Ataris 7"

Check out two tracks from the Ataris 7" streaming on ThePunkSite.com. To quickly sum it up: both tracks are awesome, and are a huge departure from their last album (which I didn't find very good). As for the era, I'd put it somewhere between End is Forever and So Long, Astoria. "All Soul's Day" is...awesome. This album has definitely moved into my most anticipated of next year. I hope the rest doesn't disappoint, but from the word on the street, Kris Roe and Co. are taking it back to their punkier roots.

In other news, expect the top-10 list of 2010 to come out soon-ish. Hope everyone that celebrates it had a great Thanksgiving. I spent mine in Hong Kong...to any HK fans, your city is a healthy mix of class and debauchery. Both HK and the new Ataris get the sickalbums Seal of Approval.

The Ataris link:
http://thepunksite.com/theataris.php

Coleman Hawkins - Body & Soul

While I have my favorite genres of music, I will admit (and maybe you can tell) that I am a fan of ALL music. Well, most all music. This album is a break from the norm, but brilliant nonetheless. I'll be straight with you up-front: It's a jazz album. But it's classic jazz from a brilliant saxophonist, Coleman Hawkins. There's an old-school, airy feel to the entire album; an upbeat tempo with a horns section that fills in for lyrics. If you're in the mood to expand your musical horizons with some class, please go get this album on vinyl. It truly is easy listening, and because I don't know too much about jazz, there's not much I can say other than, "I've listened to jazz before, and this is definitely awesome stuff." It's great as background music, but to be really appreciated, you have to sit and actually listen to it, because the instruments do the singing, vice a...singer...Coleman Hawkins is one of the great musicians that the more well-known "greats" learned from (he influenced Louis Armstrong among others). He's brilliant, and although jazz (to me at least) seems oftentimes random and disorganized, the Hawk brings it all together with his sax. One of the few musicians that I've heard that speaks through his instrument (Clapton is another, but even he relies on lyrics). Get it.

1. Meet Doctor Foo
2. Fine Dinner
3. She's Funny That Way
4. Body and Soul
5. When Day Is Done
6. The Sheik of Araby
7. My Blue Heaven
8. Bouncing with Bean
9. Say It Isn't So
10. Spotlite
11. April in Paris
12. How Strange
13. Half Step Down, Please
14. Angel Face
15. There Will Never Be Another You
16. The Bean Stalks Again
17. Body and Soul
18. I Love Paris
19. Under Paris Skies

Link:
http://www.mediafire.com/?by6bryxi0dcyx84

Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More

This album comes courtesy of my good friend Jordan, who knew I enjoyed a good folk-rock ensemble. Before I got the album, one reviewer had said the quartet was "gutsy," and I couldn't agree more. Think of the Avett Brothers, but with a Brit accent and more layered instrumentation. Muted acoustics play back and forth with the mandolins and banjos, alternating between verse and chorus. Those that are regular readers of my blog know that I'm not a huge fan of multiple layers on a track, but this is the exception, because I've seen their live performances (online), and they're good. Lyrically, the usual topics are encompassed throughout the album: love, relationships, etc. But what really sets this band apart is their use of the instrumental off-set between the chorus and the verse. Listen and you'll hear it...the verses set up the rest of the band so sweetly for loud, crashing choruses. "White Blank Page" probably describes this the best. All-around, just a great, great folk-rock album. Variation is heavy throughout, which will keep your attention and leave you wanting more. FYI, "Little Lion Man" is a fantastic song, and if you really want to see their talent, listen to the song, and then watch them live. Barely a difference between the two...

