We've had three blizzards in the span of ten days here in New England, which means a lot of downtime. Now I don't know about you, but it's given me a chance to do some thinking about music. In addition to signing up five of this year's acts to (and designing a new website for) 2011's Wyman's Pond Music Fest, I've also done a lot of reading about the national music scene, my favorite musicians, and the new albums that many of them are releasing this year.Which of your favorite bands and/or singers have albums coming out that you are just dying to hear? We would like to know. Do this music-loving community a favor, and leave a recommendation or two for all to see. We want your enthusiasm to ooze through this site. We beg of you to favor us with your ideas of 'good' sounds for the upcoming seasons. Share with us the names of artists whose new songs you think deserve space in iPods other than your own. We want to see tons of comments on this topic. If we get twenty or more responses by Valentine's Day (as good a cut-off as any), one person will be randomly selected to win a ten dollar iTunes gift card as a thank you, so that he or she may acquire the anticipated album of his or her choice, merely for spreading the word to friends!
I personally am excited for the following:
- R.E.M. - "Collapse Into Now" - Due out in early March. I have rarely been disappointed by an R.E.M. album, and this one looks to be a real rocker. From the songs I have been able to hear so far, it is as if they took the hard edge of "Monster" and blended it with the very early jangle of their first few records. I'm sure there will be many surprises too. For example: "Oh My Heart" sounds like it could have been lifted from "Automatic for the People". Check out "Mine Smell Like Honey" below...
- Fleet Foxes - Title TBD - Due out in the spring. The first album from these Seattle songmakers was so amazing, I still have several of their songs popping into my head at random times, and the album is on my iPod to this day. They are still working on a title for the new disc, but if the songs are as memorable as their debut, then the title really won't matter in the long run.
- Lykke Li - "Wounded Rhymes" - Due out 02/28 - I find this songstress' catalog to be a mixed bag. Some songs are brilliant, and others truly grate. But when she succeeds (in my mind, as music is a subjective experience), it's truly memorable. For example, 2010's "Paris Blue" is hauntingly beautiful, and yet the upcoming "I Follow Rivers" is a jolt of eighties-ish oddness. Perhaps this is a good thing...
R.E.M. and Janes Addiction for me!
ReplyDeleteFleet Foxes of course, The Go! Team, and the Almanac Mountain remix album hahaha
ReplyDeleteHey look! We didn't get enough respondents for the contest. Oh well... perhaps next time. Much thanks to Christopher and Anonymous for their enthusiasm!
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