Freight Elevator Quartet / Becoming Transparent / Caipirinha You might be familiar with the FEQ from File Under Futurism, last year's collaboration with DJ Spooky. Freed from DJ Spooky's somewhat drab urban palette, they're free to truly shine. Their approach, which adds traditional acoustic -- often classical -- instrumentation to drum 'n' bass and downtempo hip hop rhythmic constructs, is almost jaw-droppingly lush and beautiful. After hearing a few hundred drum and bass tunes in which limp, insincere soul harmonies are fused to assembly-line beat patterns, hearing a real cello juxtaposed with a wildly original percussion track is almost revelatory...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		Ida / Will You Find Me? / Tiger Style Among indie bands, Ida seems to be among the most consistent at fulfilling the tasks their songs present them. On disc, they seem to be absolutely complete, and never leave you thinking "if only there was a little more bass here, or a tinkle of paino there". For "Down on Your Back", Will You Find Me's hypnotic opener, I think Ida also accurately conveys the sentiments some fans might have on the first listen...more» FEATURED ON THE BOOMBOX!
		The Concretes / Boyoubetterunow / Up The songs on Boyoubetterunow are pretty sparse, relying on catchy melodies and inventive orchestration to keep things interesting. For me, though, it's Victoria's vocals that really make this disc stand out. The fact that Victoria (they're all one-namers, apparently) sings with an accent undoubtedly has an effect on my judgment, but I imagine that even if I were a Swedish youth and she were singing in her native language, her mild, half-innocent/half-sultry and undeniably sweet voice would be crush-inducing...more»
		Jimmy Eat World / Singles / Big Wheel Recreation While nothing her can quite match up to the sonic majesty of Clarity, it shows that the seeds of JeW's greatness were sewn long ago. Supersonic love statements like "77 Satellites" and "Spangle" are predecessors to the anthemic guitar sweep and driving vocals of Clarity’s "Lucky Denver Mint" and "Blister", while centerpiece "H Model" displays the band's knack for writing sublime hooks and a penchant for rought yet polished production techniques....more»
		Moonbabies / June and Novas / Duckweed The Moonbabies are surely one of the most talented bands in the European underground scene, with strengths that go far beyond those of my long-time favorite Swedes the Acid House Kings. The two Moonbabies, Carina Johansson and Ola Frick, share musical characteristics with the popular Cardigans, their hearts embedded in both wistful pop and heavy rock, but also in stripped-down guitar bands like the DBs and Cat's Miaow...more»
		Napalm Death / The Complete Radio One Sessions / Fuel Recorded during four different visits to the BBC, several of the tracks here are actually multiple songs fused together. For instance, track one, "The Kill / Prison Without Walls / Dead Part I" has the band blasting through three songs in 59 seconds! You'll feel physically drained as light-speed drumming and guitars rake through brief, yet very distinguishable melodies, while guttural, filth-spewing vocals usher forth unbridled anguish that'll tear straight through your fragile frame...more»
		Carter Scholz / 8 Pieces / Frog Peak Carter Scholz’s music is difficult to classify. On one hand it is almost fanatically dispassionate, highly mathematical and systematic. On the other hand it is simply too beautiful, too magical to be dismissed as purely left-brained stuff. Take "Lattice" for example. I won’t describe the mechanics of the piece (although Mr. Scholz does so with great clarity and succinctness in the liner notes) but essentially it involves computer-generated tones which begin in unison and then diverge to performer-arbitrated degrees of dissonance...more»
		Jean Smith / Self-Titled / Kill Rock Stars Filling her debut solo album with hypnotic, improvised compositions, Jean Smith has attempted to document the "creation of music," as she puts it. From its embryonic first scratchings to its more polished overdubs and loops, the evolution of a musical idea is documented here with varying degrees of success. Some tracks, intertwining guitars, saxophones and repeated spoken lines, lull the listener into a trance. It's as if Steve Reich found a distortion pedal...more»
		The Weakerthans / Left and Leaving / SubCity Left and leaving is definitely for listeners who like lyrics. Gentle country-folk-rock delivered from a punk rock perspective, these twelve songs tell oblique stories of broken and confused connections between individuals and ideologies. Ever had that experience where you're listening to an album and a single, unexpectedly wise and relevant lyric will pop out of a song and lodge in your mind for hours? That'll happen again and again with Left and leaving...more»
		Måns Wieslander / Twin Piloda / Payola In the last few years, we've heard from a lot of solo artist types who can write thoroughly memorable music but can't turn in vocals to match -- this is particularly the case with emo guys, who are used to being able to "cheat" by screaming when they can't hit the note just right. Wieslander, however, has a strong and enthralling voice, and is capable of conveying a wide range of moods and emotions. Working in a sort Forster/MacLennan vein, he aims more for a narrative approach than a confessional tone...more»