If It's Too Loud...

So sue me, I decided to go to bed early on the last off-day for the World Series instead of share this week's new releases early. Like it matters, you're only listening to one of the new things this week anyway... Arcade Fire - Reflektor : The last Radiohead album I really truly enjoyed was Amnesiac , although Hail to the Thief had its moments. A year after Hail to the Thief , Arcade Fire released Funeral , which was one of those indie albums that really served as a launchpad for a new indie movement and pushed the artsy Arcade Fire to unexpected heights. Reflektor is the fourth album from the band, and it feels really Big and Important, which is all well and good, but it's kind of interesting that the band has kind of taken the "somewhat accessible artsy indie sensibility" torch away from Radiohead in the last decade. Each of their albums feels a lot more grandiose than the last, and Reflektor , technically a double album in a world where that means very ...

Yet again out of Minnesota , and on Guilt Ridden Pop , comes another fantastic new 90s tinged release. Released a couple weeks back, Brief Candles’ new EP, Newhouse , blends Guided By Voices power pop with the shoegaze of My Bloody Valentine and early 90s Sonic Youth. Songs like “Olympic Sleeper” start off with a more upbeat, lush version of Galaxie 500 and just devolve into sheer controlled chaos, in the most melodic way. “Terry Nation,” may be my favorite, and sounds like something off Daydream Nation fronted by Kevin Shields. The songs are intricately layered, with the sound that there may be multiple tempos, and nothing quite fits together like it should, except it does. You’re doing yourself and the music a disservice if you just put it on in the background while plugging away at work. If My Bloody Valentine is the perfect hangover music, Brief Candles is what you listen to on your way to getting hung over. To listen to and purchase Newhouse, head on over to Brief Candle...

I've never really been much of a Black Flag fan. For some reason, they just never resonated with me. That being said, one thing I know about them is they are bad ass. Right now there are two different versions of Black Flag touring around the country. Black Flag, led by Greg Ginn and Ron Reyes, it set to release their first album in 25 years. It's called "What The..." which is an odd enough name. Then there's the bizarre cartoon character artwork. Like I said, I'm not a Black Flag expert, but I'm pretty sure my 5 year old, Disney princess obsessed daughter shouldn't refer to their album cover as "cute."

Somehow I missed out on this when it came out 5 months ago. Apparently Dan the Automator has an upcoming project called Got a Girl which is a collaboration with Mary Elizabeth Winstead, of Scott Pilgrim vs the World  and Death Proof . Whenever an actress decides to sing, it's always a bit iffy, but Mary Elizabeth Winstead actually pulls it off quite well. Got a Girl is more on the lines of Automator's work with Lovage: Music to Make Love to Your Old Lady By and Pillowfight. Mary Elizabeth comes across like a 60s French lounge singer over Portishead if DJ Andy Smith had a bigger role. It looks like an album was supposed to have been released by now, but so far I can't find any information on a release date. For more information, follow Got a Girl on Twitter .

I only listened to this song so I could mock it on here. I mean... Billie Joe Armstrong and Norah Jones? I have nothing personally against Norah Jones, I just side with Rodney Anonymous on her music . And Billie Joe Armstrong? Green Day are the most contrived punk band of all time. So when I saw they were releasing an album of Everly Brothers duets? This has the makings of "Accidental Racist." But, it's actually really good. Norah Jones has some country cred with Little Willies, and Billie Joe has a shockingly good twang to his voice. Norah takes the slight lead, but the harmonies are far, far better than they should be. I mean... Norah Jones and Billie Joe Armstrong??? This cynical music snob owes them both an apology for how much I mocked this in my head before actually listening. Foreverly  comes out November 25 on Reprise Records. Check out the first single, "Long Time Gone" below.

The slowest week for new releases since we started this up. It will give me a chance to recap some stuff I missed later this week. Best Coast - Fade Away : Best Coast comes back with a summery-sounding EP that kind of throws a wrench into the whole "I don't really care for Best Coast" thing I had going. It's just the right length, the EP is fun and quick, and if Best Coast is a band you've been kind of down on, this might be a good entry-point to give it another shot. Ryan Hemsworth - Guilt Trips : Ryan Hemsworth's debut album is a nostalgia trip for me. You might not have a lot of love for the mid-to-late 1990s techno that didn't hit the radio (Orbital et al) but I sure did, and Guilt Trips gives a fairly modern take on that sort of sound. I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did, but it turns out that this sound is classic in a sense, and Hemsworth hits all the right notes on the matter. Definitely worth a listen if you're looking f...

