GREG LASWELL / Landline [2012]

5 albums without any radioplay or major chart hits for Greg Laswell is one of life's greater mysteries. His somber, piano ballads about broken souls & confused hearts are perfect for the soundtrack of the airwaves.

For 2012's Landline, Laswell quietly slips some hip-hop beats into his writing which makes for quite an effective impact that should grab the attention of anyone listening.  With the help of several female guest vocalists (including Sia and Ingrid Michaelson), Laswell continues his trend of catchy, yet not annoying pop ballads, with thoughtful lyrics, skilled yet simple production and arrangements and all complimented with his bold, yet delicate voice.  It's not original or jaw-dropping, but for what it is, it's pretty damned good.

4 songs with the wifey out of 5

Songs Of Note: Come Back Down [feat. Sara Bareilles]; Back To You [feat. Elizabeth Ziman]

CITIES AVIV / Black Pleasure [2012]

With a background in the punk rock scene and a post-punk industrial style of composing with hip-hop sounds and production styles, Cities Aviv is definitely an artist who stands alone.

2012's Black Pleasures is a baffling, if not brilliant record that's flooded with creativity and bold visions of something different.  Drowning his metallic reverberated voice in murky production that sounds like clouds of smoke refusing to settle in a twisted form of 90's R&B music.  CA certainly won't be winning any fans of either post punk or standard hip-hop but will without a doubt find a spot with the abnormal and curious.  

5 sexytimes with Joy Division & Psychic TV out of 5

Songs Of Note: Forever; White

DAMON ALBARN / Dr Dee [2012]

Damn Albarn's new challenge to himself is the 2012 opera Dr Dee which follows the life of misunderstood mathematician John Dee, known for dabbling in the occult, as well as being a scientific advisor to Elizabeth I.  Albarn cleverly makes use of Elizabethan period instruments,  including a lute, cathedral organ, harphiscord, viola & crumhorn, while throwing  in some kora & Nigerian percussion for good measure.  The mood of the opera is a solemn one, focusing mainly on the troubled times of Dee's life, making for a strange and surreal listen.  Oddly enough, Albarn's narrative is extremely difficult to follow (if there is any at all) which hurts the experience quite a bit but remains an interesting and impressive one at best. 

3 solo albums? out of 5

Songs Of Note: Apple Carts; The Moon Exalted

KATHLEEN EDWARDS / Voyageur [2012]

Singer/songwriter Kathleen Edwards steers away from the sparse country/folk sound of her previous records on 2012's Voyageur and goes for a denser more complete sound, due to Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon's lush production.

Unfortunately with the more dramatic sound it also strips away the lonely, soul-baring emotions of Edwards' voice which can usually carry a whole song without all the "noisy" production.  The strong songwriting and lyrics are still there, they're just lost in the mix driving them dangerously close to schmaltzy radio-friendly Sarah McLachlan-esque territory.

2 journeys of all sorts out of 5

Songs Of Note: Empty Threat;  Change The Sheets

LINKIN PARK / Living Things [2012]

After a lot of experimentation on their 2 previous albums, Linkin Park return to strengthening up on their straightforward songwriting, instead of dipping into dizzying sounds and bizarre song structures, on 2012's Living Things.

With Rick Rubin back at the producing helm for a third time, LP's sound remains dense, busy and clean without ever getting overly distracting.  Being the only '90's rap/metal act to win a second life, Linkin Park know they need to keep pushing the envelope to remain relevant and they do a fine job at it.  

3½ returns to the instrumental penultimate tracks out of 5

Songs Of Note: Castle Of Glass; Roads Untravelled

HEROIN IN TAHITI / Death Surf [2012]

Self-proclaimed "Spaghetti Wasteland" duo Heroin In Tahiti create a hauntingly effective brand of lo-fi psychedelic surf pop on 2012's self-released Death Surf.

Heroin sound as if they are drowning in a reverb pool of LSD mixed by Ennio Morricone and David Lynch, while Brian Wilson watches with a decomposing smirk on his face.  They are indeed a very cinematic sounding act that is composed of happy textures but sombre notes, which makes for a stark and electrifying listen as it pulsates back and forth between feverish life & welcome death.
An excellent gem that begs to be discovered by anyone who enjoys moody, instrumentals out of the norm.

5 Battles of Campomorto out of 5

Songs Of Note: Death Surf; Sartana

THE TEA PARTY / Live From Australia [2012]

Canadian "Moroccan roll" act, The Tea Party have always been considered one of the best live acts in the world, so why it took over 20 years to release a proper live album is beyond me.  All that aside, 2012's double disc extravaganza Live From Australia is a welcome addition to any fan's collection. 

The sound on Jeff Martin's humorously serious vocals and the band's performances is top-notch, however the flow of the live performances are ruined by fade in and outs between songs, due to takes from different shows.  Still, as a longtime fan of the group, this is a real gem and makes me thirst for a new studio album.

