FALL OUT BOY / Infinity On High (2007)

"I love you in the same way there's a chapel in a hospital: one foot in your bedroom and one foot out the door,

sometimes we take chances, sometimes we take pills, I could write it better than you ever felt it."

That's definitely one of the best verses I've ever heard. It's not alone, here. Some of Pete's strongest couplets call this offering home. I'm even going to spot it the two bonus tracks, because I love them both. While I have to admit that there is a sloggy, schmaltzy number to contend with, this is a generally punchy and pleasing affair. If F.U.C.T. is the blue-collar workhorse, Infinity is the swaggering, faux-tipsy jaunt through No-Man's Land in deliberately rumpled tuxes.

I'm compelled to say that I sincerely wish Pete would scream longer parts more often. Don't look at me like that. You know I adore MCR.

Songs of Note: Hum Hallelujah; Bang the Doldrums

4, Because of the Flawless Extra Credit out of 5
I painted myself into a corner in the Folie nut. I'm tramping the fuck out of it. We can team up and kick Past-Neg's ass.

ANTI-NOWHERE LEAGUE / The Road to Rampton (2007)

It's not enough reason to want own it but it's worth pointing out that ANL's ability to place lyrical satire and disaffection alongside comedy and not have one overwhelm the other surfaces in places, albeit sporadically. If only the music wasn't so bloody weak, safe and predicable.
I'm listening to Rampton as I type and it's depressing me. I'll need to go back to the classic début album afterwards to ease my pain.

Songs of Note: Turn To Shit; My God's Bigger than Yours

1½ short, sharp, shocks out of 5

THE BOMBS OF ENDURING FREEDOM / The Bombs Of Enduring Freedom (2007)

After James Fogarty (co-founder of TMoA) put a temporary end to Ewigkeit, he started TBoEF, a project that enabled him to focus his energies on creating politically charged industrial/electronic music that's both blackly humorous and paradoxically serious. This first album isn't musically groundbreaking, but it's full of life and highlights how important creative freedom is to the process. He has no one looking over his shoulder. And his distribution methods are the best there is: if all you want is a Digital D/L you can have all of Bombs' albums free from the wonderful Death To Music Productions.

Songs of Note: Beware the Bombs...; G.I. Jesus

3 cracks of the whip out of 5

METAMORPHOSIS JAZZ BAND / Gyakuten Meets Jazz Soul (2007)

Character themes and trial suites (mostly) from the Phoenix Arc of the Ace Attorney series are given the swinging nightclub treatment on this release. Nothing here becomes too languid or self-indulgent, save the Steel Samurai theme which is slowed and stretched to the point of unrecognizability. Tigre and Godot’s, however, already existed well into the genre’s wheelhouse and excel for it. Unlike with The Futurist, I have very specific emotional connections to each piece and the majority of the album moves with a purpose.

Songs of Note: Swingin’ Zenitora; The Aroma of Black Coffee

4 Face Wreckin' Express Trains out of 5

ABDOUJAPAROV / Cycle Riot History Gang (2007)

Cycle Riot is the second full-length album from the trio with the difficult name fronted by Les 'Fruitbat' Carter. It's a collection of retro-sounding guitar-driven post-punk anthems that should strike a chord with the matured generation of students that embraced Carter U.S.M in their heyday.
It's a lot tamer than I expected and to be honest I was mildly disappointed on first listen, but after repeated spins it settled into the correct parts of my brain. Plus, it makes me happy to know that Fruitbat is still making music.

Songs of Note: Do It Myself; Hit Her With the Pig

3 Led times out of 5

ROBERT PLANT | ALISON KRAUSS / Raising Sand (2007)

A collection of covers from two giants in their respective fields. It's mostly English born Plant up front vocally, accompanied by some lush backing from the blue grass gal from Illinois. The harmony between the two works beautifully.
There are some upbeat tracks, but mostly it's a warm and luxurious sound that's comforting; the kind of music best enjoyed alone, late at night, with a drink.
The stand out tracks are superb. Everything else lends support in its own unique way. To my ears, it's much better than a Robert Plant solo album, but not as good as Alison Krauss' own most recent album with Union Station.

