what are you listening to?

[murlough23]

Have you heard her solo album?  I know she put one out but I feared the stink of Jeremy Camp potentially contaminating it/watering it down and haven't gotten around to it yet.

I've heard it. Your fears were justified.

[Wildcatblue7]

I've heard it. Your fears were justified.

Dang.  Well, glad I didn't waste my time.

[murlough23]

Dang.  Well, glad I didn't waste my time.

I mean, it wasn't terrible. It was just... wallpaper-ish. I kind of wish it had been worse, so that I could make fun of it.

[ewok20t3]

I mean, it wasn't terrible. It was just... wallpaper-ish. I kind of wish it had been worse, so that I could make fun of it.

I just noticed she's got a new album scheduled to come out on March 9th called Just You And Me.

[Ian]

My Morning Jacket - Lay Low

man i love this song

[eatenbytehworms]

SaGoh24/7, the name Anberlin used to go by.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dd0tfv8fXIs

Wow, haha they used to be hardcore in a lame way.

Of course, now they're awesome as Anberlin.

[murlough23]

SaGoh24/7, the name Anberlin used to go by.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dd0tfv8fXIs

Wow, haha they used to be hardcore in a lame way.

I gathered that much from the band name. Just about any band name that is a combo of a book of the Bible/Christian jargon reference + a number is usually a signifier that they're gonna suck.

Of course, now they're awesome as Anberlin.

Indeed.

[Ian]

Plaid - Gel Lab

[Ian]

Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me

!!

[bloop]

I checked that one out, too.  I think it's a lot more accessible than Ys, taking fewer vocal risks, so I'm not sure what I think of it yet.

[Ian]

I don't really see it as taking less risks, just as her maturing.  She's learning to reign her voice in and use it more effectively.

[bloop]

Well, there's a couple ways you can take it.  I didn't really need her to calm her quirks, but the result is good.

[bloop]

Third time through the Joanna Newsom.  I think it's best enjoyed one disc at a time (honestly, even toned down, 2 hours of her voice will cause bleeding), but it's pretty great.  Pitchfork's track review today is spot-on.

[bloop]

I'm listening to the new Lifehouse album, and I have no idea why.  I didn't even listen to these guys when they were reportedly good.  Really forgettable, vanilla rock so far.

[murlough23]

I'm listening to the new Lifehouse album, and I have no idea why.  I didn't even listen to these guys when they were reportedly good.  Really forgettable, vanilla rock so far.

I thought that about their last album at first, but it grew on me. Their self-titled is the only one that still bored me after I had fully digested it.

[schilleriana]

DD40 - Neutra Face - An Ode On A Typeface (parody of Lady GaGa's Poker Face)

hah hah hah hah!

[murlough23]

Listened to the new Lifehouse for myself. I wouldn't characterize it as pure vanilla, but nothing ground-breaking, either. (I don't expect ground-breaking from Lifehouse, but every now and then there's a song like "The Joke" that startles me in a good way.) I hear a couple teeny-tiny new things that don't sound like their old records, and I also hear a few embarrassing missteps (Autotune on two tracks in a row? Yikes.), but for the most part, I can map the new songs to old songs that sounded similar. I thought that about Who We Are at first and later ended up really loving about half the album. So this won't be a humdrum disaster on the level of their self-titled album. But it's not a particularly exciting album, either.

[bloop]

Listened to the new Lifehouse for myself. I wouldn't characterize it as pure vanilla

I can't point to anything about it that stands out at all...

[murlough23]

I can't point to anything about it that stands out at all...

Could you on their past albums? I honestly didn't think Lifehouse had ever been the kind of band that would do anything for you. Which is fine. Smoke & Mirrors is not the kind of album I'd expect to draw in legions of new fans. Their peak of popularity is probably well behind them.

For me, their best songs generally aren't stylistic standouts, just really good examples of writing a solid song within the genre, or trying harder performance-wise than your average radio-friendly post-grunge act. Unfortunately, for each of those good examples, they have two or three songs that are "just okay". So they're a band I like for singles or the occasional obscure album track that sticks out, more so than for full albums. (No Name Face is probably their most consistent, though I'm a big defender of Stanley Climbfall because they tried to experiment/jam a little more with that one.)

I don't expect any of this to be much of a defense, but then, I don't feel the need to strongly defend a band that I just sorta like.

