If you pay attention to music news at all, then I’m pretty sure you’ve got one thing on your mind: U2. Of course, U2’s new album is what everyone and their brother is talking about this week and for good reason.

But don’t let the boys from back in the day completely overshadow the rest of the fabulous music being released this week. If you miss out on Neko Case’s new album, you’re likely going to regret it. And give newcomer Molly Jenson a listen to as well. While new releases from the classic groups are always super exciting, there’s a lot of fabulous new music out there. Read More »

Mixing early rock and roll in its purest and delightfully dirtiest heights with eye-winking Hoodoo mysticism, Who Do You Love is one of the most revolutionary songs produced of its kind. It was written by the recently deceased musical legend Bo Diddley and covered to various degrees of success by George Thorogood among many others. As it happens, Diddley’s version is by far the best, playful, mysterious and light years ahead of its time.

Trip-Hop has sort of inexplicably become one of my favorite genres. Many music critics attribute the founding of this genre to the Bristol-based group Massive Attack with the release of its amazing debut album, Blue Lines. The album features the track Unfinished Sympathy, which has been remixed within an inch of its life by dozens of famous DJs. Again, the original version is the best. It represents the band’s oeuvre beautifully: dark, sexy, esoteric and strangely danceable.

I know it’s kinda sacrilegious to say, but I think that Radiohead’s latest, In Rainbows, has usurped The Bends to become my favorite Radiohead album.

The first track on the album, 15 Step is a killer song that incorporates all of the things that give Radiohead the greatly deserved reputation of being God-Like in a totally uninspired landscape. It’s catchy, complex without being inaccessible, and strangely melodic despite the synthesizers. Read More »

I am going to try to review this CD as impartially as I can, but I doubt that I will be able to hold back my intense fan girl love for it. This is easily in my top five favorite albums of all time, if not my very favorite.

Neko Case is sort of a legend in the alt-country genre for her versatility and “country noir” sensibilities. Fox Confessor Brings the Flood is her best album; confident, moving, and even playful at times in it’s almost punk-like disregard for the conventions of structure. Her soulful voice recalls spirituals and blues but her lyrics are rich and modern in their abstraction.

This is one of those rare albums that I can listen to all the way through. It feels like taking a journey down a long dirt country road, peaceful, tumultuous at times, but starkly beautiful and rich.

More than that, this is the singular album that appeals to me as I transition fully into adulthood and womanhood–I understand everything she sings about, even if I can’t follow every line. She evokes the way I feel about this time in my life with her music as much as she does with her words, sad guitars that recall nostalgia and stark echoes that convey loneliness better, I think, than any lyrics ever could. Read More »

Valentine’s Day. Blah, blah, blah. I really have nothing to say about this holiday other than I’m sure certain people love it. Being stricken with the flu for three days does nothing to brighten a girl’s demeanor, and V-Day has never been high on my list of days to get excited about.

I don’t own a card store. I’ve never dated anyone who’d be pulling diamonds out of his pocket, and it’s always been strange to me that we need certain days to prove we love one another.

Sorry about being a screwup for 364 days, honey. Here’s some chocolates and a bear. Let’s make up.

ANYway, all annoyance aside, I’m aware that there are other opinions about February 14th. Some people love this day. Seriously. Can’t get enough. And other people…?

Well, they use it as an excuse to lie on their bed, stare at the ceiling, eat a box of chocolates all themselves, and go all melancholy about why they have no one.

If you’re one of these, have I got the mix for you.

Below is a list of songs guaranteed to help those tears, and dear god whys?!, flow. Read More »