.E.M., Trisha Yearwood and John Legend! Combine that with additional appearances by Rosita and Grover and you've got the media event of the year! Can't you just picture Axl Rose and Kanye West--now fully beaten men--shaking their fists at the sky in frustration?

The Gourds: Haymaker! (Yep Roc)  Viewed by some as contemporaries of the Smashing Pumpkins--admittedly, mostly farmers--the Texan rockers return with a powerful new album that in the very words of their label has them continuing their "round trip through the outer reaches of the roots music universe and back again"! In short, it's like they never left! With Haymaker!, the Gourds deliberately attempt to recapture the band's winning live sound and--according to bandmember Kevin "Shinyribs" Russel--the album "really captures the intangible qualities of a Gourds gig in a way that we haven't been able to achieve before"! Don't tell that to Lydia Jenkins, who once rushed out of a Gourds gig claiming she felt a sinking feeling in her stomach and a peculiar detachment from reality that showed no sign of abating for two days! But yeah, they're great!

Appetite For Self-Destruction: The Spectacular Crash Of The Record Industry In The Digital Age by Steve Knopper (Free Press)  Always happy to showcase a relevant book now and then, and Knopper's account of how things seem, I don't know, bad as heck lately couldn't be more timely, experts agree! Industry folks probably know most of this stuff already, but for the great unwashed--you know, maybe the people who bought Knopper's earlier The Complete Idiot's Guide To Starting A Band--this may be something of an eye-opener! Those in the industry nervous about losing their jobs are advised to keep this off their desks at all times--especially when the boss walks by! No word on its availability as a PDF file!

Destroy Destroy Destroy: Battle Sluts (Metal Blade) Metal continues to be a healthy genre, as this colorful Tennessee combo's new release clearly illustrates! Influences: "The early thrash/hair/glam metal bands of the '80s and '90s to the current sounds of Scandanavian melodic Death Metal and Viking Metal bands of today." Translation: Sort of like Colbie Caillat but louder! As always, I like to envision the band members seated on an airplane next to an elderly lady who asks the name of their band and album so she can pick one up for the grandkids! Cool cover!

John Peel's Dandelion Records (DVD) (Ozit Records) For the esoteric among us comes this fascinating six-hour long visual documentary of the cultish record label co-founded by legendary British DJ John Peel and Clive Selwood in the early '70s. Featuring many of the artists that made the label endearingly quirky--including singers Bridget St. John and the late, great Kevin Coyne (as well as his earlier band Siren)--it's a welcome peek behind the scenes many should enjoy. Sound enticing? In the words of one reviewer: "Those with an aversion to rather old, hairy men might want to steer well clear of this DVD"! Cool!

Various Artists: Work Out: Pumpin' House (R.E.D. Distribution) Wow! This probably sounds great!