The Weepies - Be My Thrill

New Music Tuesday is back with a bit of an off the wall band. Now, you might be led to believe that it's a slow music release day, but it really isn't. Heart, Disturbed and the Goo Goo Dolls are released new stuff this morning, but none of them wanted their samples released on Amazon. So - that drops me down to the Weepies. Not sure about ya'll out there in reader land, but I've never heard of this band before. They have that indie pop/rock sound, similar to hmmm, maybe an early Sheryl Crow? This is the fifth studio album recording by them, and they are signed to the 'Nettwerk' label. Sarah McLachlan probably being the biggest name to grace that particular label. iTunes releases a couple of these tracks in anticipation of the release, and they've gotten generally positive reviews. All in all, this album isn't all that bad. It's got a pretty fun feel to it, doesn't seem to take itself too seriously. Lyrically it's not going to haunt your dreams, but it's something you could tap your toes to on a Tuesday. Hey! You're in luck! It's Tuesday and you want to tap your toes! So check this out today. Let me know what you think!

TRACK LISTING:
1. Please Speak Well of Me
2. When You Go Away
3. Red Red Rose
4. I Was Made For Sunny Days
5. They're In Love, Where Am I?
6. Add My Effort
7. Be My Thrill
8. Be My Honeypie
9. Hummingbird
10. Hard To Please
11. Not a Lullaby
12. How Do You Get High?
13. Hope Tomorrow
14. Empty Your Hands

Listen To Samples

1. Please Speak Well Of Me
2. Be My Thrill
3. I Was Made For Sunny Days

FINAL RATING:
3 out of 5 stars

Autechre - Move Of Ten

The last couple Techno Tuesday entries have been a different brand of techno. Aphex and now Autechre are more of that industrial beat machine type dance, not lyrical and certainly not meant for the pop masses. It goes back to that IDM label (intelligent dance music) that I brought up last week. This EP/album came out just this year. Autochre is a group of guys that like to mix up styles quite a bit, and there is some speculation as to that being the reason they titled this record as such. Move Of Ten could be because it's the year 2010, it has 10 tracks or because they're 'moving on' from the style of their 10th album. Either way, give this a go. I do know that die hard fans of this band complain about them dropping so many little EP's that are only a few songs and don't live up to the main attractions. Well, I don't think that could be an issue here. Even though it's only 10 tracks, it translates into almost 60 minutes worth of tuneage. And I can't compare it to previous works (since I don't know anything else by them yet), but the only thing that could be old is this is VERY percussion heavy. If you're more into the standard bass beat, you're going to get a lot of snare hits and other instruments one wouldn't necessarily expect in a dance record. Anyway, I'll close it by of course saying to listen and then let me know what you think. It's by no means great, but it's something beatnuts could jam to.

TRACK LISTING:
1. Etchogon-S
2. y7
3. pce freeze 2.8i
4. rew (1)
5. nth Dafuseder.b
6. Iris Was a Pupil
7. No Border
8. M62
9. ylm0
10. Cep puiqMX

Listen To Samples

Top 3 Tracks:
1. Etchogon-S
2. nth Dafuseder.b
3. y7

FINAL RATING:
2.75 out of 5 stars

Garbage - Self Titled

Sometimes when I'm going back on my old alternative rock collection, I skip over this album. And then when I finally get back to giving it a chance, I remember how great it is. The music is really good, and what 12 year old boy didn't have a super crush on Shirley Manson? I know I did. Plus, these guys formed right in my current backyard of Madison, Wisconsin! You have to love that! Garbage has four studio records out, with this being number one and being 2x platinum. Garbage hasn't put anything out since 2005, but are currently all back in talks to putting something out again as early as end of 2010. Not sure about you, but that makes me somewhat excited. I haven't really heard any of the more recent stuff, but I feel like they have a sound I can always jive to. Manson's voice will never get old, as long as they have a nice backdrop and sweet vocals, I'll be a fan. This album has been reissued more times than I can count, due to label changes and all that jazz. It was recorded at the infamous Smart Studios here in Madison, and if you don't know, that building has been the birthplace of many epic albums. Do a Wiki search on it sometime, you'll be impressed. If you have not heard this album, check it out. It's a fun listen. And if you haven't heard it since 1995, pick it up again - totally worth it.

TRACK LISTING:
1. Supervixen
2. Queer
3. Only Happy When It Rains
4. As Heaven Is Wide
5. Not My Idea
6. Stroke of Luck, A
7. Vow
8. Stupid Girl
9. Dog New Tricks
10. My Lover's Box
11. Fix Me Now
12. Milk

