thurs reviews

the streets - Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living: A cracker of an opening track, 'pranging out', that I'm sure many of us can relate to. All your usual streets ingreideints are here. Stacato-y beats layered with baroque-y string punches, skinner's thick cockney, mellowed by the other guy's sing-songy melodies, all about debauched events of various types - the battle of the sexes, ripping people off, getting mashed, etc. Another brilliant release.

sondre lerche - Duper Sessions: Third full-length from this norwegian troubador. It all sounds like music from a scene from a movie in a cafe on the upper east side. Which is ah-ight in a woody allen flick, but wears thin after a while on this album. Sondre has always had kind of a schticky swagger to his vocal stylings, which works to his benefit on his more accessible pop-oriented outings like Two-way Monologue, where the schtick is not neccesarily expected, as it is here.

ben harper - Both Sides of the Gun: Two disc set that conveniently fits on one disc (!). The verdict's out on this one, as I have yet to be drawn in. Call me old fashioned, but his first two discs are still the best. Should transfer well in a live setting, regardless.

band of horses - Everything All of the Time: Much bally-hooed new indie rock sensation, which sounds like a cross between My Morning Jacket and Rogue Wave. It's still a weird listen because I keep thinking I'm listening to either of the aforementioned bands instead. They haven't yet carved out their own identity in my head.