Music

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• 11/26/07

  Band of Horses—Cease to Begin The toughest thing about Band of Horses is that the songs are so epic and great but you get the feeling they're laughing at you for enjoying them. Take, for instance, the beautiful "Detlef Schrempf." It's lovely and touching, but every once in a while you realize they're singing to a basketball player. The only thing that Band of Horses seems to be serious about is making convincing country-fried rock that makes you want to get shitfaced on bourbon (Disclaimer: Refinery29 encourages you to enjoy music responsibly).
  
  No Age—Weirdo Rippers No Age is a 2-piece punk band from L.A. who have been steadily releasing records over the past year. These records have been collected on this CD, fittingly called Weirdo Rippers. What separates No Age from the millions of other Ramones acolytes you have heard over the years is the noise and the dynamics. The unlikely combination of simple punk songs and the beautiful feedback of My Bloody Valentine have made this one of the more addictive releases of 2007.
  
  Roisin Murphy—Overpowered This album makes you realize that the U.S. doesn't have nearly enough homegrown disco superstars. Roisin Murphy is huge in the UK, and yet she is barely known over here. We think those crazy Brits are on to something, though. She has big sing-a-long choruses that aren't cheesy, heavy synth-ed out beats that don't sound retro, and a great voice with personality for days. It's pretty much as tasteful as Eurodisco can get. 
  

• 11/13/07

  Grizzly Bear—Friend EP From almost any other band, the idea of hearing reinterpretations of their songs by the band themselves and some of their friends might not be that intriguing. But anyone who knows Grizzly Bear's live shows is aware that their songs are deconstructed and reinterpreted so casually that seemingly each performance of a given song is something new to behold. We enjoy the covers of their songs provided by friends CSS, Band of Horses, and Atlas Sound, but the true highlight for us is the cover of the girl group track "He Hit Me," where the inventive arrangement they've been displaying in their shows over the past year finally gets properly recorded.
  
  Phosphorescent—Pride At first listen, it's easy to recognize a strong Bonnie "Prince" Billy influence going on with Phosphorescent (aka Matthew Houck). But where the sound of a BPB record is usually skeletal and frail, Phosphorescent's new record has a full and warm sound that is as much baroque pop as it is macabre folk. It's a nice balance and a nice world to lose yourself in for a little while. Try it sometime.
  
  Cadence Weapon—Breaking Kayfabea We first came across Rollie Pemberton aka Cadence Weapon when he was a young rap music reviewer from Edmonton, Alberta of all places. A few years later he put his mouth where his pen was and started rapping and putting out records that combined the synths of Southern hip hop (or European techno, depending on your reference point) combined with smart and off-beat lyrics of underground hip hop. Unlike other decidedly un-mainstream rappers, Cadence Weapon looks to the future instead of the past. And so far, the future sounds pretty good to us.
  

• 10/31/07

  Beirut—The Flying Club Cup Trading the Balkan horns of his auspicious debut, 21-year-old crooner Zach Condon (aka Beirut) returns to his jet-setting ways by plundering the music of France, particularly the French chanson tradition à la Jacques Brel and Serge Gainsbourg. He is an artist who is particularly suited to this style since it doesn't require great technical singing skill, just a lot of personality and character. And he's got far more of that than any 21-year-old legally should. We simply can't believe the maturity of his songcraft and how easily an '80s baby could capture the sepia-toned spirit of '50s France.
  
  Yeasayer—All Hour Cymbals Brooklyn band Yeasayer immediately recall TV on the Radio, but not for any reason that has to do with what the band sounds like. Instead, they remind us of how TV on the Radio appeared out of nowhere with a fully formed sound that resembled a lot of different things at once
  and yet nothing else we had heard before. Yeasayer's debut has dreamy ambient sounds, crazy samples, and jangly guitar, all within a pop music context. It's a lot to take in at once, but we're more than happy to continue to try to absorb their aesthetic, especially their first single "2080".
  
  Jay-Z—American Gangster Jay-Z has always tried to look forward with his music, but his latest release (we're trying to pretend it's not inspired by what looks to be a rather tepid movie) goes back to what he made his name on—street smart crack tales with a tinge of melancholy. The perspective he gains from his wealth and  experience make this more than a rehash of his '90s material, however—and as always—there are lyrical gems spread throughout the album. Overall it's a consistent listen and much better than his mediocre post-retirement album from a year ago. Plus, let's face it, if you can't get excited over Jay-Z rapping over '70s soul-inspired beats, this rap thing probably isn't for you.
  

• 10/16/07

  Sleeping States—Sleeping States Sleeping States is the pseudonym of Markland Starkie, a young Brit with a guitar who makes gentle, atmospheric songs. The only difference between him and a slew of other young Brits that are constantly being hyped up is that he's actually good. His voice is intimate, his guitar playing is off-kilter enough to be distinctive, and the songs are fantastic. If Morrissey fronted late '90s Pavement, it might sound like this (yes, we actually sit at home and imagine what this would be like. You don't have to, though, just buy this record).
  
  Radiohead—In Rainbows We downloaded Radiohead's new album the day it came out because they have this tendency to come out with good albums. In Rainbows is no different—more incredible songs that are immaculately recorded. On every song, every guitar part, every bassline, every drumbeat, every lyric there is something that grabs you and lets you know that this band is special. It's not as good as The Bends, OK Computer, or Kid A, because that's pretty much impossible. But it's close enough.
  
  Sandro Perri—Tiny Mirrors The first full-length solo album from an artist who first came to prominence making ambient techno and drone music before reinterpreting those styles as a singer-songwriter. This album is in a jazzy mood, with a great small group sound that reminds you of a smoky basement club in Paris. The songs are spontaneous and unpredictable and the band is loose but the overall effect is the unplanned off-the-cuff brilliance of a singular artist.

• 10/01/07

  Cass McCombs—Dropping the Writ Baltimore singer-songwriter Cass McCombs has been quietly releasing amazing albums for the past few years, a mixture of that sublime third Velvet Underground album sound and homemade folk textures. This time around he's apparently been listening to a lot of Morrissey and the sound of the classic Smiths albums. We can't say that we're mad—his voice sounds more assured than ever, moving effortlessly from a sweet falsetto to a breathy croon.
  
  Les Savy Fav—Let's Stay Friends Les Savy Fav have managed to stick around longer than almost any of the other post-punk revival bands from a few years ago because they write such good songs. When they announced their indefinite hiatus in 2005 we thought we'd have to be satisfied with repeated listenings to their near perfect singles compilation, Inches. Well, like all good musical retirements this one didn't last and they're back with a new studio album. The formula hasn't changed much—thrashy and weird punk anthems that turn into sing-alongs. If you get the chance, see them live—last time we saw them front man Tim Harrington spent most of the show half-naked and spitting flower petals into the crowd.
  
  Thurston Moore—Trees Outside the Academy For his first solo album since 1995, Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore has avoided the willful experimentation that characterizes the normal SY side project and has instead turned in a song-based album that acts as a nice companion to last year's Rather Ripped. Part of the appeal of Moore is that he's always tempered his noisier impulses with a keen pop ear. This is readily apparent as the distorted guitars have been swapped for an acoustic, and the listener is able to focus on his voice and guitar work more closely. They both stand up to this scrutiny and again we just marvel at the staggering collective output
  of Sonic Youth.
  

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