YTD recordings listened to: 726
Good music, not recommended for purchase: 451
Not good music: 215
Honorable Mentions: 15
Buys: 13
Possibles: Boyd Rivers, Abdoulaye Alhassane Toure, Cryptopsy, Patterson Hood, Chris McGregor, Brother Ali (2009), Alvin Youngblood Hart, Ether Net, Oddisee, Dave Arner Trio, Trap Them, Mark Lanegan & Duke Garwood, Inzinzac, Bill Horist, MAKU Soundsystem, Joseph Arthur, Melt Yourself Down, Zomby, Retox, Owiny Sigoma Band, About Group, A Tribe Called Red, Andrew Cedermark, Jello Biafra, Fat Freddy’s Drop, Jessie Mae Hemphill, All Pigs Must Die, Chris Shifflett, pop. 1280, Kendl Winter, Lynx, Shigeto, Bone Dance, Soundsci, Serengeti, Dub Club, Modern Life is War, Left Lane Cruiser, Counterparts
@@@ Drake: Nothing Was the Same (Cash Money/Universal, 2013). Off the MOG new release page and upfront I will tell you that I pretty much loathe Drake. He’s soft and full of shit but I will give him a fair listen. He’s got a solid rhythmic flow to his rhymes, and the arrangement on the first tune is interesting with the manipulated pitch shifted vocals is interesting and creative, but man I’m bored as shit as his lyrics. He’s so far up his own ass it’s hard to believe he can make it to the studio and stand in front of a microphone. But he’s gettin’ paid as he mentions over and over and over and over…..and over.
@@@ Matthew Good: Arrows of Desire (Frostbyte, 2013). Mainstream alt-rock/grunge with emotional vocals. Think Goo Goo Dolls with a lot of feelings. The singer sounds an awful lot like John Frusciante of Red Hot Chili Peppers fame, speaking of confessional white dudes. Nice guitar sounds here with thick bass and overall a big production sound. I don’t like the vocal arrangements as much as I like the band sound.
@@@ Frankie Rose: Herein Wild (Fat Possum, 2013). Some reverbed out indie rock that I found via the All Music weekly email. Sweet female voice, medium fuzzy guitar, and some rockin’ to be heard. Nothin’ too rough. Very reminiscent of many 1980’s mainstream soft rock bands.
@@@ Pink Martini: Get Happy (Heinz, 2013). Lounge-y cabaret music I found on the All Music weekly email. Female voice, string section, upright bass and some swinging. The hook here is that songs are done in a variety of languages by a series of guest singers– German, Spanish, French. It’s cool, I didn’t get the impression that it’s swinging with the intent to have anyone break a sweat, so it’s for brunch and chill out times.
@@@ Haim: Days Are Gone (Columbia, 2013). Off the MOG new release page. Highly produced 1980’s Madonna inspired pop/club music. I don’t think the singer has the charisma to carry the load here, and I don’t have that much positive to say about this music so I’m gonna move on. If this is how you roll….
@@@ Oneohtrix Point Never: R Plus Seven (Warp, 2013). Off the MOG new release page. This is electronic music, mostly ambient and abstract with some New Age flavorings. Some chopped up voices, some video game type sounds, I haven’t really been pulled into the proceedings. As usual, check it for yourself.