Whats in your cd/ipod player right now?
 

What have you been listening to lately? Any certain songs or musicians have got you re-listening them over often?

James Mercer solo radio session.

Certainly nothing illegal!

The Replacements

I just added the new Death Cab for Cutie CD and The Bravery to my IPod.

Kanye West.

I know, he talks too much on TV. But the shit is catchy.

Hilary Hahn - Mendelssohn/Shostakovich

The New Cold CD too.

Back from the bar. Still Jmaes Mercer on the ipod . Great Shins songs, great covers (T. Rex's "Baby Boomerang", Neil Young's "Harvest", Pixies "Holiday Song"). I wasn't a fan of the rockish production on thehir last album, just masked the great songcraft. But the acoustic versions of "So Says I", ""Gone For Good", and "Turn a Square". The Oh, Inverted World readings aren't disappointing but aren't indespensapble either, simply because the al;bum was so flawfless. "Caring is Creepy" gains the most, losing the heavy production and gaining mouth harp. Mercer even shows off his great voice siniging the instrumental melodies on many of the songs.

Catching up on my audiobooks at the moment. Listening to "Xenocide" as I try to finish the Ender saga. Then I'm going to kick off what is sure to be about 6 months' worth of listening time with the GRRM novels.

Jagged Little Pill Acoustic, which is better than I expected it to be.

I've pretty much been continually listening to Jack Johnson for the last few months.

"Dakota" by Stereophonics

British Sea Power

new Nickel Creek

latest Better than Ezra

Kanye West "Late Registration"

Still listening to Opeth's Ghost Reveries way too much, as well as Sufjan Stevens' Illinois, Jason Hart's If I were You, Nickel Creek's new one, and a couple of Nightwish CDs.

Music-speaking, I've been playing a lot of Green Day's "American Idiot" album and listening to a slew of mashups from www.mashuptown.com

Non-musically, I've been listening to the "book on mp3" of George RR Martin's A Clash of Kings (I've already read the books, this is a nice way to remind myself of what happened in each).

/tk

Warriors Code from Dropkick Murphys !!!!!!!

a more in-depth at what i've really been listening to a lot lately:

The New Pornographers - Twin Cinema
(very good, but can't live up the the absurdly high bar set by the prior two releases)

The Replacements - Let It Be
(an absolute classic album)

Portastatic - Bright Ideas
(Solid album, not his/their best. you can listen to this entire album for free online at mergerecords.com)

Death Cab For Cutie - Plans
(good, not great. Kind of more of the same, although there are a few standout tracks after repeated listening)

Mirah - C'mon Miracle

Kanye and Chamillionaire

Against Me! - Searching For a Former Clarity
Cassino - Demos
Clutch - Robot Hive/Exodus

Awesome!

Ghostface Killah-Supreme Clientele (where was I on this before?)

Why?-Oaklandazulasylum (saw them live...cd is ehhhh so far)

The Shins-Oh, Inverted World (Caring Is Creepy is a near-perfect song)

Blood Brothers-Crimes (sometimes I love it, sometimes the one guy's voice makes me want to break the cd)

Brian Jonestown Massacre-Bravery, Repetition, & Noise (had always heard about them, but the rock-doc 'DIG!' finally got me to buy one of their albums..just picked this one based on the samples I heard at Rasputin)

Ikara Colt-Basic Instructions EP (have to listen a bit more to give a decent opinion)

I want to buy: Dios-S/T, British Sea Power-Open Season, New Pornographers-Twin Cinema

This CD is dope. Even if he is a loudmouth.

Jim Gaffigan - Doin' My Time
Jackson Browne - The Next Voice You Hear
Jesse Willis and Mike Midwestern - From Triumph to Tragedy
The Perishers - Let There Be Morning
Josh Joplin - Jaywalker

Dola:

Also been listening to Jude's 430 N. Harper Ave.

I have tons of stuff on my iPod, but today, I listened to "Queen of the Damned" soundtrack as well as a few "Coast to Coast" shows.

