Muse "The Resistance"

I first discovered this band in 2003 with "Absolution" and was so excited by the sound that I actually researched the two older releases, something I very rarely do. "Showbiz" worked for me but "Origin..." didn't. With "Black Holes..." and now this release, Muse is a bonafide, big-time, worldwide smash. You can hear their music at professional sporting events...now that's acceptance in the US market! I saw them live a couple of years ago and was blown away by a three-member band creating all that bombast. There are the obvious Queen influences and I hear Sweet in some of the tracks. Gotta love the classical influences, as well. A piano is a good thing for rock music, in my opinion. Most of all I believe Muse has come into its own sound and identity, and I hope this isn't the peak of their career just yet. But when front man Matthew Bellamy tires of the arena rock scene, he'll be the next Danny Elfman.

Just a quick story about the acquisition of this record. When I purchased the download originally, I wasn't very impressed with the quality and songs and was initially disappointed with it. But after reading multiple glowing reviews, I decided to go online and sample the record from another source, and sure enough, what I had was a hybrid of the new album with some B-cuts and alternate tracks for the 3-part symphony that finishes the album. I revisited my download and finally obtained the proper release, but I wonder if what I have is some sort of rarity to be cherished. If any of you know out there, please let me know!

Chuck Prophet "Let Freedom Ring"

CP got his start in the 80's with a band called Green on Red, a CA based paisley-pop, jangly REM-ish, psychedelic sounding group. He went solo in the 90's but it's the albums released this decade that have hit my collection. Each release has its own aura, "Freedom" having more than a touch of country-folk-roots, but again, each CD is slightly different from the previous, which is why I am certainly going to get the next album without having to hear any of it first. I hear Rolling Stones and Tom Petty in places on this record. This is a back-to-basics release of guitars, bass and drums, featuring songs written by one of the best storytellers out there today.

Joe Henry "Blood From Stars"

I nearly choked on my cereal the other morning when I read the
Birthdays section of the paper, wishing Happy Happys' to
Country Musician Joe Henry! Now I've only been aware of him since 1999, and there's nothing country about him at all since then. OK, OK, so he was at the forefront of what came to be known as "alt country" with his earlier work in the 90's, but come on people, that was 15 years ago (and they wonder why newspapers are dying). The four albums since '99 have been trippy, subtle, jazzy, bluesy...all over the board. They sound like they could have been produced by Daniel Lanois or T-Bone Burnett, you know, the kind that need to be absorbed and experienced. "Blood " has that feeling, like you're sitting in a dark, smoky jazz club, JH on the piano, Marc Ribot seated with guitar in hand, an upright bassist and the tiny trap kit (with brushes) in back. His voice comes off a little like Leon Russell, with songs written in a Tom Waits style. These songs are what I like to call "aural sculptures." He's even had one of them (Stop) "dumbed down" by his sister-in-law, Madonna (Don't Tell Me)!

Metric "Fantasies"

So here's an example of finding a record through referral. I've been giving music to my friend Liz (which is something I do whether I've known you for a lifetime or a week) and she turns the tables on me a couple of weeks ago and hands me this disc. OK, so I put it into rotation in the changer and it comes up a few days later and I'm smiling from song to song. First thing I thought was Garbage, then it was Missing Persons, and on the most recent spin I hear Berlin. This is my sweet-tooth, guilty pleasure of the year (Black Kids was last year's equivalent). Female-fronted, catchy Canadian synth/power pop music...radio hits across the disc (if only radio had brains). Deserving of a little research, I find this is album #4, so off I go to previous releases only to discover that there's no comparison. And apparently I'm not alone as this is their first time to chart in the U.S., for eight weeks no less. Thanks Liz!

Tis the season for year-end "Best Of" lists--"Mad Rocker" Top 10 - 1984

(click the list to view it all)

"Orwell's year is here" - Golden Earring "N.E.W.S."

I happened across this one from 25 years ago and thought I'd put it up. A pretty impressive list, I must say. Just a few notes on the less obvious...