[bloop]

Could you on their past albums?

No, I couldn't.  I don't even recall listening to their past albums critically, and I wouldn't be surprised if I did and I just don't remember them.

[murlough23]

No, I couldn't.  I don't even recall listening to their past albums critically, and I wouldn't be surprised if I did and I just don't remember them.

That's fine. You can probably just bypass this one. I think it's safe to say you won't regret saving yourself the trouble.

[Ian]

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach!

[murlough23]

Pearl Jam - Binaural. bloop was right; this one's a bit more my speed than most other PJ albums. It flows better than No Code, but I like a lot of the experimental moments on both albums, so they vie for my #3 spot after Ten and Pearl Jam.

I've been getting into Backspacer more as well. I was underwhelmed with it at first, and I still think it feels a bit rushed and inconsistent, but I admire the group's commitment to not taking the obvious approach on every album. I like a few of the rockers, but it's actually the ballads that stand out to me on this album.

[ewok20t3]

"Sleep Well" by Mae. I've got a great feeling about (e)vening based on the three songs I've heard!

[murlough23]

"Sleep Well" by Mae. I've got a great feeling about (e)vening based on the three songs I've heard!

Was that originally intended to be their November song? The theft of their equipment really screwed over their schedule.

NP: "Falling In", Lifehouse

[ewok20t3]

Was that originally intended to be their November song? The theft of their equipment really screwed over their schedule.

NP: "Falling In", Lifehouse

Yes it was. It's an 8 minute epic type song and it sounds like the extra time they had to work on it really paid off. They seem to be capturing the essence of an evening really well so far, just as they did morning. If only (a)fternoon would've been a bit stronger...

[murlough23]

Yes it was. It's an 8 minute epic type song and it sounds like the extra time they had to work on it really paid off. They seem to be capturing the essence of an evening really well so far, just as they did morning. If only (a)fternoon would've been a bit stronger...

It sounds like the series has the potential to end as strongly as it started. That's a relief. I'll probably wait for the EP to come out before listening to any of the songs, since they generally play better for me in context.

In related news (regarding ridiculously high expectations for a friggin' EP), when the heck is Future of Forestry gonna get that third Travel disc done?

[ewok20t3]

It sounds like the series has the potential to end as strongly as it started. That's a relief. I'll probably wait for the EP to come out before listening to any of the songs, since they generally play better for me in context.

I'm wondering if they'll release a December song now they've gotten so far behind.

In related news (regarding ridiculously high expectations for a friggin' EP), when the heck is Future of Forestry gonna get that third Travel disc done?

That's a good question. I was kinda waiting around on checking out the first two to see if they would release the three together and I could get them all at once. Have you heard anything about that being a possibility?

[murlough23]

I'm wondering if they'll release a December song now they've gotten so far behind.

The EP would still need to have as many songs on it, so I suppose they could retroactively label on the "December" song, since it was likely at least started before the theft happened and planned to be released in December. Either way, I doubt it'll affect the length of the EP.

That's a good question. I was kinda waiting around on checking out the first two to see if they would release the three together and I could get them all at once. Have you heard anything about that being a possibility?

I haven't heard anything about that. All 18 songs wouldn't fit on one disc, and splitting it to 2 discs would break up Travel II, so unless they're gonna go the Jon Foreman route and release a disc of highlights, your best bet is probably to hope they'll sell the three EPs as a bundle when the third one releases (i.e. packaged together for a bargain price but still distinct discs). I should note that they were selling the first two EPs for a 2-for-1 price at the show I went to in September. They might do something similar if you can catch a show, but this is unlikely if you don't live in or near California.

Travel III was originally due for January 2010 when the project was first announced, but I expected a delay because Eric mentioned taking a little longer on it when I spoke to him after a concert the week of Travel II's release. I asked him when Travel III would sound like, and he said he hadn't decided on a concept for it, beyond the planned "land travel" theme and the possibility of using small instruments (like toy pianos and stuff) to counteract the big drums and vibraphone and stuff they had to drag around when touring for the first two Travel discs. It's March now, so I figure we would have at least heard some news or seen a new song posted to MySpace.

[ewok20t3]

your best bet is probably to hope they'll sell the three EPs as a bundle when the third one releases (i.e. packaged together for a bargain price but still distinct discs).

