What music have you heard recently?

[mvd]

Haven't had one of these threads in a long time.

I heard these online. Quick opinions:

Marilyn Manson - The High End Of Low (bad album. Has none of the fun Mechanical Animals had, which is the only album I like from him.)

Eels - Hombre Lobo (it's a little TOO lo-fi, but has its moments for sure, like in the ballad "In My Dreams.")

Girl In A Coma - Trio B.C. (it has some good rock music, but my problem is with the vocals, which annoy me. They sound a little like Amie Miriello's, but less mature.)

The Sounds - Across The Rubicon (another winner, expanding their new wave sound for the first time. I don't know why some reviewers don't like them.)

From my collection:

Mandy Moore - Amanda Leigh, The Antennas - self-titled, Au Revoir Simone - Still Night, Still Light, Grizzly Brear - Veckatimest, Wussy - self-titled (all highly recommended albums!)

[bif]

1. Jonatha Brooke "The Works"

She was invited by Woody Guthrie's daughter to go through his archive of poetry and unfinished song fragments. She set it to music and it's wonderful. Also, listening to Slumdog soundtrack, Guggenheim Grotto, Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, David Lanois and
andrew Bird's latest which is great.

[mvd]

3. Would you recommend Jonatha's Works over her other albums?

I've heard her music but have yet to buy a CD from her. :hi:

[bif]

6. If I only bought one I'd probably recommend...

Either of her live recordings. They're both excellent. They give you a sense of what she's like in person. What a rare talent she is. Her early recordings with The Story are also excellent. Check out the video I included on my latest blog entry: http://www.marksmusicmemo.blogspot.com/

[mvd]

8. Thanks, bif!

I'm not a big live fan, so what is her best studio album, if I go that way instead?

[bif]

11. I agree about live recordings

But in J-Bro's case it gives you a sampling of some of her best work. And with the 1st live one, it's very well recordied and the mikes don't pick up audience noise except for the clapping at the end of a song. But if you'd rather choose a studio recording, I'd go with "10 Cent Wings".

[mvd]

12. Thanks again - perhaps it's best to save up and buy one of each

:hi:

[bif]

17. Go to her web site

A lot of times she offers special deals there. I think it's jonathabrooke.com

[Bertha Venation]

2. acoustic covers by the original artists

Very good stuff on XM 51, "The Coffee House" channel. My fave is "Only the Lonely" by The Motels.

[ScreamingMeemie]

4. If you like that, check out Cyndi Lauper's "The Body Accoustic"...

She's done covers of all her hits and they are, quite possibly, better than the original recordings. http://www.amazon.com/Body-Acoustic-Cyndi-Lauper/dp/B000BKDOA2

[Bertha Venation]

13. I will! Thank you! I love Cyndi Lauper.

:yourock:

[mvd]

14. Me, too

That's one of the few albums I don't have from her. If you haven't heard her latest, Bring Ya to the Brink, that shows Cyndi's still in fine form.

[Tobin S.]

5. I just got an HD radio

I've been listening to those hidden HD channels. I was a bit disappointed with the sound quality. It's a little better, but not all that it's supposed to be. But I do like the extra HD channels. They are commercial free and play a much broader range of music than their commercial counterparts.

[mvd]

7. I also have HD radio

I like switching through those extra FM stations (might be nice during the holidays when you want a break from the Christmas music,) but I've noticed sound is better on AM. When it pulls in a station, the static goes away. One problem I've had is that most AM stations around here can't be picked up in HD 30 miles away, especially at night. Even 1210 AM, a big station, can't be gotten in HD at night. I think it might be the direction of 1210's antenna rather than the power.

[Tobin S.]

9. I haven't tried the AM channels yet. I'm not much into talk radio.

We do have ESPN radio around here, though, and I can tolerate that. I'll check that out to see what it sounds like.

[mvd]

10. The ESPN station here comes in pretty well (950 AM)

I don't listen to 1210 much because it's mostly conservative. I was thinking they might add Randi Rhodes now, but not yet. Sports radio 610 comes in in HD during the day, but goes in and out at night.

[no name no slogan]

15. Selections from my most recently played:

The Presets -- "This Boy's In Love"
Sounds like an Australian Depeche Mode. Or more like Pet Shop Boys meets Front 242.

Arcadia -- "The Promise"
3/5 of Duran Duran go art-rock in the mid-80s. I still love this stuff.

Elliott Smith -- "Brand New Game"
From a bootleg demo disc. Solid old-school pop music by one of Gen X's greatest songwriters (RIP).

For Against -- "The Last Laugh"
Shoegaze music from Nebraska (yeah, Nebraska!). They've been doing it for 20+ years and are still going strong.

Alice In Chains -- "Nutshell"
One of the best tunes off AiC's best recording ("Jar of Flies").

Mojave 3 -- "In Love With A View"
Americana/folk-rock from the shores of Cornwall, England. Or, what happens when former shoegazers Slowdive get a steel guitar player and start listening to Nick Drake.

Hawkwind -- "Spirit of the Age"
Sci-Fi weirdness about deep frozen lovers and sex with androids. In other words, par for the course for Hawkwind. From the recently re-issued album "Quark, Strangeness & Charm".

[insanity]

16. A few things I've been listening to recently

El Ten Eleven- Post rock duo consisting of really sick bass tracks. Listen to Estrella or My Only Swerving.

Django Reinhardt- Everyone who doesn't know who this is should do themselves the favor of a listen.

MGMT- Catchy but musically bland indie-rock. Kids is a pretty good song though.

Wir Sind Helden- German rock group (name translates to 'We are Heroes') and if you speak a little German or just enjoy something a little different Von Hier und Blind is both a great song and album.

[ghostsofgiants]

18. I've been pretty much hooked on Japandroids' "Post-Nothing."

And the new Isis album is great as well.

[yellowdogintexas]

19. White Lies for Lomax about 7 times while listening to the Van Cliburn Competition

http://www.cliburn.org/index.php?page=mason-bates

also a lot of other good piano works as the competitors were whittled down from 30 to six

http://www.cliburn.org/

oh by the way, the man in the white shirt with the wild hair is blind and his playing is breathtaking.

I am rooting for Di Wu who was a semi finalist 4 years ago.

[bif]

20. kick

[mix]

21. Kingdom of Rust - Doves

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhbK8kQW4LI
it takes an ocean of trust...