Not a big month for buying music. Odd.
Absolutely Love & Adore:

Keane “Perfect Symmetry” – Wow I LOVE this album. Did not expect to. Almost didn’t buy it! It’s a new sound for them, not as sad, and not as poppy…a bit more “anthem rock” than they used to be. You can picture these songs just filling up stadiums. Like old Snow Patrol, before they got super cheesy. Fave songs: “The Lovers Are Losing”; “Better Than This” (totally reminds me of Roxy Music “More Than This”); “Pretend that You’re Alone”; “Time to Go”.
Favorite Singles (not on any of the above albums):

• “Tiger Mountain Peasant Song” (covering Fleet Foxes) First Aid Kit – Swoon.
  
• “I Shall Be Released” (cover) Wilco & Fleet Foxes
  
• “Breathe” Calhoun
  
• “Honey Let Me Sing You a Song” Matt Hires
  
• “Hymn 101” Joe Pug
  

Other Albums I Liked:

• Joseph Arthur & The Lonely Astronauts “Temporary People” – So in addition to a gajillion (five?) EPs he put out ths year, there’s also this full on album. The difference, to my ear, is the EPs are a little darker, a little more digitally dirty, a little more lonely. This is a good listen.
  
• Ray LaMontagne “Gossip in the Grain” – As with Keane’s new album (above), LaMontagne has really expanded his ideas here. Lots of upbeat, jazzy stuff. The beginning of “You Are the Best Thing” is awesome, just marches right out and grabs you. Sure, there are still some sad, slow ones. But it’s the new, happier songs I really enjoy on this album.
  
• First Aid Kit “Drunken Trees” – So I ordered this after hearing their brilliant cover of Fleet Foxes (see list above). It’s allright. Their own stuff isn’t as powerful, there’s no shimmery acapello moments here. But not bad. They’ve got some room to grow.
  

Not really for me / but maybe for you!:
Nada.
Shamefully have either not listened to at all, or not all the way through, or so few times that I can’t legitimately offer an opinion:
Nada!

Why do I even do these if I do them three months later, you may ask yourself. Merely to cement things in my own (increasingly addled) mind would be my answer.
Absolutely Love & Adore:
The New Frontiers “Mending” – Pretty sure I bought this after hearing a single on Fuel/Friends. Wow, this album is oddly heartbreaking. “Mirrors” sends me pretty close to crying every time I hear it [hold up *ahem*, is this a God song? I am just listening a little more closely to the lyrics and getting that icky religion shiver up my spine]. “The Day You Fell Apart” has a total Travis feel. But my favorite song is “Strangers”.
Carla Bruni “Comme si de rien n’etait” – So lovely. I guess she’s gotten some flack in France for being a cheesy pop singer but this whole thing is pure sultriness to me. And my favorite song is definitely the (in)famous “Tu es me came” (“you are my drug”). I loved her previous album en francais as well, although not so much the one en anglais.
Dan le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip “Angles” – Yay yay yay. YAY! The funnest rap out there. “Letter from God to Man”, “Beat that My Heart Skipped” and “Thou Shalt Always Kill” are all kinda obvious to have as favorites, but that’s the way it is sometimes.
Joseph Arthur “Foreign Girls” – His whateverth EP of the year (fourth?). I particularly love “Lovely Cost” which has a Bowiesqueness.
Paddy Casey “Addicted to Company (Part 1) – I can’t remember if it was MG or MF that sent me this but thank you to whichever because it’s kinda great. (Maybe too folk-y for some a yous though.) “City” is my fave, particularly for its great opening.
Favorite Singles (not on any of the above albums):

• Jump Little Children “Cathedrals” – old and kinda cheesy but I’m lovin it lately.
  