Songs of Note: Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us; Please Read the Letter

3½ echoes strung out of 5

MATTHEW GOOD / Hospital Music [2007]

After experiencing a messy divorce, diagnosed with a mental illness and a drug addiction & overdose, alt-rocker Matthew Good's third solo album 2007's Hospital Music is drenched in a dark depression.
It's a deeply personal album that at times is a very difficult, yet rewarding listen with most of the songs heavily carried by Good's haunted warbly voice and eerie acoustic guitars.  As always, Good proves he's one of the best lyricists in the business and while his voice is an acquired taste, he gives it his all with each note he hits and that alone tells the story he intends to tell.  I can't always bring myself to listen to this album but when I do it's always a fulfilling experience.

4 dead kennedy's out of 5

Songs Of Note: Champions Of Nothing; 99% Of Us Is Failure

KILLING JOKE / Brighter Than a Thousand Suns (1986 / 2007)

I've been reviewing the Killing Joke studio albums in the order they were released, which means it's time for BTaTS. Jebus. Synth pop! Fans can defend it all they like, but it's an ear-turd. It's bad enough that I know it exists, actually putting it into the player is a trial only surpassed by listening to it.
But wait! A reissue (2007) gave us Chris Kimsey's mix. It's much more aggressive than Mendelsohn's piss poor effort. I can hear guitars! I can hear bass! I can hear... I can hear Jaz Coleman being bland. Aw, shit. It still sucks.

Songs of Least Fail: Adorations; Wintergardens

1½ salty tear falling, falling out of 5

NINE INCH NAILS / Year Zero Remixed (2007)

Or Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D, if you prefer the leet-ness, is, unsurprisingly, a collection of remixed tracks from the Year Zero album that was released just seven months prior. It fulfilled contractual commitments that NIN had to Interscope Records. They wanted another album and they got it. Trent gave them a turd. If I hated my record label, I'd probably want to do the same, but that doesn't make me cringe any less when hearing it. It offers an even less enjoyable listening experience than the original album, and lacks any kind of cohesive flow.

Songs of Note: The Great Destroyer (remixed by Modwheelmood); Another Version of the Truth (remixed by Kronos Quartet & Enrique Gonzalez Müller)

1 shiny beer mat out of 5

SHIT AND SHINE / Ladybird (2007)

Four drummers. Two bass players. One toy keyboard. One killer industrial riff that goes on for 41 minutes. What's not to like?
If you want to further increase your enjoyment of this release, google for pictures of the band members.

Song of Note: Ladybird.

4 bunny suits out of 5

SAUL WILLIAMS / The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! [2007]

After numerous remixes of each other's music, it was inevitable that alt. hip-hop poet Saul Williams and Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor would work on an original project together. The result is Williams' 2007 album The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!

Williams' heavy beats & off-kilter vocal style and Reznor's unmistakable ambient wall of noise compliment each other perfectly, making it one of Reznor's most focused projects in several years.  The distorted sound is so dense and raw it reminiscent of the Bomb Squad's production with Public Enemy back in the day.

It's a bizarre album that is difficult to pinpoint what sort of audience it was aiming for but nonetheless an experimental success. 

5 Dead Emcee Scrolls out of 5

Songs Of Note: Tr(n)igger; The Ritual

NINE INCH NAILS / Year Zero (2007)

Year Zero is dark, like peering through a smoky looking glass. It’s also dense and overly-layered, making it almost impenetrable. Interestingly, it lacks the introspective musings that NIN usually offer up; instead, it's a concept album… religious/political nonsense… America…year 2022, etc. Boring. It's noisy and frustrating; you could argue that so was Broken (1992), but at least it was focussed and knew when to stop. YZ goes on forever, dragging me into a state of sensory ennui. Some rehashed riffs from The Fragile (1999) excite briefly before being lost in the maelstrom. A few tracks stand out like pillars of light from the flat landscape. It's a manifesto, and it's not something I can fall in love with.

