hello there, reader of this blog. so, even though we're on a hiatus from live shows for a short while, we're still musicians and fans of music ourselves, so we figured why not tell you guys what albums we're listening to at the moment and invite you to comment and tell us what you're listening to. after all, one can never get enough new music. i'll go first...
october - u2
an album often overshadowed by the incredibly successful albums they released in subsequent years, i'm coming to love this one more and more. like "war," this album's rawer than most of their others, musically speaking and just in the overall attitude of the record. the edge's riff on "gloria" is one of my all-time favorites on his long list of great ones, as well as his work on "i threw a brick through a window." bono's voice is also less tame, you can't help but love it. combine that with a driving and dynamic rhythm section and it's a special album, setting them apart as a different animal than their at-the-time post-punk contemporaries joy division and echo & the bunnymen.
loyalty to loyalty - cold war kids
probably one of the most underrated albums of the year, this one only gets better and better. i must admit i was at first a bit surprised by it; after their mostly upbeat and grainy debut "robbers & cowards," i was expecting an even grungier rock record here. yet while this one has it's fair share of upbeat tunes (see: "mexican dogs," "i've seen enough," "dreams old men dream"), it's a predominantly subtler record, drawing on darker lyrical themes and imagery. but their signature graininess is still there; it's hard to imagine this album as anything other than a soundtrack for some black and white noir crime film, nor would i want to. much of the time the album's focus is on the vocal, and with a voice as unique and distinct as nathan willett's, i'm not complaining. give it not one, but a few listens; i think it'll grow on you.
so that's a start. call me what you will, but i can't wait to hear coldplay's new "prospekt's march ep" in a few days. judging by the quality of their past so-called "b-sides," i think this will be something special. let me know what you think. what are you listening to?
philip