Back in 2003, siblings Neil and Martha Weir formed the Shut-Ins with the help of a drum machine. When they brought in a live drummer they changed their name to The Chambermaids and shortly after that added a second guitarist, bringing their ranks up to four. In September, they released Whatever Happened Tomorrow , their third full length, on Guilt Ridden Pop. It’s some of the drone-iest shoegaze I have ever heard, but with shockingly pop hooks. It’s not quite as poppy as The Stratford 4 and leans more towards My Bloody Valentine and earlier Catherine Wheel. The record is unbelievably lush yet sparse at the same time. It’s less a wall of sound rushing at you than a swirling, twisting vortex of sound. The whole thing creates a unique and original sound out of familiar pieces. That is, until “China Blue,” the 5 th track, comes along and sweeps you away. Whatever Happened Tomorrow is available now on Guilt Ridden Pop. Head on over to The Chambermaids’ Bandcamp to hear and purc...

When folk/punk/burlesque/noise/cabaret/steamcrunk act Walter Sickert & The Army of Broken Toys decided to record the fabulous Soft Time Traveler , they took to Kickstarter and asked fans to chip in for various rewards. One of which was picking a song for them to cover. This option was chosen 22 times, which leads us to Toys of Future Past. The 22 tracks chosen run the gamut from obvious (Tom Waits’ “ The Piano Has Been Drinking ”) to obvious jokes (Barnes & Barnes’ “ FishHeads ”). The ones in the middle tend to be the best, including an absolutely inspired version of Tori Amos’ “ Happy Worker .” It’s a track from the Toys soundtrack, but the Army of Toys give it a slinky, evil reggae vibe. Neil Young’s “ The Loner ” trades Young’s trademark guitar work for Rachel Jayson’s viola. They also cover fellow Boston band The Michael J. Epstein Memorial Library’s song “ The Saint of Glass Worms ,” which was actually inspired by Walter Sickert. This cover might have created a un...

Apparently Queen Latifa has a daytime talk show now? Anyways, she had her Joyful Noise  costar Dolly Parton on the show. How fantastic! Everyone LOVES Dolly! What song will she sing? "9 to 5?" "I Will Always Love You?" I bet "Jolene." Oh, man, I'll never get sick of seeing Dolly sing "Jolene." But, no. I guess because Queen Latifa became famous as a rapper, they thought it would be hilarious for Dolly to come out in a blonde afro wig and rap. Well... it's not. At all. Especially since half the rap is about her boobs. This is a 67 year old woman.

Lil' Bub's Big Show is apparently the new Space Ghost Coast to Coast , complete with the interview subject starting out on a tv screen. The last episode featured legendary musician/record producer Steve Albini, so of course this week features Kelley Deal of the Breeders. Not only is Kelley on the episode, but she premieres a new solo song, "Shirtcrush," which apparently the adorably deformed cat not only plays on but produces. "Shirtcrush" is a throwback to the 90s lounge scene, with mostly acoustic guitars and keyboards giving off an island vibe, right up until a killer guitar solo by Kelley.  This Lil' Bub meets 90s indie rock legends thing is starting to hurt my brain.

When I think of John Denver covers, J Mascis doesn't exactly come to mind. Nevertheless, here is a video for his track off the John Denver tribute album, The Music Is You: A Tribute to John Denver. I expected this to fall into his more acoustic work, but it's a plugged in version that would fit right in on a J Mascis and the Fog album. Sharon von Etten provides backing vocals, and of course there are multiple guitar solos that would melt the glasses off John Denver's face. The video features Aimee Mann and Jon Wurster as Denver fans that find love on a John Denver dating website. And puppets, because why the hell not, right? "Prisoners" by J Mascis and Sharon Van Etten from Aimee Mann

In a slower week than we've had as of late, there seems to be a common theme... The Avett Brothers - Magpie and the Dandelion : Many have heralded this album (songs of which came out of the same sessions as last year's The Carpenter ) as the next Migonette from the Avett catalog. While I'm still waiting for the next Emotionalism , this is now the third album in a row where the Avetts seem to be happy to fill a more roots/bluegrass-oriented spot next to The Lumineers or Mumford and Sons as opposed to the mix of bluegrass, punk, and rockabilly that their earlier works had. While I and Love and You was a worthy, superlative breakthrough, it appears the Avetts are sticking with what broke them through as opposed to what worked about their sound, which means you get a handful of great songs and a few more unmemorable moments. I wanted more, I wanted different. Paul McCartney - New : As someone who was never really able to get into the Beatles for whatever reason (people...