Songs of Note: In This Twilight; Zero Sum

2½ (I'll push the goddamn button myself) out of 5

THE GASLIGHT ANTHEM / Sink Or Swim [2007]

Imagine Bruce Springsteen with a mohawk and a heavy taste for The Clash, then you'll get an idea of what New Jersey's The Gaslight Anthem sound like.

2007's Sink Or Swim came charging into the crowd fists a flailing but sadly went unnoticed by most folks. Which is a shame because they really are one of the best rock bands to come out in a long time.  Rocking out catchy tunes filled with sincerity and soul is what these guys do best and they don't try to do anything otherwise. With a solid debut album, front to back, The Gaslight Anthem  proved they are off to a good start

4 Shout outs to the late great Joe Strummer out of 5

Songs Of Note: 1930; Red At Night

RADICAL FACE / Ghost [2007]

Ben Cooper's first solo album 2007's Ghost is one of those albums I wonder why I don't listen to more often than I do.
Recording under the name Radical Face, Cooper crafts a quiet little folk-rock concept album about the life & death of a well-aged house. Deceivingly simple sounding, Cooper layers on gentle walls of sound that create such a wonderfully haunting mood that's simultaneously warm and chilling. His vocals are a little nasally and limited, but if you can get past that you have a real winner here.

4 distant thoughts on the mantle out of 5

Songs Of Note: Welcome Home, Son; Wrapped In Piano Strings

KATATONIA / Live Consternation (2007)

A live CD+DVD package from the Swedes. Tracks chosen are from the four previous albums only, so there's nothing prior Discøuraged Ønes (1998), which is a shame. However, it was a festival show (Summer Breeze in Germany) and not a full 80-90 min concert, so some concessions had to be made... But cutting Teargas from the set-list was unforgivable! It's a straight-up delivery with little deviation from the studio versions, so is extremely competent but also a little bland.

Songs of Note: Cold Ways; Ghost of the Sun

3½ guiding pulses out of 5

DANZIG / The Lost Tracks (2007)

A two-disc set collecting unused material, rare tracks, B-sides and some previously unheard covers from the years 1988-2004. Up until 1994 the Evil Elvis was still churning out 5 Star albums, so some of this is really worth having.
Even if there's something very wrong with you and you preferred the later albums (V-VII) there's something for you on TLT. With 26 tracks in all, you can ignore what you don't like and still have a regular album's worth of new classic-era Danzig!

Songs of Note: When Death Had No Name; You Should Be Dying

4 new old is goodzig out of 5

JEFFREY LEWIS / 12 Crass Songs (2007)

It's anarchic British punk band CRASS covered by an American in an acoustic indie (anti)folk style. It really shouldn't work, but it does. Acoustic guitar, vocals, bongo drums and piano married to punk sensibilities and scathing lyrics make it one of the more unique albums on my hard drive.
The songs are the same, and you'll recognise them instantly if you're at all familiar with the originals. There's an occasional lyric change but nothing disrespectful. CRASS never got the recognition they deserved for their lyrics - hearing them delivered in such a clear manner gives them a new, modern power that finds much of what's said still relevant, despite being decades old.

Songs of Note: I Ain't Thick; System System

4 Punk is Folk is Dead out of 5

NEIL YOUNG / Chrome Dreams II (2007)

Neil Young needs no introduction; he's that old guy that old guys listen to. I don't much like his rocking Crazy Horse albums, but I adore his solo acoustic stuff. Chrome Dreams II is closer in spirit to the latter but has a lot of the former, and somehow manages to be the best thing he's released since Harvest Moon (1992). Even Neil knows it, hence the title (go research it). Listen to the 18 minute 'Ordinary People' and you'll understand why I love everything about this. It's perhaps his last great hurrah and, aside from one turd, as close to perfect as he can still get(?).

Songs of Note: Beautiful Bluebird, Ordinary People

5 old guys know what's what out of 5