If It's Too Loud...

Artist : Las Calakas Album : Hechizo Quick Thoughts : Having gotten a little more into international music lately, Las Calakas comes out of nowhere to be a really fun listen. They've got plenty of punk influences, to be sure, but there's an element of this being sort of a party record throughout. While songs like "Top Down" won me over in particular, there's really nothing on here that isn't just a good time. I really loved this record, you probably will, too. Songs of Note : "Top Down," "La Culebra," "Cumbia Maciza 2," "Calentura" Artist : Savak Album : Human Error / Human Delight Quick Thoughts : Savak is a new act for me, but one that came as a real pleasant surprise. They're definitely leaning alt-indie, but my goodness do a lot of these songs hit just right. There is a lot to love here overall, and Savak is an act I'm looking forward to getting back to. Songs of Note : "No Blues No Jazz,"...

Album of the Week : Artist : The Decemberists Album : I'll Be Your Girl Quick Description : New album from the veteran act. Why You Should Listen : It will likely be their most divisive listen since The Hazards of Love . Overall Thoughts : The Decemberists are a band that, at this point, are not putting out anything typical or predictable yet always sound like The Decemberists. This is always a difficult thing for bands to do, but Colin Meloy's songwriting always tends to have a poetic, theatrical flair, and the rest of the band fills in the musical gaps nicely. This is a good album, I think - there are moments of levity ("Everything is Awful"), moments to experiment ("Severed") and the result here is an album that will likely split the fanbase again. Especially after how gorgeous a return to form their previous effort was, it's both surprising and not surprising that we received this. Recommendation : Definitely the best of the week, but you ...