Chris Cornell - Scream (2008)

It's funny, as I was redoing my website, one of the last pages I got rid of was the one that claimed Chris Cornell would never get anything less than an "own" rating from me (back then it was the middle rating on a three point scale).  Today, I don't even want to hear the album after hearing the title track.  I'm not even going to post any tracks up here tonight.  It's better for him to fade away...this pains me Cornell: 

For Those Who Used To Rock

Chris Cornell
Rocked from 1984-2007
Soundgarden, Temple Of The Dog, Audioslave, & solo

My Morning MP3

I heard this track this morning on the webs. This is only the second track I've heard from Blitzen Trapper's new album, Furr, but now I really want to hear the rest.

[mp3] furr - blitzen trapper

Yeah, when I was only seventeen // I could hear the angels whispering // So I drove into the woods // And wandered aimlessly about // Until I heard my mother shouting through the fog // It turned out to be the howling of a dog // Or a wolf, to be exact // The sound sent shivers down my back // But I was drawn into the pack and before long // They allowed me to join in and sing their song // So from the cliffs and highest hills // Yeah, we would gladly get our fill // Howling endlessly and shrilly at the dawn // And I lost the taste for judging right from wrong // For my flesh had turned to fur // Yeah, and my thoughts they surely were // Turned to instinct and obedience to God

You can wear your fur // Like a river on fire // But you'd better be sure // If you're making God a liar // I'm a rattlesnake, babe, // I'm like fuel on fire // So if you're gonna get made // Don't be afraid of what you've learned

On the day that I turned 23 // I was curled up underneath a dogwood tree // When suddenly a girl // Her skin the color of a pearl // She wandered aimlessly, but she didn't seem to see // She was listening for the angels just like me // So I stood and looked about // I brushed the leaves off of my snout // And then I heard my mother shouting through the trees // You should have seen that girl go shaky at the knees // So I took her by the arm // We settled down upon a farm // And raised our children up as gently as you please

And now my fur has turned to skin // And I've been quickly ushered in // To a world that, I confess, I do not know // But I still dream of running careless through the snow // Through the howling winds that blow // Across the ancient distant flow // To fill our bodies up like water till we know

You can wear your fur // Like a river on fire // But you'd better be sure // If you're making God a liar // I'm a rattlesnake, babe, // I'm like fuel on fire // So if you're gonna get made // Don't be afraid of what you've learned

The Rosebuds - Life Like (2008)

whimsical - natural - dark - duet - breezy

If Margot's album was called Animal, this Rosebud's album should be called Zoo: there are references to catfish, elephants, swallows, and a fox as-well-as other various animal metaphors.  Throughout the entire album there is a kind of dark, middle of the woods, magical feel to the songs.  All of the tracks are somewhat sinister, yet breezy in the way they flutter about through my magical woods I described earlier.  Ha ha ha!  I really like the way this husband/wife duo work together, sharing the vocal leads as they both have tremendous voices.  This is a really solid fourth album from this North Carolinian band.

[mp3] Cape Fear- The Rosebuds
[mp3] Nice Fox - The Rosebuds
[mp3] Black Hole - The Rosebuds

Merge Records
The Rosebuds on Myspace

"On their newest album, Life Like, The Rosebuds return to more acoustic territory, barely a year after releasing the synth-heavy dance pop of 2007's Night of the Furies. Crisp says that perhaps they needed to exorcise the anger and disillusion caused by a hard year of terrifying storms, and endless frustration over an ineffectual political state (that provided the need for the Furies metaphor in their songs) before they could move on to explore stories more closely related to their everyday life." -mergerecords.com

Neptunebaby Tribute Album

This collection of songs was put together for a friend across the way who is expecting a new addition to her family.  The songs are meant to convey conversations between parents and their kids.  Congratulations and good luck!  Tribute cover art is included on each of the tracks and they've been renamed to complete the album.

[mp3] Love You More - Alexi Murdoch
[mp3] The Day Brings - Brad
[mp3] I'll See Your Heart, I'll Raise You Mine - BellX1
[mp3] Oh My Girl - Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter
[mp3] The Littlest Birds - Jolie Holland
[mp3] Still Beating - Josh Ritter
[mp3] My Love Will Follow You - Richard Shindell
[mp3] Dream By Heart - Talkdemonic
[mp3] Love Is Enough - Joe Henry

Margot & The Nuclear So & So's - Animal (2008)

stories - experimental - spacey - rock - radiohead

 This is really my first foray into Margot.  I was frequently turned off by the band's name and (though I do like that the name Margot comes from the character in The Royal Tenenbaums) strange track names like "Hello Vagina" " A Children's Crusade On Acid" and so on.  However, after hearing the latter track, I so thoroughly liked it that I wanted to hear the rest of the album.  It's not as strange as I though it would be and actually reminds me a lot of Radiohead around The Bends era.  Still, there is the occasional strange lyric, though it is a lot less distracting than I thought it would be.

[mp3] Hello Vagina- Margot & The Nuclear So & So's
[mp3] Cold, Kind and Lemon Eyes- Margot & The Nuclear So & So's
[mp3] As Tall As Cliffs- Margot & The Nuclear So & So's

Epic

"Margot & the Nuclear So and So's signed with Epic Records in 2007, having made enough waves with The Dust of Retreat to climb aboard a major-label's roster. The big leagues aren't always accommodating to evolving bands, however, and the band soon clashed with Epic over which songs to include on their follow-up album. Two different records were ultimately released: the band's preferred version, Animal!, and the Epic-appeasing Not Animal, which featured those songs favored by the label. The latter record was the only one to receive a proper CD treatment, while Animal! was relegated to a vinyl/digital release." -allmusic.com