• Matt Johnson's debut as The The, releasing great records the entire decade
• would swap Icehouse for Split Enz if I could do it all over...had become an Icehouse fan after 1982's Primitive Man
• Freur later became Underworld
• The Expression was another Australian band that went nowhere...I remember emailing a road trip soundtrack to Erik Dennison of "Sunday Night Vinyl" http://www.wtks.com/pages/sundaynightvinyl.html that included this and he replied that he and I were two of the five people in the US who have it!

Now some notes on the Honorable Mentions...

• Sweet Dreams...
• from New Zealand Mi-Sex final album - first 3 albums were better - influenced OMD
• Headpins - a Chilliwack spinoff from Canada
• About Face
• featuring Paul Weller - My Everchanging Moods
• More Aussie pub rock aka Cold Chisel - produced by Vanda & Young
• another Aussie band - female vocals - "Heaven" was the single
• Instincts w/ Girl in Trouble is a Temporary Thing
• debut album All the Rage
• gave us Stacey Q a few years later
• Perfect Strangers

Masters of Reality "Pine/Cross Dover"

This band's debut album some 20+ years ago absolutely blew me away. Bluesy, stoner rock from a band with a Black Sabbath-inspired name. Played it consistently for two years, awaiting a new release. Little did I know that five years would pass before Sufferbus appeared, and since then about every five years later for a followup (not counting live recordings). It's not that Chris Goss was lazy, quite the opposite. He was busy with Kyuss in the 90's and Queens of the Stone Age this decade. I've heard of a bluesy band called Duke Spirit that he worked with last year, but as of yet not listened to it. Anyway, fans of QOTSA should check this out. "Pine" is certainly a rock album, not as bluesy or Zeppish as earlier records, but subtle and deep nonetheless. Nary an acoustic guitar to be heard. My buddy Pete Gill said it sometimes took years for him to grasp the intelligence of a Masters record. If you like your rock music simple and easy, then you'll give up on this early. I will absolutely have a heart attack if terrestrial radio ever plays any of this, and that's a shame since every track is 3 to 4 1/2 minutes long. Except for the final track, Alfalfa, which clocks in at just north of 12 minutes. This instrumental track is so Phish-like that I thought I had made a mistake and put one of their new tracks in the queue when burning this to disc. Play "Pine" often for optimum enjoyment.

7 Worlds Collide

Reading this title in a New Release section of a music site, I had to investigate, knowing that line from a Crowded House song. Sure enough,

it's a Neil Finn production involving members of Wilco (Tweedy and his son included...see previous post about HOF for this guy), Radiohead, Johnny Marr (whose contributions are the strongest on the record...HITS), KT Tunstall, additional Finn family members, and other New Zealand stars. If you know me at all, you know I consider the Finn brothers the second best songwriting team of all time behind the Liverpool guys. Though Tim has sort of disappeared (he does have one track on this two-record set), Neil has been active throughout and organized this gathering last Christmas in NZ for all involved and their families. Imagine hanging out in this group for a couple of weeks. There is a whole website detailing this charity project, so I'll let you learn more about it there. Suffice it to say that every track from this release should be programmed on the Loft (eclectic rock) channel on XM/Sirius. If you are remotely fond of anybody on this record, and that should be a large crowd, get this album for yourself for Xmas and in turn support this cause (Oxfam). It may not be local to us, but if these artists felt strong enough about it to participate, it should be.

Finally, the right environment for "The Incident"

MJ was out of town so the house was mine... Obtained the proper state of mind while preparing a beautiful rainbow trout, opened some vino, and cranked up the db's. I'm telling you folks, this is every bit as good as classic Pink Floyd. The track "Time Flies" is a dead ringer for "Dogs" from "Animals". If you ever believed yourself to be a fan of Floyd in the seventies, this record is for you. The guitar and keyboards echo Gilmour and Wright (RIP), but the drums and bass are more along the style of Peart and Lee of Rush. How the heck can you go wrong? If Porcupine Tree comes to your town, do your ol' rocker self a favor and check them out. I hope they come back here soon.