• “Bang On” the Breeders – YUPPERDO
  
• “To The Bone” Mugison
  
• “Let Me Go On” Seabird
  
• “Chicago” Lucy Wainwright Roche (LOVE this)
  
• “Long Division” Slow Runner
  
• “It’s You” Pictures and Sound
  

Other Albums I Liked:

• Dr. Dog “Fate” – I really really like some songs on this album (“The Rabbit, the Bat & the Reindeer”, “The Dearly Departed”, “Uncovering the Old”) but there are a few that I have to forward quickly past (“The Ark”, “The Beach”). So it’s a bit uneven to me (bad) but in general they’re a bit Beatles-esque (good).
  
• The Ting Tings “We Started Nothing” – as with Dr. Dog, I like this, but not totally. It’s a bit uneven stylistically. Maybe they haven’t quite found “their sound” yet. Some of it’s rappish, some sing-songy (“Traffic Light”). When these songs come up on shuffle, I can’t always place them.
  
• Newton Faulkner “Hand Built by Robots” – Also sent to me by MG or MF (dang I am losing my mind). Somewhat folky. Really really like “Uncomfortably Slow” and “Dbdbdb”. Sometimes a Jason Mraz vibe (“Feels like Home”, “People Should Smile More” “U.F.O.”) which may be why I’m not totally into it (I loved Mraz’ early stuff but then I saw him do some weird “come on give me attention!” stuff live and I kinda went off him).
  

Not really for me / but maybe for you!:
The Black Keys “Attack and Release” – I like these guys live a LOT. And the album’s fine…But I don’t find I listen to it much.
Shamefully have either not listened to at all, or not all the way through, or so few times that I can’t legitimately offer an opinion:
Nada!! [OK actually a couple mixes I was sent have only gotten a tiny bit o’ listenin’ time.]

Weird month. Loved a LOT. Liked one album I would have been willing to bet money I wouldn’t like and didn’t like one I would have assumed I’d be more interested in listening to. Weird.
Absolutely Love & Adore:
My Morning Jacket “Evil Urges” – Not just my favorite album in August, but my #1 album of the year so far. It’s sexy and funky and sassy and smooth. Love it! Favorite song is “I’m Amazed” folowed by “Librarian” (great lyrics) and “Smokin’ from Shootin” (love the chorus). Only one song I tend to fast forward past and that’s “Remnants”.
Earlimart “Hymn and Her” – So pretty. Really cool boy/girl interactions, harmonies, lyrics. Faves: “For the Birds”, “Time for Yourself” (great rhythm), “Town Where You Belong.”
Cut Copy “In Ghost Colors” – Dance, dance, baby. I read a great quote somewhere (dang, lost the link) describing them as a “non ironic Joy Division.” They also remind me of earli(er) Madonna (“Lights & Music” particularly). Really fun. Favorite songs are “So Haunted”, “Out There on the Ice” and the opener “Feel the Love” to which I always yell “YES!!” when it comes on.
Drive-By Truckers “The Dirty South” – OK, I KNOW, I am only four years late to the party on this one. Bygones! I first listened to Jason Isbell last summer, went to see him this spring, and decided I needed to backtrack and find out what Drive-By Truckers were all about. It was recommended I start here. Yay! Love it. Very much an album of Southern rock storytelling. Gritty tales of (often) misfortune. Favorites are “The Day John Henry Died”, “The Sands of Iwo Jima”, “Puttin’ People on the Moon” and “Puttin’ People on the Moon”.
Beck “Modern Guilt” – Love it. Really great. His albums are all such individuals, it’s hard to compare, but “Sea Change” is probably its closest comparison among his previous albums. That said, I actually find this signficantly less melancholy than that one. Faves are “Gamma Ray” and “Walls”.
Nana Grizol “Love It Love It” – I think of these dudes as a slightly happier, slightly poppier, and less “harsh” on the guitars version of Okkervil River. But I am likely the only person on the planet who describes them (or any band) that way. Love the horn arrangements. Love “Circles ‘Round the Moon” (yay!) and “Voice Echo Down The Halls…” Only song I skip is (oddly) the last one. Woot. Lots of fun.
Favorite Singles (not on any of the above albums):