In 1997, the "electronica is the Next Big Thing" movement was in full effect. The Prodigy had released Fat of the Land , which debuted at #1 on the Billboard albums chart. The Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim were getting some solid attention, and we all know that Beck's Odelay was an unexpected breakthrough a few years after "Loser." The song that grabbed me out of the multiple singles we got out of this era, however, was a minor hit by electronic group Forest for the Trees. Forest for the Trees was headed by producer Carl Stephenson, who is probably best "known" for his producer credits on Beck's Odelay . The Forest for the Trees project was signed to Dreamworks, and the self-titled debut album lead off with the single above, "Dream," a spacey pop-electro piece that featured a lot of Eastern instrumentation combined with, well, bagpipe. It's truly a weird song, but fits in with the strange radio experimentation we saw rig...

I could have sworn Billy Ray Cyrus was that guy with that atrocious hit song over 20 years ago, you know the one that ushered in the horrid pop country movement? I thought he and his mullet were everywhere and had been dismissed as a joke decades ago, but I must have been wrong because here he is on The Arsenio Hall Show performing his new song "Lately." Obviously he's now a dark and brooding artist because look at that hat! That hat is the official hat of the American Idol deep singer-songwriter guy and not something that was chosen by a stylist to put on an aging, decades past his prime country line dance act to make him seem young and vital. And holy crap! Here's Fred Durst, who's also completely relevant. The target audience of this has to be Kid Rock fans who can't decide if they like bad ass rapper Kid Rock or country troubadour Kid Rock best. Either way, this is clearly the most honest and not a desperate attempt collaboration ever.

This might be the biggest new release week of the fall for me, personally, with a lot of long-awaited albums on the docket. Let's get right to it: Lorde - Pure Heroine : By now, you've almost certainly heard "Royals" (which I raved about back in August ), and 16-year-old Lorde's debut album releases today. What I find interesting about Pure Heroine is how quiet and understated it is. It's not a bad album at all, far from it - instead, it's a lot more stark than you might think given the lush vocals in "Royals." I expected a more mainstream Bjork sound, or perhaps some Portishead-style vocals, and instead it's a little safer (being so young and being a mainstream release, this isn't a surprise). It's worth a listen for sure, if only because it's probably the album of the fall, but temper your expectations. V V Brown - Samson and Delilah : V V Brown's first album, Travelling Like the Light , was a revelation in many w...

To mark the Australian co-headlining tour of Helmet and the Melvins (WHY NO US DATES!!?!?!?!), the two bands have released a split 7", and you can hear the Helmet side, "Anything and Everything" right now. The song is damn good, probably their best work of this century. Paige Hamilton hasn't slowed a bit even after multiple decades in the biz and this stands right up with their earlier work. The song slows down a bit too much right in the middle, but the beginning and the absurd firecracker of an end more than makes up for that. As always, check out Helmet's website here , and see the dates for the Helmet/Melvins tour below. Damn you, Australia. Oct 11   The Canyon Theater   Agoura Hills , CA Oct 12   The Date Shed   Indio , CA Oct 13   The Yost Theater w/ Weapon-X     Santa Ana , CA Dec 08   The Hi Fi w/ Melvins    Brisbane, Australia Dec 09   Northern Hotel w/ Melvins      Byron Bay , Austral...

Remember how I hated "Bagboy" and then the Pixies released "Indie Cindy" and I decided all hope was not lost? I was wrong. Today the Pixies came out with their newest video for "Andro Queen" and it's officially the nail in their coffin. If you have any friends that are huge Bryan Adams or Def Leppard fans, you'll want to share this with them. It's a pretty little ballad with cornball lyrics and plenty of tremolo on Frank Black's vocals. Oh, and then he starts ranting in Spanish, because that's edgy. I guess.  RIP Pixies.