Yeah, that's probably what I'll do. Right now amazon has a deal if you buy Travel, Travel II, and Twilight together you get them a little bit cheaper. Maybe they'll replace Twilight with Travel III when it's released since it doesn't look like I'll be catching a show or anything anytime soon.

[murlough23]

Lost Ocean - Could This Be Love?

No. No, it couldn't.

[Brenden]

TobyMac - Tonight

I can't even believe this album was written by the Toby I know and love. It's not good, it's not even so cheesy it's fun, outside of Hey Devil, which is kind of fun but a little too cheesy, even for Toby. It's bland and cliche and I for every song on here I can point to somewhere Toby already covered that ground and did it better.

[murlough23]

TobyMac - Tonight

I can't even believe this album was written by the Toby I know and love. It's not good, it's not even so cheesy it's fun, outside of Hey Devil, which is kind of fun but a little too cheesy, even for Toby. It's bland and cliche and I for every song on here I can point to somewhere Toby already covered that ground and did it better.

Sounds like a good candidate for my shitlist. I'm running low this year, what with finally get myself off of Provident's mailing list.

[Brenden]

If nothing else, it made me look at Momentum and make me wish Toby would go back to being cheesy but fun and memorable.

[murlough23]

If nothing else, it made me look at Momentum and make me wish Toby would go back to being cheesy but fun and memorable.

I think Welcome to Diverse City is the only album of his that I can still consistently enjoy most of the way through.

[Josh]

On my first spin of the new Jen Knapp CD. I don't think it's going to be a disappointment to her fans; I'm not as big into her as some here are, but it's certainly holding my attention. It is, alas, a very different record than Lay it Down, my favorite of hers, but I already think the production and performances are superior to those on The Way I Am.

[murlough23]

On my first spin of the new Jen Knapp CD. I don't think it's going to be a disappointment to her fans; I'm not as big into her as some here are, but it's certainly holding my attention. It is, alas, a very different record than Lay it Down, my favorite of hers, but I already think the production and performances are superior to those on The Way I Am.

Well, I'm jealous.

The funny thing about Jennifer Knapp is that I never regarded her music as anything revolutionary - I did enjoy the folk/rock style with the occasional twang of country, and even some of the more "produced" pieces on The Way I Am were interesting to me. Where I really connected with her was the lyrics. And it wasn't like those were anything but simple in most cases - there was just an honesty to it that resonated with things I was struggling with and didn't feel like the platitudes I got from a lot of other simplistic CCM songwriters.

Kansas is still my favorite Knapp record. Lay it Down is close, but it's so dang short that I feel like there should be more to it.

[Josh]

Yeah, I almost didn't mention it because I didn't want to be seem like I was gloating, but I thought pholks might like to know that the album is indeed worthwhile-- where it will rank in her discography remains to be seen, of course, but if nothing else, it belongs with the others. She ain't rusty, seven-year hiatus be damned.

And I don't expect folk-rock records to be revolutionary either-- and this one certainly isn't. I listen more for the performances, the production, and the songwriting. I can solidly vouch for the former two here. As for the songs, I haven't paid much attention to the lyrics yet, but the hooks are definitely there.

[murlough23]

Yeah, I almost didn't mention it because I didn't want to be seem like I was gloating

Come on. Like the rest of us wouldn't gloat in such a situation.

but I thought pholks might like to know that the album is indeed worthwhile

I'm happy just to know that it indeed exists.

She ain't rusty, seven-year hiatus be damned.

I think the hiatus is probably going to be what enabled this to be a good record. If she'd just continued as we'd all assumed she would and released another record in 2003/4, the burnout probably would have been evident and the record would have suffered for it. It seemed tragic to lose her to an early retirement at the time, but I honestly think she got uncomfortable in the spotlight, and did the right thing, rather than forcing new songs out when she wasn't feeling it.

(Compare to Sixpence, whose first EP out of the gate after their reunion was written because they were getting rusty and needed to get the hang of it again. Its title track was about the songwriting being rusty. Not bad work, considering.)

[Josh]

There's a song on the Knapp album called "Inside" which is BY FAR the most pissed-off sounding song I remember hearing from a Christian recording artist. Also, it's easily the hardest-rocking thing Knapp has ever cut.