four more

Here's some more new & future album summaries:

teenage fanclub - Man-Made: Remember when the Fanclub was poised to take over the world? Not only did Nirvana sing their highest praises, but Nevermind even wound up taking second fiddle to Bandwagonesqe which placed first in Spin's best albums of 1991. {Mind you, this was also when Spin was run by Bob Guicionne Jr, and still carried credible weight as a music publication, as opposed to the pathetic rag for posers it has become today.} Well, after their disappointing & belated follow-up, Thirteen, everyone who hadn't already forgotten about them soon did, myself included. Apparently they made several cd's between then & now based on the greatest hits collection released in '03. So it's with some curiosity that I listen to this new disc wondering if they are poised for anything these days. And unfortunately, but not unexpectedly, Man-Made contains nothing too earthshattering or even that interesting.

death cab for cutie - The John Byrd EP: The Fanclub fizzled, but the Cab seem ready to stand up and take over that coveted, or cursed, "next big thing" slot with their recent signing to Atlantic Records. In what's basically a tide over until their next full length, this indie-retailer-only release is a 37 minute, 7-track disc of live material from their winter/spring '04 tour, the last date of which I was supposed to see, but alas got cancelled by a late season blizzard in april. I first really enjoyed these guys when I literally stumbled across one of their shows at the Echo Lounge one sunday night. They exude a lot more energy live than on disc and I was completely blown away - I picked up their lastest disc at the time, The Photo Album, at the merch booth, and then went home to dig out the other cd's of theirs I already owned, but hadn't really listened to much. This EP basically captures some of their best songs live and even has a cover of seBADoh's "Brand New Love". A great intro to the band, or icing on the cake for longtime fans.

the caesars - Paper Tigers: These guys are and always will be known for that song of theirs in the iPod shuffle ads. This, their second album, sure doesn't help create any sort of musical legacy beyond that. Every generation needs their one-hit wonders, I suppose.

prefuse 73 - Surrounded By Silence: Guillermo Scott Herren (I always confuse this name with Gil Scot Heron for some reason) is back to his most seemingly prolific identity, Prefuse 73 (others include Savath & Savalas, Delarosa & Asora, 'the mysterious' Piano Overlord, Ahmad Szabo, etc.), known essentially for its hip-hop for IDM lovers motif. Surrounded is yet another groovy down tempo fusion disc with guest vocalisms from the likes of not just rappers such as Ghostface, Masta Killa, & GZA, but also lovely chanteuses Claudia & Alejandra Deheza. The end result is a bunch of songs located all over the musical map, that should age well upon repeated listens.

friday techno of the day: metalheadz - platinum breakz 1

-bloody ears, neph-