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Pop Rock Nation

Category: News

music-news-from-breakups-to-the-lastest-buzz

  • New Music In Stores & Online 10/14/08: Keane, Ray Lamontagne and More!!

    The cover of Keane's new album "Perfect Symmetry".Keane: Perfect Symmetry:

    I posted Keane’s new single “Spiralling” in a Single Life column a couple weeks back, and I was surprised not only with its’ quality, but also with how peppy it was. I mean, Keane aren’t totally mopey, but their songs generally have a melancholy quality to them-those Coldplay comparisons aren’t totally farfetched. Perfect Symmetry is rumored to have a more upbeat, Eighties vibe to it, and I can’t wait to hear it.

    Ray Lamontagne: Gossip in the Grain

    Speaking of mopey, raspy voiced singer/songwriter Ray Lamontagne has not been known for being completely upbeat, but there are moments on Gossip-his third album-that are relatively cheery and even reveal a-gasp-sense of humor!! Of course, there are also plenty of tortured ballads here, but the album would be worth it if just to hear his creepy/hilarious tribute to “Meg White”.

    Nikka Costa: Pebble to a Pearl

    Each of the three artists profiled so far is releasing their third album today. Nikka Costa might be the most frustrating of the bunch. Her first album revealed quite a bit of promise, fusing funk and rock in a way not seen since the heyday of Teena Marie. The follow-up, to put it plainly, blew. Switching labels from Virgin over to Stax, Nikka returns after a three-year layoff with a new album, and I’m skeptical about spending my hard-earned ducats on it, so one of you guys reading is gonna have to tell me how the album is.

    …and, there’s not really much else out this week. You can get your metal fix with the new album from Boston’s own Unearth and check out a new EP from singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson. There’s also a new one from alt-country giant Lucinda Williams, plus live efforts from Buena Vista Social Club and Phoebe Snow. Otherwise, it’s all reissues and holiday albums.

    The Ho Ho Ho train is in full swing at this point, as there are new holiday-themed efforts from the likes of Los Lonely Boys (!), Sixpence None the Richer (!!) and the Queen of Soul. Aretha Franklin takes some time from bashing Tina Turner and is putting out the first Christmas album of her five-decade career. Of course, it would have been nice if she’d released a holiday album back when she could actually, you know, sing.

    On the reissue tip, Philadelphia International is releasing several of its’ most treasured classic albums, including selections from The O’Jays, Teddy Pendergrass and Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes. The two-disc compilation “Multi-Dimensional Warrior”, featuring some of Carlos Santana‘s best work, is also in stores. There’s also a 2-CD, 1-DVD special edition of Johnny Cash‘s “Live from Folsom Prison”, and the first compilation from R&B crooner Joe hits shelves today.

    Get your full list of new music here

  • MHW Reads: A Requiem for a Not So Endless Summer

    Bob Greene's book "When We Get To Surf City"How’s this for serendipity?  20 years ago, journalist Bob Greene wrote a book based on a diary he kept as a teenager in 1964.  The book was called Be True to Your School, and, a few years after its publication, it caught the eye of a guy named Gary Griffin, who, as a touring musician, spent a lot of time in airports.  Griffin picked up the book at an airport bookstore – just something to read – and one of the book’s diary entries, in which Greene notes that he picked up the new 45 by the surf music duo Jan & Dean, caught Griffin’s eye.  At the time, Griffin was playing keyboards for the legendary duo as they were making their way across the country in their annual summer tour, and after a few phone calls had arranged for Bob Greene to join them at a show.  
     
    As it happened, Greene’s starry-eyed meeting with the aging rock ‘n’ roll idols of his youth turned out to be the start of a beautiful friendship – with Jan Berry, Dean Torrence, and the guys who helped them deliver there two-and-a-half-minute odes to fun in the California sun to Midwestern state fairs, Mississippi casinos, private corporate parties and reunions across the country every summer; and his latest book When We Get To Surf City is an affectionate memoir of the days and nights he spent on the road with these “Lost Boys”, as he calls them – men in their 40s, 50s, and 60s playing their iconic songs about “The New Girl In School” and places like “Drag City” and “Surf City” as if they were still teenagers, and in so doing, providing the nearest possible approximation to a portable fountain of youth. 

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  • Single Life: Special Beyonce Edition: Single Ladies and If I Were a Boy

    For her upcoming third solo album, the lovely Beyonce Knowles has decided to grace us with two singles at once. “If I Were a Boy” and “Single Ladies” are the two opening tracks from her new, as yet untitled album, which is scheduled to hit stores in mid-November. The videos premiere later today, but until then, I’m sure you’re wondering what the songs sound like (if you haven’t heard them already). You can check them out for yourself on Beyonce’s website.

    “If I Were a Boy” is something of a departure for Beyonce. Before actually hearing the song, I was a little concerned that the theme and the song would rip off Ciara’s recent hit “Like a Boy”. While the two songs are thematically similar, Beyonce’s song is more mature from a lyrical and musical standpoint (it should go without saying that Beyonce is a much better singer than Ciara ever will be). I would have loved to hear Beyonce go for the full-on rock treatment and use live drums here, but the song’s still pretty impressive. On the other hand, “Single Ladies” starts off in the same let’s-go-to-the-club vibe as previous Beyonce/ singles like “Jumpin’ Jumpin’” and “Get Me Bodied”. As such, it’s significantly less enjoyable than “If I Were a Boy”. It’s not a bad song per se-again, the beauty of someone as vocally talented as Beyonce is that anything she records is going to at the very least be interesting. However, it’s certainly a letdown after “If I Were a Boy”. Let’s hope that her upcoming album contains more material like “If I Were a Boy” and less material like “Single Ladies”.