October 30 Releases, 2012

By: Colin Roose, News Editor

Christmas and folk. This is the music we get the day before Halloween. No Rob Zombie, no Alice Cooper, but chestnuts roasting on an open fire and a man with a violin.

Alright, well, Neil Young can make some pretty good sweater music. But Christmas albums? Seriously? Who decided that October 30 was a good time to start singing about marshmallows for toasting and caroling out in the snow and scary ghost stories…oh.

Anyway, let's start with the man still searching for a heart of gold. Neil Young's newest album Psychedelic Pill is the first album of new material with his backing band Crazy Horse since 2003's Greendale, and accordingly is a rougher, more jam-centric album than the other six solo albums he's done since then. And if that seems like a lot of work for a 66-year-old man in eight years, consider that this is his 35th record overall. That's not even counting his various collaborations with Crosby, Stills and Nash or Buffalo Springfield. The man has been a slave to you, people. If nothing else, he deserves the opportunity to reminisce about the first time he heard "Like a Rolling Stone."

The other workhorse this year is Andrew Bird, for whom it did not suffice to release just the hour-long Break It Yourself earlier this year. The companion EP Hands of Glory adds an additional 35 minutes of re-recordings and strum-strummy covers of old singer-songwriter music. If the whole laid-back group-chorus old-time sleepy violin sound appeals to you, you've probably already known what Andrew Bird is up to and I'm talking to myself now. Actually, I must confess that I am not familiar with Mr. Bird's considerable output, despite his appearance at the Nelsonville Music Festival this year. Maybe I'd better not admit I listened to Mumford & Sons for the first time this past weekend before the folk community beats me with mandolins.

And so, the Christmas albums. I'd like to direct your attention to the left to take a look at the miracle of Photoshop that is Cee-Lo's Magic Moment. The Gnarls Barkley singer has now apparently taken the place of Santa Claus, flying through the night with his sports car pulled by a majestic array of steeds. Or maybe this is his way of telling us he's a brony? But anyway, he duets with such varied talent as Christina Aguilera, B.o.B. and The Muppets.

If flamboyant Vegas style rap does not immediately spring to mind when you think of the holidays, there is also Rod Stewart, who has taken a break from his copious renditions of the Great American Songbook to make an even more friendly album for Mom and Dad called Merry Christmas, Baby. On the other hand, there is an innovative Yuletide-indie crossover by Everything But the Girl vocalist Tracey Thorn. It may be called Tinsel and Lights and have song titles like "Maybe This Christmas" and "Snow," but it's actually mostly original songs and has a paranoid post-punk sound. Really. Well, I think it's about damn time someone tried to unseat "Same Old Lang Syne" as the newest Christmas song to be played on every FM station.

There's also Flyleaf this week, who are releasing their last album with singer Lacey Mosley, and Lulu Gainsbourg, the son of French popmeister Serge Gainsbourg. Other than that, well…if you like Toby Keith…

Ok, I'm going to end this before the folkies start shouting "Judas!" at me.

September 28 Album Releases

I look forward to so many things in the fall – knit hats, climate change and an excuse to order hot chocolate at the local coffee shops (though summer doesn’t usually stop me from ordering hot chocolate, despite the strange looks I often receive for doing so).

More than anything, though, I crave fall’s new music. I’m always looking for a good soundtrack to my brisk-weather walks, and preferably one that’s full of new material.

Because this week will mark the first truly fall weather week (in my opinion, at least), I’m looking for some suitable new albums to fill that soundtrack. But if nothing else, this week’s releases are a bit eclectic, if I may.

Deerhunter comes out with Halcyon Digest this week, and frankly, I love the album. I’ve always appreciated the band, but this album – dare I say it – may just turn me into a fan. Each song keeps an agreeable beat, but it’s full of lush instrumentals and catchy melodies that soften the thrust of the beat. Most songs on this album will be making the cut for my fall soundtrack, especially and most notably “Don’t Cry” and “Desire Lines.”

For a while, I’ve anticipated the release of Bad Religion’s The Dissent of Man. However, upon listening to the album, I’m pretty disenchanted. Each track runs together in one fluid rush of mediocre punk music. Despite the classic nature of the band and its seasoned status, The Dissent of Man just feels like an album for an album’s sake, not a piece of art with emotion poured into it. The Dissent of Man may be the descent of the band.

Another notable release for the week is Neil Young’s Le Noise. I’ve been a fan of the great Mr. Young since my diaper days, so the fact that I cherished every note of this album should not surprise anyone. Regardless of my bias, I really appreciate the modern, psychedelic sound the 64-year-old veteran accomplishes on parts of the album, all the while keeping his folk rock roots intact.

As for the last of the most-buzzed-about albums of the week, No Age is set to release Everything in Between this week. The band is a duo of newcomers that have made a noticeable footprint in the hypothetical noise pop/indie rock sand. I’ve grown pretty fond of the band, and much of what they’ve put out thus far has piqued my interest. Everything in Between is no exception – as long as you’re into that sort of music, you’ll probably be into this album.

Of course, the aforementioned releases just cover a few of the many albums coming out this week.

Other albums I’m anxious to hear (for some of them, I have no idea where my excitement is stemming from): Clapton by Eric Clapton, World Gone Crazy by the Doobie Brothers, No Chocolate Cake by Gin Blossoms, The Remedy by Jagged Edge, Incarcerated by Lil Boosie, Record Collection by Mark Ronson & the Business Intl, Commitment by Seal and the eponymous Pete Yorn by Pete Yorn.

Not sure if crustaceans look silly in outerwear, but this lobster is ready to get wrapped up in a scarf and the latest fall album releases.

-Courtney Baldasare, Editorial Director