Thirteen long years ago, the hip hop supergroup known as Deltron 3030 released their debut album. Comprised of Del the Funky Homosapien, Dan the Automator, and Kid Koala, Deltron 3030 was set in the year 3030 and sounded exactly like the future of hip hop. It seemed like a one off, but every so often you’d hear a rumor of a follow up album. Now, in 2013 (or 3040 according to the album), it has finally happened. Event II somehow sounds like it could have been recorded immediately after Deltron 3030. Looking back on the past is a recurring theme on the album with song titles like “Do You Remember” and “Back in the Day.” The album is such a throw back they even include sketches between songs, which I can’t even remember the last time I heard that. It’s probably because sketches are usually terrible, but Deltron 3030 enlists David Cross, Amber Tamblyn, and The Lonely Island for sketches, which all keep the “back in my day” theme alive. The album features a few other non-musicians, ...

The internet loves cats, especially cute ones. So of course it was only a matter of time before Lil Bub got her own talk show. For those of you with lives, Lil Bub is this cat that is a dwarf, a permakitten, and has some other genetic deformity that gives her a short lower jaw and no teeth, so her tongue always hangs out. This makes her adorable, and clearly deserving of her own talk show. Who appears on episode 3 of this talk show you ask? Why, Steve Albini of course. Most of you probably know Steve Albini as the recording engineer (not producer) of such acts as Nirvana, the Pixies, Bush, and Jimmy Page & Robert Plant. He is also the frontman of Shellac, and before that Big Black. If you're unfamiliar with Big Black, watch this video below: I know the first time I ever heard Songs About Fucking  I couldn't wait to see Albini give a tiny, adorably deformed cat a tour of his studio. 

I hate hate hate Fall Out Boy. I hate everything about them: Their obviously carefully picked out Hot Topic wardrobe and eye make up, their overly polished top 40 songs pretending to be punk rock... Now, I'm not Mr. Punk Rock by any stretch of the imagination, but I know enough punk to know they're not it, and to be offended by the claim that they were. My hatred of them ran so deep I started to dislike bands I loved like The Promise Ring and Jawbreaker just because they were lumped with them into the whole emo thing. Which is why I was so dumbfounded that Ryan Adams produced the upcoming Fall Out Boy album. Pax Am Days  is supposedly a return to their punk roots, but I have yet to see any evidence that they have any. What's most surprising is that this song isn't terrible. I'm not ready to go out on a limb and say that it's good yet, but it's not bad.  I'm not sure if I'm 100% comfortable with that statement, but there it is. The gang vocal chor...

Nothing long-awaited outside of Haim's debut album has dropped this week, but it's still a surprisingly robust week for new releases. Let's dive in: Tired Pony - The Ghost of the Mountain : Tired Pony is a side project/supergroup headed up by Snow Patrol's Gary Lightbody and R.E.M.'s Peter Buck, and including members of Belle & Sebastian, producer Jackknife Lee, and so on. The first album was a quieter, folksy affair that didn't exactly fit in with anything any of the members have done, and The Ghost of the Mountain certainly feels more complete, but still suffers from that same sort of quiet quality where nothing catches your ear enough to really give it full attention. As a complete unabashed R.E.M. fanboy, I will give this more of a shot, but it's not really catching my ear. Moby - Innocents : I hate to say this, but I didn't realize Moby was still making albums. The last I had recalled was 2005's Hotel , and he apparently has a few a...

Every month, Amazon.com puts up 100 albums for $5 each. Ones that may be of interest to readers: * Modest Mouse - No One's First and You're Next * Arcade Fire - Neon Bible * Simon & Garfunkel - The Best of Simon & Garfunkel * Foster the People - Torches * Depeche Mode - The Best of Depeche Mode * Superchunk - I Hate Music * Kanye West - Graduation * The Avett Brothers - Emotionalism * First Aid Kit - The Lion's Roar * Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes - Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes * Bass Drum of Death - Bass Drum of Death * AlunaGeorge - Body Music * The Roots - Things Fall Apart * Queens of the Stone Age - R * Amos Lee - Amos Lee * Benjamin Gibbard - Former Lives * Feist - The Reminder * Dent May - Warm Blanket * Ra Ra Riot - Beta Love