Right now on my iPod I'm listening to "In a Sunburned Country" by Bill Bryson. Pretty funny and interesting book about his experiences in Australia.

the newest harvey danger (available for download for free on their website)

Turin Brakes
The Futureheads
Nine Black Alps
The Editors

libertines
gypsy kings
black crows
and bach

THE NEW KING'S X!!!


Out today and it's bad ass - best vocal harmonies since Faith Hope Love. It's like a combination of Gretchen and Dogman. Woo hoo!

Nickel Creek

New Gretchen Wilson, just out today

Still stuck on Old Crow Medicine Show.

That, and audio books.

Today I've been listening to Ayub Ogada's album En Mana Kuoyo, he's an African singer, I heard some of his stuff in the movie The Constant Gardener (excellent btw) and really, really liked it.

Led Zepplin Box set, Pennywise live album, Face to Face, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and Metallica Ride the Lightning

Star Wars soundtrack
The Beatles
Elvis
The Ultimate Star Trek
A few Japanese bands
William Shatner
Leonard Nimoy
Gypsy - The Broadway musical
Lulu
Petula Clark

If you bought that from anywhere in the cities, it passed through my hands.

great great album. most people dont take it seriously, but it's an incredibly impressive piece of work.

new David Gray
new Death Cab for Cutie
semi-new Embrace

"In Love" is in my itunes rotation now. Other songs I've been into lately are "Chicago" by Sufjan Stevens and various tunes by Cookie Galore.

I had Gretchen way back in the day, but it just didn't appeal to me. Now I'm hearing that a certain hot teacher is a fan. Are they really that good?

Currently making the rounds on the in-vehicle CD player:

The Cranberries
U2: Achtung Baby
The Corrs
Tom Petty: Greatest Hits
Braveheart soundtrack

You're asking me that? :D

Look, I think Gretchen Goes to Nebraska is one of the top 3 albums to be released in the past 25 years, so...

They aren't quite as psychedelic/spiritual as they were back then - since those days, all 3 band members have lost God (and perhaps found Him in a different way these days) and they've long since broken with the unofficial "4th member" who really steered them in directions they haven't completely touched since the early 90's. Doug, the lead singer/bassist, in particular, has been the most outspoken about his life changes - he's become less spiritual and more into believing in himself because of how many people have screwed him and turned their backs on him when he came out about a decade ago.

So, the music is a bit more straight-forward and reflects a lot more anger and questioning of God than you'd ever find on their early stuff. In fact, this album has their first swear word, in the line, "God, why are your people so fucking mean?" A huge change from 20 years ago!

I was going to upload 3 tracks from the CD for people to check out, but I figure there are enough anti-piracy folks around here that it would cause a big issue. I'm just trying to promote the band. But if you're interested, PM me.

Oh, and since this may involve a hot teacher, even if I wasn't a fan of the band, I'd say they are definitely worth pretending to like just for that!

They just didn't turn me on back in high school...maybe a little too different back then. FWIW, I believe on amazon.com you can listen to samples of the songs (like about 10 seconds)...I'll check that out and probably buy it to get back into my high school days.

Dola:

:eek:
Must get now. Also, amazon.com has a free download of Marsh Mellow Fields.

GI Joe Movie Theme

Panic! At the Disco - A Fever You Can't Sweat Out
The Black Keys- Rubber Factory

That is a HUGE reason this album is as good as it is. They've produced themselves for the past 4 albums, and only once did they really hit the mark, IMO, with Please Come Home Mr. Bulbous. An outside producer was just the thing they needed for a kick in the ass.

I just downloaded (legally) the new Rascal Flatts and Keith Urban, along with Green Day - American Idiot, which I am excited to listen to as I have heard such great things about it, also got the new Kidz Bop (for my son's listening pleasure) and a new Charlotte Church album that I didn't even know was out...for when I am in a mellow and romantic mood :)

isnt charlotte church like 16? thats dirty...