• “Photograph” Eagle Seagull
  
• “On My Mind” Romantica
  
• “Wreck” The Bittersweets
  
• “Murder in the City” The Avett Brothers
  
• “Give Em Hell” Hearts of Palm (love the lyrics)
  
• “She Does” Locksley
  
• “Black Ghost/Black Girl” Starling Electric (90s feel)
  
• Mother & Child Reunion” (cover!) The Morning Benders (LOVELOVELOVE)
  
• “Word Up” Willis
  

Other Albums I Liked:

• Mason Jennings “In the Ever” – Love “Fighter Girl.” Love “Your New Man”. Also “Soldier Boy”. But find it a bit uneven as a whole. Don’t like “Memphis, Tennessee”. Don’t dig the semi religious/Jenny Lewis-type overtones at times.
  
• Ryan Auffenberg “Marigolds” – Been singing along to “Alright, Okay” all summer long. Really love “Undercover”. Also “Deep Water” is nice. Not polished throughout, seems to still be working things out. Has a Ryan Adams/Rhett Miller vibe at times (yes those are two very different people. Work it out.).
  
• Coldplay “Viva la Vida” – If the world stops turning, I’ll have to take the blame, as it, you and I should all be in shock that I actually like this album. I’ve told you before [more than once] I’m not a Coldplay fan. You don’t want to get me started on Chris Martin and masking tape on his fingers. But someone sent me this album and damn if I don’t quite enjoy most of it. Hate the song “42” (HATE) but really like “Lost” and even the two radio releases “Viva la Vida” and “Strawberry Swing”. Also like “Yes” but mostly because it doesn’t sound at all like Coldplay, ha ha ha.
  

Not really for me / but maybe for you!:
The Hold Steady “Stay Positive” – Loved their first album, liked their second, didn’t care for the third. Now this one is OK but I just don’t find myself making much time for it. Have kinda lost my moment with this band. Have seen them live quite a few times. Always a really entertaining show. But generally I find myself less excited than in the past. This album: unusual instrumentation for them, some crazy harpsichord-sounding action. Tends to have more “singing” than they’ve done in the past (particularly “Lord, I’m Discouraged”) / less just Craig Finn ranting. But tunes like “One for the Cutters” just make me ask “how many times in one song can you say ‘townie’?” (Turns out a lot.) However, if you are a big HS fan, I think this is a solid album that’s exploring some new ground.
Shamefully have either not listened to at all, or not all the way through, or so few times that I can’t legitimately offer an opinion:
None! 🙂

Absolutely Love & Adore:

Fleet Foxes (self titled) – Layered haunting harmonies. Voices ringing out like bells. An updated CSNY with less twang, more melancholy. Particularly love “He Doesn’t Know Why”, “Oliver James” and “Your Protector”. But you may want to start with “White Winter Hymnal” which is probably their biggest hit so far. LOVE!

Sea Wolf “Get to the River Before It Runs Too Low” (EP) – This came out before their full album you may remember me raving about, but I didn’t get the EP until I saw them live. I already had two songs off it, but I’m so glad I got it because “Sea Monuments” is just lovely. Yay Sea Wolf!

Joseph Arthur “Vagabond Skies” (EP) – Third of the four EPs he’s putting out this year. Plus a full album due September 30! Happy for me because I just can’t get enough of this dude’s music. My favorite off this EP is the first song “Slow Me Down”, but really I like the WHOLE THING. 🙂

The Fratellis “Here We Stand” – These guys are just pure infectious fun, I don’t know see how it would possible to not enjoy their music. They just make me want to stand up and dance!! Michelle doesn’t like this album as much as their first, but it pushes all the right buttons for me. My faves are “Baby Doll” and “Shameless” which gives me a total John Lennon vibe.

Favorite Singles (not on any of the above albums):

• “Landlocked Blues” (live from Pantages Theater) Conor Oberst
  
• “Backwards Walk” Frightened Rabbit
  
• “Josephine St” I Love Math
  
• “My Only Offer” Mates of State
  
• “When I Get to the Border” She & Him
  
• “No One Else Like You” Joey Ryan
  
• “Hologram” Katie Herzig (awesome lyrics!)
  