4 songs "that would have made great ring tones back in the day" out of 5

Songs Of Note: Psychopomp; Fire In The Head

RAMONA FALLS / Prophet [2012]

Former member of Menomena, Brent Knopf throws all his focus on his one-time side project Ramona Falls for it's second album, 2012's Prophet. 

Like his work with Menomena, Knopf uses sonic elements to create indie-pop music that sounds more organic than electronic, which is quite cleverly deceiving and effective.  Knopf juggles the intimate and sensitive with the large, grandiose textures, only this time focusing more on the larger scope of things.  Since he slightly resembles Thom Yorke, Knopf's voice should work quite well, unfortunately he doesn't share the same creative voice or lyrical techniques to hold it all together.

3 songs about the wonders of nature out of 5

Songs Of Note: Spore; IF I Equals U

WITCHERY / Restless & Dead (1998)

Fans of Mercyful Fate will likely get a huge kick out of Witchery's début album, because musically (not vocally) it captures the explosive Fate vibe, mixing riffs, riffs and more riffs with everything that was great about early Speed and Thrash Metal, before the genre got overly serious. It reminds the listener that, under correct guidance, music and theatrics can make perfect bedfellows. And look at that album cover! I bet it'd get the King Diamond nod of approval.

Songs of Note: Midnight at the Graveyard; Awaiting the Exorcist

4 hours diggin' a grave out of 5

AC/DC / Black Ice (2008)

Black Ice managed to recapture the sound of the early AC/DC albums and at the same time add a clarity that was unavailable to them back in those glory days. It has the warmth of an analogue recording but is mixed on a digital device; it sounds like an old album remastered.
Structurally it has power chords, rehashed blues riffs, Brian Johnson's raspy vocals, sing-a-long choruses and drum patterns that are predictable but solid. It's AC/DC through and through. That's a win.

Songs of Note: War Machine; Spoilin' For A Fight

3 smash and grabs out of 5

SUZANNE VEGA / Solitude Standing (1987)

Like Suzanne's perfect début, her second album is constructed from story songs that together resemble a kind of musical book. She's added more instrumentation this time, making it sound less naked. I prefer the naked Vega (don't apply that to your filthy world view), so I find Solitude Standing less interesting. Her ability to draw the listener in with her voice hasn't changed, it's just not as immediate as before. It's the album that gave us Tom's Diner, but it's not the version that you may know from the charts, it's a capella.

Songs of Note: Luka; Gypsy

3½ things erased out of 5

JENNIE TEBLER / Silverwing (2005)

Silverwing is the last known recording by Quorthon (Bathory) before he died. The vocals are performed by Jennie, who may or may not be his sister. It was a taste of what was to come from the pair; a melodic gothic style that I'm sure would've found an audience outside of Quorthon's usual fan base, if it had continued.
In a fitting tribute to her brother’s(?) memory, Jennie does a version of Song to Hall Up High, from Bathory's own Hammerheart (1990) album. The music is unchanged but the female vocals imbue it with a very different emotional feeling.

Songs of Note: Song to Hall Up High; Silverwing

3 gulls out of 5

VARIOUS ARTISTS / The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle (1979)

It's almost always attributed to the Sex Pistols, but they'd had split before its composition. Johnny Rotten refused to participate in the project, so they took his vocals from demo sessions and laid them over newly rerecorded music tracks. It's a mess. It does feature Sid (who by that stage didn't give a shit about much of anything), Steve Jones and Paul Cook. They're joined by Ronnie Biggs and a bunch of other people that aren't the Sex Pistols doing some shameless instrumental covers. "Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?" Yes.

Songs of Note: Johnny B Goode; My Way

2 genuine swindles out of 5

OVERKILL / The Years of Decay (1989)

There's some decent thrash riffs played very straight on TYoD that a lesser band would love to own, but for an Overkill album it's somewhat disappointing. Even the production is decent but uninspired for the most part. However, three tracks in particular make it essential; two of which are linked below.
Playing with Spiders is a bold departure from the norm but it works. The sluggish Sabbath crawl needs a pair of speakers that can output some hefty bottom end to fully appreciate; that extra oomph makes all the difference.
The third great track, which I haven't linked, is the continuation of the multi-song Overkill Saga, E.vil N.ever D.ies. You see what they did there? Gotta love 'em.

Songs of Note: Playing with Spiders (Skullkrusher); The Years of Decay

3 feet going down out of 5

YELLO / Stella (1985)

Yello delivered a very unique kind of musical art on their fourth album, using synthesisers, traditional vocals, spoken word, drum machines and a heavy dose of Dada-esque imagery. Stella is a musical onion - the more you explore it, the more layers it throws up, and the more you examine those layers, the more you realise just how bizarre the song structures really are; they shouldn't work but they do.
It sounds dated but equally timeless. I'm aware that's a contradiction, but so are Yello; it fits and so it remains.

Songs of Note: Vicious Games; Oh Yeah

4 days off out of 5