CD-Charts Position 11
Average Rating:

Fleet Foxes

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Fleet Foxes

Release Date June 03, 2008
At first I thought the parts stronger than the sum. In other words, each song had elements that were captivating both lyrically and melodically but the songs as a whole didn't seem to work. Then at some point after repeated listens, everything started to bake into the cake it was meant to be. Now I can't get the damn thing of out the CD player and consequently out of my head. The band is a strange mix of all that has come before it, weather it be CSN, Beach Boys, Appalachia, and even some sort of strange nod to 50's white bread harmonies, a la the Fleetwoods. Whatever it is, it is totally captivating. I love having a favorite CD, and this year it will be Fleet Foxes.

CD-Charts Position 12
Average Rating:

With The Lights Out

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Nirvana

Release Date November 23, 2004
I have always been a Nirvana fan from the very beginning but when I bought this collection it was a revealing experience listening to demo songs and rehearsals as it showed me a new side of nirvana and their music. Nirvana fans, buy it!!!

CD-Charts Position 13
Average Rating:

The Glass Passenger

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Jack's Mannequin

Release Date September 30, 2008
After reading the other reviews, I was thinking that I'd be getting a mediocre album, but I don't think that's true.

True, The Glass Passenger isn't as pop-y or upbeat as Everything in Transit, but taken into account what Andrew, the singer and lyricist/musician, has been through in the past few years, I think the change is completely understandable. This album is a little more reminiscent of his Something Corporate days, something I appreciate.

My favorite songs on the album are definitely Caves and Spinning - "I can't remember when the earth turned slowly."

I'm happy with it and I think it might be being judged too harshly by people who expected something just as upbeat as before. The style is still the same and different ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 14
Average Rating:

Narrow Stairs

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Death Cab for Cutie

Release Date May 13, 2008
Death Cab's first album in three years, Narrow Stairs, starts off with a song somewhat different from anything else by the band that I have ever heard. Bixby Canyon Bridge is still a foray into pop melancholy, but it's lyrics approach the tragedy somewhat more roundabout by talking less about feelings and telling a story instead, and the memorable hook takes until over halfway through the song to uncover itself. This sounds like the start of a hit album, and no doubt this album will end up being Death Cab's most popular album, even more popular than Transatlanticism, or at least it will be the one that people will listen to most while the purists swear by Transatlanticism. I don't know which album I prefer more. I guess I haven't gotten to know Transatlanticism that well.
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CD-Charts Position 15
Average Rating:

Forth

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: The Verve

Release Date August 26, 2008
I am an early Verve fan, admittedly crazy about their debut album (which still makes me drool). I was pleasantly blown away by this latest album, which is a nod to their early work but also keeps one foot in the contemporary music scene. I am NOT a fan of URBAN HYMNS, which seemed to me a commercial pandering (however nice the pop songs were). This album really hits in the middle: it makes us old school fans drool, but also keeps a sense of the pop perfection that really made URBAN HYMNS such a hit with folks. I don't know how they did it, but this album really is a perfect middle way, a shout-out to us old Verve fans but a stable send-out to those who want pop hits. It's just simply a marvelous rock and pop record, with a groove and a hook and a smart set of lyrics . . . I ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 16
Average Rating:

Carried to Dust

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Calexico

Release Date September 09, 2008
It took me quite a few listens to get into this album. Maybe I'm just sick of leftist politics in music. Victor Jara's Hands is a beautiful song but it alludes to a guy who was in a position to become Communist Salvador Allende's own Che Guevara had Allende not been overthrown. And Guevara, despite his iconic status on the left, was little more than a mass murderer who cloaked his actions in the language of idealism. I notice there are a lot of people on the activist left who champion political murder as long as its the right people being murdered but howl like banshees when one of their own gets it.
Despite the occasional outbreak of leftist sentiment in Calexico lyrics, there is a lot to like in both the music itself and the way it is interpreted. I have four other Calexico albums ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 17
Average Rating:

In Rainbows

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Radiohead

Release Date January 01, 2008
This is one of those albums that can only be fully appreciated on vinyl. The sound quality is phenomenal!

CD-Charts Position 18
Average Rating:

Kala

CD-Charts > Music > General
from: Interscope Records

Release Date August 21, 2007
M.I.A.'s sophomore album "Kala" continues some of what people knew her to be during the first album. This is still dance stuff, filled with certain samples that range from monotonous to interesting, with all kinds of tracks. And what separates her from many at times is the bigger use of world/tribal sounds at times. I am not as big on this album as others but it doesn't mean that they're wrong or anything.

The "low" (for some) rating has more to do with it being a mixed bag for my money than anything else. It's an album where a lot of the more listenable moments come later rather than in the first half. "Paper Planes" is understandably the hit here, with a sample of the Clash's guitars and awesome gunshots used in the chorus. The sound effects actually turn out clever, way more interesting ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 19
Average Rating:

Oracular Spectacular

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: MGMT

Release Date January 22, 2008
I really like this management band for a few reasons. First, they play super cool alternative rock that I can quote to my country music friends to make them sound all stupid and stuff. I'm in management for my company so I can relate to what these cats are speaking about. There are times where Bob will call a 9am roundtable about garble reports and I'll just yell at him that it's time to pretend. When it's time to pretend, I pretend my office is a 17th century castle and I'm the King. I declare war on the other offices around me and go around passing gas in them. They don't like it, but I'm an awesome mammal.

There are songs on this I don't get, but let me clue you in on a little secret. I lack the intelligence needed to comprehend many things. I'm totally awesome and good looking, so I've moved ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 20
Average Rating:

Here Come the ABCs [CD/DVD Combo]

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: They Might Be Giants

Release Date October 25, 2005
It started very slowly but before we knew it, our family took a liking to TMBG music. We play it at home and in the car. We had a party and they all the adults were singing along!

Alongside my daughter, my husband and I are also learning. For one, Y is a vowel. Who knew??