• “You, Me & The Bourgeoisie” The Submarines (from this album)
  
• “Bang My Drum” Danielia Cotton
  
• “Beyond the Pale” Scott Kempner (total old school feel)
  
• “Saint C3cili4” Sunlight in Architecture
  
• “Alright, Okay” Ryan Auffenberg
  
• “The Ground That We Stand On” Hawksley Workman

Other Albums I Liked:

• Lil Wayne “The Carter III” – Most hyped rap album of the year? It’s got some of the same issues all rap albums have (sooo many songs, soooo many guests), but there’s a lot more singing, R&B style harmonies, etc., than on other comparable albums. I love “Mrs. Officer”, also “Mr. Carter” and “Comfortable.”
  
• The Audreys “When the Flood Comes” – I randomly bought an album by the Audreys when Mariko and I went to Oz (2006?) based on the cool photo on the cover. Fortunately turned out I really really liked it! I don’t like this album as much, it’s a bit less inviting. But it’s just as pretty… Like. Certainly. But don’t love.
  
• Port O’Brien “All We Could Do Was Sing” – You know when you rush off and buy a full album based on the strength of one awesome song? And then you get the album and it’s just not what you expected because that awesome song is not really the real style of what they do? And then you do like the album but you never get into it THAT much? Yeah, this is that album. That song? “I Woke Up Today” (brilliant!). Other songs I also enjoy are “Stuck on a Boat” and “Fisherman’s Son”.
  

Not really for me / but maybe for you!:

Shearwater “Rook” – So I thought I would love this. It’s somewhat in the vein of Sea Wolf or Fleet Foxes, that layered choral-feelin’ music people are doing these days, somewhere between folk and pop. The difference really here is the vocals which are quite…hmmmm. I guess I’d say a bit “operatic”, along the lines of Rufus Wainwright, Jeff Buckley. Which is fine, just not my favorite style. But the real reason I have a rough time with this album is it’s just soooo sooooo sad. (Yo, I get my sadness on the inside, ha ha ha. But really.) I really like “Leviathan, Bound” (pretty! chiming!), “Century Eyes” (more upbeat) and “The Hunter’s Star (pretty!), but honesty listening to this just makes me get all quiet and lonely and curl up in a corner and bang my head against the wall. So I’m kinda avoiding it actually.

Jakob Dylan “Seeing Things” – Another album that while lyrically/musically has things to recommend it….but it makes me so sad I just can’t listen to it. Super slow and dirge-like and I don’t think that’s his strength as a musician. I am a bigger fan of the Wallflowers than most people I know, but I don’t love this. And the lyrics to “Will It Grow”, I’m sorry, are just over the top.

James Hunter “The Hard Way” – I really liked his previous album. I actually really like think this is a good album too…but turns out I don’t have much interest in listening to it. As with Duffy that I talked about last month, this just isn’t a style of music I often find myself reaching for.

Shamefully have either not listened to at all, or not all the way through, or so few times that I can’t legitimately offer an opinion:
None! 🙂

Absolutely Love & Adore:

The Kills “Midnight Boom” So I just kept reading about this band everywhere (like here or maybe here) and I kept thinking “I’ve GOT to check them out.” Yeah, well FINALLY my lazy ass did and I’m pretty damn happy about it. Love the beats, love the lyrics, love the energy. They put on a great set at Lollapalooza but I’d love to see them in some smokey dirty hole in the wall where the sound is so loud I fear for the longevity of my eardrums. Wait, did I say “smokey”? Get with 2008, girl, there’s no smoking in bars anymore…

Favorite Singles (not on any of the above albums):

• “Graveyard Girl” M83
  
• “Be With Me” Foy Vance
  
• “Late Last Night” Robby Hecht
  
• “The Hardest Thing” Patrick Park
  
• “Measure of the Same” Birds of Avalon
  
• “Circles ‘Round the Moon” Nana Grizol
  
• “Take a Bow” Rihanna
  
• “February 5th, 2008” Telekinesis!
  