Keith Urban.

Just saw him at Red Rocks and he's one of the best performer/guitarist I have ever seen in 30 years of listening to and following rock. My wife has been crazy about him since late last year and after seeing him, I'm now a monkey too.

I am so there - anything that gets them back to the early 90s stuff. I keep forgetting to mention Gretchen and FHL as some of my favorite albums of all time.

My two favorite cds of the year so far...

The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday
Wolf Parade - Apologies to the Queen Mary

Brian Eno -- Another Day on Earth
The first album he's done in 20 years which is like the ones he did 20 years ago:) (Here Come the Warm Jets, Taking Tiger Mountain, Another Green World, and Before and After Science).

Just picked up the new Franz Ferdinand CD

I just bought:

Dios-S/T They're an atmospheric pop band with definite Beach Boys influences. Feels very California. Download the song:Nobody's Perfect

Modest Mouse-The Lonesome Crowded West I've bought this album three times now (I lost it twice). Great rock record. Their best IMO.

Grandaddy-The Sophtware Slump Oh wow this album is amazing. If you've never heard them, buy this album now. Download: The Crystal Lake...this song is one of those that make you late for work/school because you have have to listen to it again.

Defiance, Ohio - Share What Ya Got
Valencia - This Could Be A Possibility
HORSE The Band - The Mechanical Hand

Just got Ogre Tones yesterday...great stuff. I haven't listened to it much yet but all the songs are very listenable...which is pretty good considering you usually have one or two songs you don't like on a CD.

I hadn't heard any of his music until I heard the new one on the radio - it's a crossover hit...I happen to be in a country mood right now so I downloaded one of his other albums and love it! Definitely going to get the new one as soon as my download site offers it...and I can't get the one line of the new song out of my head..."Take your cat and leave my sweater cause we have nothing left to weather"...luckily the whole song is good so I don't mind having that in my head, plus, Keith is hot!!! :)

Actually "You'll Think of Me" is a pretty old song. I think it's three CDs removed from his latest release. It's still a good song, though.

No wonder I can't find it! I downloaded the compilation "Days Go By", and have been looking for "You'll Think of Me"...

Thanks!!!!

Currenly listening to:

Buck Owens Greatest Hits Volume 1
Queen News of The World
John Lee Hooker The Best Of John Lee Hooker
Ray Charles The Ray Charles Story Volume 1
AC/DC Ballbreaker

Recent listens:

The Who: Who's Next (Deluxe Edition)
Dream Theater: Octavarium
North Styrenn: EP (band I recently worked with)
King's X: Ogre Tones

dola:

ksyrup...

Ogre Tones. I have listened to it closely. I must say that while I love some songs, the production of this album isn't what I was hoping for. As an album, it would fall under Tape Head in my list of favorites...which is about 2 or 3 depending on my mood.

I don't understand why they re-recorded goldilox again. Was that one of the songs they did for that recording workshop? It was always one of my favorite songs and doing it again after all these years doesn't improve on it.

Wagener stated that he used some recording techniques that strayed from the 'norm' (if there are any). Different mics on the drums than you normally would...etc. While it does capture a certain sound, it doesn't hold a candle to the production of Dog Man...probably their best sounding album.

Tape head was cool because it was the best self-produced album by the guys. The songs on there are by far better than Ogre's (IMO). The production and engineering on that album is good for the guys doing it themselves. Ogre is pretty on par with that album, and that is a step down considering they worked with Wegener. I don't know, I guess I was anticipating a better produced album.

Also, I am eagerly awaiting this:

http://www.radiantrecords.com/catalo...em=208&ID=Main

comes out on my birthday. Can't wait!

Interesting take on OT. I like it much better than Tapehead, mostly because I think the songs are stronger. Go figure! However, I do agree that style-wise, the two CDs are very similar. I think the vocals on OT are some of the strongest ever, both the backing vocals and especially Ty's leads. I'm not sure how the production of Dogman would work with any other KX album, as that album is so much Doug and not much of the rest of the band. It's one of the reasons that album isn't high on my list - I think KX is at its best when Doug and Ty/Jerry are blended more, like on the song Fly.

