If It's Too Loud...

Artist : PACKS Album : Take the Cake Quick Thoughts : This is so great, guys. It's fuzzy, slacked-out alt-rock with a ton going for it. PACKS is an indie act that had some lo-fi stuff out over last summer, and this proper first album is just a delight. I love everything about this, and I'm really looking forward to spending more time with the album. Songs of Note : "Silvertongue," "Hangman," "New TV" Artist : Bachelor Album : Doomin' Sun Quick Thoughts : A collaborative effort with Palehound and Jay Som, this is the sort of indie stuff you love to hear. There are a lot of great highlights throughout the record, but what I was most impressed with is how well the two acts complement each other. Some parts are better than others, but on a whole? There's a lot to love here, and a lot to look forward to on future listens. Songs of Note : "Stay in the Car," "Sick of Spiraling" Artist : Dispatch Album : Break Our...

This week was sneaky busy, but a lot of good music! Album of the Week : Artist : What Cheer? Brigade Album : You Can't See Inside of Me Quick Description : Marching band music for hipster adults. Why You Should Listen : They may drive your spouse mad, but the musicianship and fun is top notch. Overall Thoughts : Every so often, while listening to something for First Listen, my wife will provide commentary. What Cheer? Brigade are a bunch of punk types who also play brass instruments, so the result is a bit of a sassy, edgy marching band quality. It turned my wife off right quick, but I was into it . It’s reminiscent of a lot of what made Gogol Bordello so awesome when they had their breakthrough, and there’s just something special and exciting about this. While I don’t think this will make it high on my year end list, this is absolutely my favorite thing that I listened to this week, and is my album of the week because of it. I mean, they do a brass version of a Brain...

And the rest! Artist : Moby and The Void Pacific Choir Album : These Systems Are Failing Quick Description : New album/project from Moby Why You Should Listen : Moby used to make some fairly essential stuff, and this is a return to interesting form. Overall Thoughts : I feel like Moby kind of ruined his brand in a way with Play , which was a good album, for sure, but was such a departure from his early work ( Animal Rights being the noted exception) that it seemed to set him on a weird trajectory in the longer term. These Systems Are Failing has a bit of a noise/industrial feel to it and thus doesn't feel like a recent Moby album, but still feels like an older one in terms of structure and interest. This was a favorite of mine this week, and I would highly recommend that, if you just saw the name Moby and scrolled on by, to give this a shot. Recommendation : A really great listen this week. Artist : Conor Oberst Album : Ruminations Quick Description : Lo-fi, stripp...

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...