quickie album review: stay positive

Admittedly, I had never even heard of The Hold Steady until their near-perfect third album Boys and Girls in America, but I've been firmly on their bandwagon ever since.  Thus, Stay Positive has been one of my more anticipated album releases of the year, and though it doesn't quite reach the peaks of "Boys and Girls", it's certainly no slouch either.  To be completely honest, "Sequestered in Memphis" - the first single to hit the radio waves - had me nervous.  It's a tight little song for sure, however it sounded a bit too similar to their previous work; like they were just rehashing more of the same.  Fortunately, my fears turned out to be unfounded, as Stay Positive does break new ground with their instrumentation (banjos and harpsichords and theremins - oh my!) while still maintaining their penchant for lyrical storytelling and staying true to their Springsteen-esque rock roots.  Though not my favorite from them, Stay Positive is a solid addition to their discography. How appropriate that it opens with "Constructive Summer", since it's a perfect summer rock album.  I can't wait to hear it live.

Favorite Track: "One for the Cutters"

(A quick postscript: Trust that I have no intention of making album reviews a weekly "thing," however in honor of the fact that a) this is a fairly notable release and b) I'm seeing these guys live for the first time tomorrow, I figured a review was in order.  I'll get back to mocking the trivial details of my everyday life soon enough, but for today, music. Hope ya'll don't mind too terribly much.)

quickie album review: modern guilt

If I could list the musical acts who've had me from hello, the first would be Radiohead and the second, Beck; so, despite being largely underwhelmed by his two previous releases and after reading very mixed reviews of Modern Guilt, I still had every intention of giving Mr. Hansen the benefit of the doubt.  Of course, the fact that Danger Mouse produced this newest effort didn't make that decision hard, exactly. If tracks titled "Gamma Ray," "Chemtrails," and "Orphans" hadn't already clued you in, Modern Guilt is apocalyptically themed, which I feel is to its benefit since the most interesting material often comes from a place of darkness.  But the sound of the album, though moody, dreamy and chill, isn't particularly dark. Although Danger Mouse's beats occasionally err on the heavy-handed side, the overall marriage between the two artists is a happy one, and the resultant sound effect is delightfully multi-layered and rich.  My biggest criticism is that, clocking in at just over 30 minutes, Modern Guilt is too darn short, but saying that you wanted something to last longer is the sort of criticism one doesn't mind hearing, I suppose.

The verdict: Though imperfect, I've been listening to Modern Guilt almost exclusively since laying hands on it, so I'm announcing that the negative reviewers can stuff it.  Honestly, I don't think I've liked a Beck album this much since Odelay. 

Favorite Track: "Volcano"