Thursday, January 13, 2011

New Music Tuesday

It's that time of the week (OK...technically two days ago, but I was in airports all day). This was a fairly decent week for new music. Some old favorites released new music, as well as some I only recently discovered.

Cage the Elephant - Thank You, Happy Birthday
Thank You, Happy Birthday
I am listening to this album as I type this. I found out about Cage the Elephant a couple of years back and really liked their first album, Cage the Elephant. They had kind of a gritty sound, but you could tell the band was having a lot of fun. So far, this album seems a bit more mature, both in sound and in content, but the basic sound is still the same.
"Shake Me Down"

Cake - Showroom of Compassion
Showroom of Compassion
I wasn't sure of what to think when I heard that this album was going to be a slight departure from their typical style, with a more piano-driven sound. I was even more dismayed when I saw the album artwork, as it looked a little different than the rest (though on further analysis, it's actually pretty similar still). Listening to a few of the initial songs, however, did away with my trepidations. Even though piano is present, there's still the trumpet and spoken word elements that they're known for. It's same old Cake, with a little something extra!
"Sick of You"

Mew - Eggs are Funny
Eggs are Funny
Mew is kind of a weird band, but they're from Scandinavia, so it makes some sense. This album was released a few months back in their native country, Denmark, but only just got released in the states. It brings together some of their more popular songs (they're not huge in the U.S., so I'm guessing these songs are pretty big back in Denmark). It doesn't have my favorite track, "Apocalypso," on it, so I don't know how much of a hits album it is...
"The Zookeeper's Boy"

Tapes 'n Tapes - Outside
Outside
This is a fairly new band for me, though I realize they've been around for a few years. I first heard of them when Pitchfork was pimpin' their single "Freak Out," which I really liked; it reminded me a bit of Arcade Fire and The National, if they had a baby band. The album, Outside, wasn't out yet, so I checked out some of their back catalog. I didn't like it so much as that song, so I'm really excited for this release.
"Freak Out"

Teitur - Let the Dog Drive Home
Let the Dog Drive Home
This is another Scandinavian artist whose album came out in his native country months ago. Try as I might, I couldn't get my hands on it until it came out in the states this past week. I got into this artist through the suggestion of (I hate to admit this) John Mayer. Mayer used to write guest columns for Rolling Stone magazine and really lauded this guy. He is actually really good, though the strength is mainly in the song writing. He's made some beautiful songs and this album is a good follow-up to that Mayer suggested, Poetry & Aeroplanes.
"All I Remember from Last Night is You"

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