Listen To Samples

Top 3 Tracks:
1. Stupid Girl
2. Only Happy When It Rains
3. Queer

FINAL RATING:
3.5 out of 5 stars

Pitbull - Rebelution

I understand that sometimes with my open promise to review anything that comes into the box, sometimes a person may toss something in there just to make me listen to something they think will be terrible. Well, that's actually not the case with Pitbull, as follower Mithrandr thought this could be somewhat good upon his suggestion. I personally have never been a big fan of Pitbull's work, and can safely say I'd never have listened to a full album had it not been suggested. Some folks might want to call this rap, but I whole heartedly disagree. This a pop record, or at most bend a dance album. Interesting tidbit, Pitbull was born to a Cuban mix family, and he is a white, blue eyed and Cuban American. It's hard to have any street cred when you kind of pretend to be hispanic and then people learn you're white. Anyway, the long and short of it is, this is pretty bad. I mean, if you're at the club and you hear half the tracks on this album, you'll probably get up and move. But from a sitting at my desk and wanting to listen to tuneage standpoint, this would be nearly last on my list. I guess it could be good driving music too, but it's not really for me. I'll tell Mith and the rest of you who enjoy a good dance track to try it out, but don't expect gold.

TRACK LISTING:
1. Triumph
2. Shut It Down
3. I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)
4. Girls
5. Full of S**t
6. Dope Ball (Interlude)
7. Can't Stop Me Now
8. Hotel Room Service
9. Juice Box
10. Call of the Wild
11. Krazy
12. Give Them What They Ask For
13. Across the World
14. Daddy's Little Girl

Listen To Samples

Top 3 Tracks:
1. Hotel Room Service
2. I Know You Want Me
3. Krazy

FINAL RATING:
2.25 out of 5 stars

NIN - Downward Spiral

Metal fans, wake up. Another crazy realization the other day was when follower Janis! mentioned that I hadn't done any NIN yet. NIN of course being Nine Inch Nails for those who don't like to show your metal... But man, does any band hit harder than them? And by band and them, I actually mean one man, Trent Reznor. Probably unknown to most of you out there, this is actually a concept album. The goal of this record was to document the fall of man. It starts with his downward spiral in life and climaxes ultimately when he attempts suicide. Trent talks about how because of this 'theme' and the goal of the record, he wanted to tone it down a bit and not be so hard and so metal. Maybe I stand alone on this opinion, but that almost makes it harder and MORE metal. Maybe not in terms of just the sound of it, but the message, lyrics and vibe is totally something I expect and long for from the genre. This album in a sense, it quite simply a classic. The flow, the arrangements - everything about it is just about perfect. Even if you don't like metal in the classic sense, this record tells a story, and tells it brilliantly. Forget about all the mainstream success this saw due to 'Closer', it's not about that. Don't listen to this record just for the one track. Listen all the way through and listen in order. By the time you get to the end, I think you feel the emotions that the album was intending. Very few records can have that impact on you. I might feel a certain way when listening to a record, but it probably isn't what the artist intended. Not the case here. Reznor shot for something new and undone, and he got it. I can only close by saying please, give this a whirl. I promise you'll if nothing else be very intrigued.

TRACK LISTING:
1. Mr. Self Destruct
2. Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now)
3. Heresy
4. March of the Pigs
5. Closer
6. Ruiner
7. Becoming, The
8. I Do Not Want This
9. Big Man With a Gun
10. Warm Place, A
11. Eraser
12. Reptile
13. Downward Spiral, The
14. Hurt

Listen To Samples

Top 3 Tracks:
1. Closer
2. Hurt
3. Reptile

FINAL RATING:
4.5 out of 5 stars

Mumford & Sons - Sigh No More

Why not end the week with something straight out of left field? Not sure about you guys, but I feel the oddball style reviews every week can almost always breed some of the best tuneage. Let's hope that trend continues with the recently suggested Mumford & Sons. JenInTosa has been grooving on one specific track from this album lately, and requested that I run through an album to give my input. So, I picked this up today - and I'm still a little unsure. These guys are a London based folk rock band. At first couple listens, it seems to have a pretty cool feel to it. I love the use of a banjo on multiple tracks - an instrument that if played right, and make for an epic track. On top of the banjo, some of the chorus arrangements backing up the banjo sound almost like a huge symphony are accompanying the band, and it sounds so thick and full. I enjoyed that as well. There are a couple ballad tracks, that you all could have guessed I love. The one crazy thing, this album is twelve tracks, and after track 7 - it seriously slows down. Maybe a poor track selection by the band. Regardless, this is pretty neat. It's another new band for you guys to check out, and I'm guessing a few of you will really love them. I'd put M&S in a similar category to Sigur Ros from last week - you may not fall in love with them, but there are certainly a few readers that will. I'm going to give this a pretty positive review, because I think this album is pretty good and the potential is certainly there to make an epic one. The sound is there, the lyrics are there - they just have to wrap all that up into a better record next time. Happy Friday!

TRACK LISTING:
1. Sigh No More
2. Cave, The
3. Winter Winds
4. Roll Away Your Stone
5. White Blank Page
6. I Gave You All
7. Little Lion Man
8. Timshel
9. Thistle & Weeds
10. Awaky My Soul
11. Dust Bowl Dance
12. After the Storm

Listen To Samples

Top 3 Tracks:
1. White Blank Page
2. Little Lion Man
3. Winter Winds

FINAL RATING:
3.75 out of 5 stars