1. Sigh No More
2. The Cave
3. Winter Winds
4. Roll Away Your Stone
5. White Blank Page
6. I Gave You All
7. Little Lion Man
8. Timshel
9. Thistle and Weeds
10. Awake My Soul
11. Dustbowl Dance
12. After the Storm

Link:
http://www.mediafire.com/?noom9oumes2bbuv

I am the Avalanche - S/T

My best friend JJK pointed out that he couldn't find I am the Avalanche on the blog, which I thought was complete BS: How could I not post one of my favorite albums? Well, I hadn't. So here it is, I am the Avalanche's self-titled debut. If you're a fan of the Movielife, you'll like this even more (same lead singer, slower, more melodic pace). Bold claim, I know, but every song on this album is choking on energy, lyrics and guitars. Post-hardcore is a genre I've always appreciated, the balance between the harmony and brutalization of punk. At this, I would put IATA as one of the best in the genre, and this record one of the best in that category as well. I'm usually pretty good at picking what tracks I think should be singles from an album, but with this one it's too difficult. "Wasted" is definitely one, but then again, any of the others could make it as well. Try "New Disaster" as well. It has a chorus that is both energetic and melodic, all set over loud guitars.

1. Dead And
2. New Disaster
3. Murderous
4. Green Eyes
5. I Took A Beating
6. Wasted
7. Always
8. This Is Dungeon Music
9. Symphony
10. Emergency
11. Clean Up
12. My Second Restraining Order

Link:
http://www.mediafire.com/?zu14j445g4r598c

Funeral Party - S/T

Be prepared for a barrage of energy from the sound of this record. Funeral Party, an LA-based trio/quad, has made headlines around the world based on their EP, and reception has been outstanding within the ever-expanding "indie-scene." Their music can definitely be categorized as post-punk revival (Killers, Frans Ferd, Rapture), with scratchy vocals, harmonic interludes and electronics support by clockwork drumbeats. But the energy is really what sets this band apart as a premier dance-punk group. Never missing a beat or slowing down, this record is more at home in a small dance hall than a U2-sized stadium. The music is definitely in your face, up close and personal. I highly recommend it for a nice kick to your ears when you're feeling lethargic.

1. NYC Moves to the Sound of LA
2. Car Wars
3. Finale
4. Where Did it go Wrong?
5. Just Because
7. Giant Song**
8. City in Silhouettes
9. Youth and Poverty
10. Relics to Ruins
11. Golden Age of Knowhere

**This record's numbering is off and I'm not sure if I'm missing a track, but I also think it's more of a compilation. No worries, it's still awesome.

Link:
http://www.mediafire.com/?b37e1ngc33ajrrf

The Movielife - Forty Hour Train Back to Penn

The Movielife definitely has that edge that I've been missing lately. Hands down, one of my favorite bands is I am the Avalanche, and this band was the precursor. By that fact alone, they're up there with the best of them; underground, rough and honest melodic hardcore for the selective masses. These guys were already established on Long Island before TBS and Brand New started duking it out for LI supremacy. The lyrics are a first-person analysis of a variety of relationships, mostly ending terribly, jumping between hate and sorrow. Of course, for those non-emo kids out there, it's wrapped in a tightly produced post-hardcore package, boxed in snares and hammering power chords. The beat is relentless, and any breaks almost seem naturally placed for the listener to take a second to re-group before being audibly assaulted. The only time the backing instruments fade is to allow the snarling lyrics of vocalist Vinnie Caruana to break through. The energy in Caruana's voice does a great job of keeping the music going forward, without lulls which often punctuate some post-hardcore albums. Great record, and "Hey" is fairly accurate. I'll warn you, the quality isn't 192 VBS or anything, but it does the trick, because it's post-hardcore, and I'm a proponent of less-is-more when it comes to anything related to hardcore.

1. Face and Kneecaps
2. Jamestown
3. Spanaway
4. Kelly Song
5. Takin' It Out & Choppin' It Up
6. Scary
7. Hey
8. Jamaica Next
9. It's Something
10. Keep Never Changing
11. Ship to Shore

Link:
http://www.mediafire.com/?768b7iwwyx6sxq2

One more thing...

I added the easy "Share" console below each post (next to the Comment pencil), so please spread the good word however you want. Thanks!