• “Coast of Carolina” Telekinesis!
  
• “Good Things” Sounder
  
• “U and Me” Trina
  
• “The Last Thing on Your Mind” Lights
  

Other Albums I Liked:

• The Long Blondes “Couples” – Feels very “college” to me as it alternately reminds me of Berlin and Blondie. Can’t get enough of “Guilt”, “Too Clever by Half” and “I’m Going to Hell”. Lots of fun. And their live show is definitely worth it.
  
• Saving Jane “SuperGirl” – Not really sure what impulse made me buy this. Have to be in the right mood for it. But when you are, it’s perfect angry girl music. And “Better Day” has a total Sixpence None the Richer vibe, if that’s your thing.
  
• Death Cab for Cutie “Narrow Stairs” – Nothing on this album quite blows me away the way “Marching Bands of Manhattan” did on the last one…but I think it’s a solid follow-up and the more I listen, the more I seem to like it. I am not into the long jam sessions, however, so I actually prefer the radio edit of “I Will Possess Your Heart”.
  
• Bob Mould “District Line” – There was definitely a period of time when Mould had really fallen off my radar. But then there was a great single out (“Circles”) [doh, in apparently 2005] and then I went to hear him at Old Town and I find myself back on the Mould bandwagon. Maybe not that exciting, but always solidly rockin.
  

Not really for me / but maybe for you!:

Nelo (self titled) – No idea where this one came from, did I hear a single from it somewhere? Who knows. I like the song “Walkin’ Around” but otherwise it’s all way too Dave Matthews for me.

Duffy “Rockferry” – I can see why people like this non-boozed-out-of-her-gourd Amy Winehouse-type, part of the “British birds do R&B” crowd. She’s got a very distinctive voice. But it’s just not a style of music I often get the urge to listen to. I don’t mind when these songs come up on shuffle, but I don’t go lookin’ for them either.

Shamefully have either not listened to at all, or not all the way through, or so few times that I can’t legitimately offer an opinion:
Seems like a kinda slow month for buying music (did I just not spend money that month? Or did I spend a lot of it just on other things?), doesn’t seem to be anything I didn’t at least listen to a few times.

Upbeat music that is making me happy:
The Kills “Midnight Boom” – I don’t know if you can call this punk (in this day and age) but it certainly has punk sensibilities to my mind. Digital and dirty and demanding. Lots of beats. While there is humor in some of the lyrics, this isn’t a fun and games album, they’re kickin’ it. I love the male/female back and forth vocals (as you should know I do already, from say this or this or this). I want you to be crazy because you’re boring baby when you’re straight.
The Fratellis “Here We Stand” – Yay! These guys are so much fun! I loved their last album and loved their crazy high-energy but super (ridiculously) early in the day set at Lollapalooza (they so brought it ) and this album is a solid continuation of them doing their thing. Woot! Dear world’s biggest Beatles fan Ms. Shrinking Smartgrrrl, I think you would like this.
Low-key music that was making me too sad to listen to it:
Shearwater “Rook” – Along the lines of Fleet Foxes or Sea Wolf, musically, (or a combination of them with Band of Horses), but somehow the mood and the tones were just so, so, so sad, I actually had to fast forward past it…Only to arrive at:
Jakob Dylan “Seeing Things” – I tend to like The Wallflowers more than most critics, maybe because they’re just sort of “straight up” rock with no pop or alternative pretensions and also because I do not spend all my time comparing children to their parents (Boh-Ring!), but this album was just bringing me down, man. Sad and slow, with very melancholy lyrics. Not the sensibility of The Wallflowers at all, which is fine, it is a solo album afterall; but it felt almost dirge-like. I had to say goodbye for the day and fast forward past it as well! Maybe when I am in a different mood, I will try again.