Oh, and I think Bulbous is clearly their best self-produced album, at least in terms of the songs. I'm not that much of a technician to know whether the production suffers comparitively speaking.

And I have no idea why Goldilox was redone. Porcupine Tree did that with Shesmovedon as well. I like it, though. I definitely like the backing vocals much better, as you can hear each voice individually, which is cool. I'd love to hear the first 4 albums re-recorded that way.

I'm also looking forward to the Neal Morse CD. His solo stuff is so good, it's easy to look past the "God prog" style. My mom likes it, though...

Looks like the I/O people are doing a pretty good job at getting some press. A review in the Chicago Sun Times! And positive, no less...




KING'S X, "OGRE TONES" (INSIDE OUT) ***



Regarding veteran acts past their glory days, it's a reviewer's hoary cliche to proclaim new material the best since the last recognized, dust-covered classic. For King's X, it's different. Despite accolades from peers and critics for six albums on Atlantic Records, the hard-working Texas-based trio never truly experienced the limelight. And this is King's X's best since the muscular "Dogman" (1994). Though intervening time with Metal Blade produced the heavy soul gem "Tape Head," albums including "Manic Moonlight" and "Black Like Sunday" lacked inspiration. But "Ogre Tones" should garner repeat plays by fans and newcomers alike.

The bracing first single "Alone" features Doug Pinnick's gracefully aging soul shout at full throttle, balanced by guitarist Ty Tabor's melodic, pop-based harmonies. Drummer Jerry Gaskill thunders like the world's heaviest metronome, introducing accents of surprising subtlety.

"Get Away" finds an angry Pinnick stripping away the poetry and spiritual content of albums like "Faith Hope Love" (1990). Over a disarmingly understated bed of Eastern percussion and Tabor's sitar-like guitar, Pinnick bluntly asks, "Hey, God, I watched the news tonight -- why are your people so [expletive] mean?" On the dirgelike "Sooner or Later," Pinnick confronts his own faults and feelings of isolation. "I must be good at chasing away everyone I love, sooner or later," he surmises. During an extended instrumental section, Tabor's hypnotic soloing evokes the comforting tone of a friend who refuses to be driven away.

King's X has influenced many, but none match the band's blend of hard rock, soul, progressive flourishes, and Beatles-inspired pop hooks. "Ogre Tones" earns four stars for exhilarating and skillful craft. Meanwhile, Pinnick continues taking pains to distance himself ideologically from his younger self. His current lyrics often seem like afterthoughts, ranking well below peak efforts. Though clearly meant as a treat for fans, revisiting the power ballad "Goldilox" from "Out of the Silent Planet" (1988) is a confusing move -- for Pinnick especially. Subtract a star. Jeff Elbel

Nightwish - Once. I've had this in my cd for pretty much a month straight and I'm still loving it even though I listen to the album at least twice a day. I could listen to Tarja's (the lead singer) voice all day, and the songs fuse her opera voice with metal perfectly.

Agreed. It's been this, Ghost Reveries, and Ogre Tones in my car almost non-stop for the past 2 months.

Been getting into a couple of Mojave 3 CDs. Seems to be perfect autumnal music.

Lets see...

Notorious B.I.G. - Life After Death
Twista - The Day After
Ice Cube - Death Certificate (in my opinion one of the greatest rap CDs of all-time)
The Game - The Documentary
Jadakiss - Kiss of Death
Young Jeezy - Let's Get it: Thug Motivation 101
Dr. Dre - The Chronic
Kurupt - Against tha Grain

Ever since I bought Radiohead's Amnesiac, I haven't gone more than a few weeks without listening to it. It's the soundtrack to my middle years.

Clutch - Blast Tyrant and Robot Hive: Exodus

They're playing here on the 30th.