CD-Charts Position 31
Average Rating:

Garden State

CD-Charts > Music > General
from: Sony

Release Date August 10, 2004
With the creation of Zach Braff's "Garden State" every kid in America decided they too could enjoy indie movies. The Garden State soundtrack affords the same benefits. With the album compiled of the latest cracker jack, so-called "indie" artists Zach Braff has certainly captivated an unassuming audience and tricked them into believing that they have truly found a secretive sect of music that no one else has ever heard, despite that most of the musicians found here have been around for quite some time. While the packaging and hype surrounding the album make it deliciously attractive, it's the bigger idea of the album that you should be repulsed by. If you're interested in buying good music, go do it. If you're interested in buying into an over ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 32
Average Rating:

We Are Beautiful We Are Doomed (CD/DVD)

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Los Campesinos!

Release Date November 24, 2008
We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed was originally recorded as a collection of songs intended to be used as b-sides for future single releases. Turns out that these musicians are just so damn talented that the set of ten songs ended up being every bit as good as the material on their debut record, released only seven months earlier in April. As shocked as I am that a young band like this can put out two excellent records in the same year, I am moreso pleased to see that 2008 has been the year of bands deciding that they don't think 3-4 four years between releases is an ok timetable, at least if one is to believe the press. Anyhow, I digress.

Los Campesinos! is probably the most blisteringly enjoyable band that has come onto the indie scene ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 33
Average Rating:

The Flying Club Cup

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Beirut

Release Date October 09, 2007
After reading numerous POSITIVE Reviews I thought I would give this CD a shot, as I am also a fan of early 1900's French and Parisian Music... and this CD was extolled to be such....and these were also very romantic times! Well, as we all have broad tastes in music so do I and when I say my tastes are broad, I'm being conservative as about the only thing I don't like is Opera and Rap! Anything else in between usually works! However, not this CD! I've TRIED listening to every track and was, today, on my 3rd-attempt to try and find something about it that I could enjoy! I got up to selection #5 and hit the eject button! To me it was nothing but noise, more noise and then some more!! It's going on eBay tomorrow for 1-cent plus shipping! Look for ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 34
Average Rating:

Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down

CD-Charts > Music > General
from: CherryTree Records

Release Date September 16, 2008
Great debut with what accidentally appears to be a nice British take on Jonathan Richman. The slightly off-kilter vocals only add to the charm and wit of the songs, which ring honest with heart and freshness.

So, yes, I dig.

CD-Charts Position 35
Average Rating:

Colour the Small One

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Sia

Release Date January 10, 2006
Great new artist, such a soulful sound. She sings like no one I ever heard before. She really feeels the music!!

CD-Charts Position 36
Average Rating:

Give Up

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: The Postal Service

Release Date February 18, 2003
The only way to describe this album is "indescribable".
Of the entire collection, one song will forever stick in my mind. "Such Great Heights" was introduced to me by my ex, along with several other songs from the album. Though they were difficult to hear over the rumble of the car's ragged engine, I got a sense of the album's pop-electric-indie ambiance which still haunts me.
"When you are out there on the road..."
The chorus makes me think of flying high above the earth with the one you love, above the troubles where "everything looks perfect from far away." The middle "break-down" is perfectly spaced and wonderfully blended. This song encompasses all moods, from wistful, to happy, to hurting, to love.
This song blends wonderfully ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 37
Average Rating:

Cassadaga

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Bright Eyes

Release Date April 10, 2007
I would never call myself a huge Bright Eyes fan, but I do enjoy them. I was introduced to them in high school with the song "A Perfect Sonnet" on the Every Day and Every Night EP, leading to me downloading and purchasing several others after that. Conor's emotional and chaotic melodies made every album unique, and I love all the awkward vocalizing and experimental noise running throughout albums like Fevers and Mirrors or Lifted.

Then came the two big albums that really hit them off commercially - I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning and Digital Ash in a Digital Urn. Out of the two, I preferred Digital Ash as it was rawer and more of that experimental noise I loved from Conor's music, but the critics seemed to favor I'm Wide Awake moreso, which to me just sounded ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 38
Average Rating:

Honeysuckle Weeks

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: The Submarines

Release Date May 13, 2008
I kind of bought this album on a whim... I saw a live performance, listened to some clips and thought, "what the heck!" When I popped it in the CD player I had mixed emotions, but after a couple of listens it started to grow on me a little more.

There are a handful of songs I love (hence the 4 stars rather than 3), some that are fun and good enough to listen to, and a couple that don't exactly tickle my fancy. Overall I like their sound... I definitely enjoy listening the the girl sing over the guy though.

My faves: 1, 3, 4, 6

CD-Charts Position 39
Average Rating:

Illinoise

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: Sufjan Stevens

Release Date July 05, 2005
Frankly, the music of Sufjan Stevens is a bit too twee and precious for my everyday tastes, but I'll be the first to admit that he comes close to touching something that exists in all of us -- that innate and intangible sense of "place" and "home" the likes of which famed authors John Steinbeck and Thomas Wolfe respectively attempted to dispel and recapture. This is more than simple reportage and anecdote; it's nothing less than a youthful attempt to get one's arms around the unifying spirit of, what seems obvious to Stevens, this "nation under God" -- something for both believers and agnostics to appropriately ponder.

CD-Charts Position 40
Average Rating:

Urban Hymns

CD-Charts > Music > General
by: The Verve

Release Date September 30, 1997
Bittersweet Symphony is the best song ever. I'm using the intro for my wedding march.