Phish "Joy" & Fanfarlo "Reservoir"

OK, this comes from someone who considered Phish one of the great bands of the 1990's. Since then they've been spotty, calling it quits a few years ago. I've come to enjoy all the various solo releases, and completely loved the "It" DVD. But this "reunion" album is not getting the complete add to the long list of Phish releases in my collection. I told a friend it sounds like it's for the money, but since it's their own label, guess not. It's not without highlights as I'm keeping three tracks, but I just could not convince myself to retain it all.

Fanfarlo is a band I heard of earlier in the year and I picked it up after sampling the first thirty seconds of a few of the songs. They are a British band with all the elements I seem to like in
my intellipop music, but it just did not quite mesh into a cohesive release for me after the requisite three spins. I'm going to keep a track (The Walls are Coming Down) to remind me to give their next album a try.

Joe Bonamassa "The Ballad of John Henry"

I remember when the group Bloodline came out in 2000 with the Krieger, Oakley, Davis kids. JB didn't have the musical "bloodline" of his band mates, but he's the one that has persevered. I lumped him in with the other young guns of his age group, Jonny Lang and Kenny Wayne Shepherd. I always liked Lang's vocals but not so much his fret work. KWS was smart enough to hire singers, and he was the best guitarist by far. I pulled out an old VH1 tape from 1997 and watched it a few weeks ago. What's happened to him anyway? Come back, come back KWS...

I tried to like JB's solo work after leaving Bloodline but it just never clicked for me. Then, one evening when the wifey was out of the house, I had the satellite tuned to one of the channels not approved for her ears, and this live track comes on with smokin' guitar and splices of ZZ Top and Zeppelin mixed in. It was from JB's "Live From Nowhere." So live was what did it for me. I alerted Bob Kilts to it and he subsequently purchased "...John Henry" and said it was outstanding. I still had my reservations, but finally picked it up seven months after its street date. This is without a doubt his finest work to date. I'm glad he goes to #1 on Blues charts, but this isn't really blues, or blues-rock, it's rock-blues if anything. JB is a fan of UK axemen such as Clapton, Rory Gallagher, and God love him for this one, Paul Kossoff. If you're a fan of Warren Haynes/Gov't Mule, you will enjoy "Ballad..." immensely.

Wilco (The Album)

If Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers are in the R&R Hall of Fame, then I nominate Jeff Tweedy and Wilco. The parallels are too many to mention here. And if you're a fan of the first ten years of TP and the boys, then you should love this record. I don't care what your age is...
you 50-somethings think there's no good music out there for you. Wrong! It's there, it's just a lot of work to find. That's what I'm here for, to suggest something for your musical palate. Those of you who know the Mad Rocker completely understand.

Cat Stevens Video

Rented the Majikat tour video from 1976 that was released from the vault in 2004. Just a joy to watch someone so obviously passionate about his music. I'm playing the Numbers CD now while I write this. This was the album the tour was supporting and it's the last one of his releases I truly enjoyed. The final two records came out while I was in college, where I became the Mad Rocker, and although I still have them, I haven't been moved to revisit. Maybe now I'll dig up the cassette of Izitso.

The DVD featured a conversation with Yusef about his past. It was enlightening, but nothing earth shattering...we all know the history. Wow, Majik of Majiks just played with that killer sax solo from David Sanborn. I'm sorry, but I keep breaking into singing along and not typing. Thank goodness you can't hear it! The disc also featured a couple of BBC live tracks and the original Teaser & the Firecat animation. What a trip down memory lane... My wife couldn't believe I was such a fan. Cat and Elton were two of my very favorites of my early teen years. To this day I still love piano in my rock/pop music, and certainly passion!

Tinsley Ellis Concert and Album

Finally made it down to the BB King Blues Club on I-Drive for this show Sunday night. I had only poked my head in once to check out the room after seeing a movie at the Pointe. It's an unusual setup as there is very little room directly in front of the stage. There is a small upstairs section that looks down from the front, and I wish I had investigated, but maybe another day...and there will be another day. Our foursome sat at a reserved table off to one side. Plenty of room, reasonable sight lines, and happy that the volume wasn't explosive! It's too bad that few locals know about the BB King Club. My regret is that there are very few national acts ever booked to play. After experiencing a night there, I guess I understand. We paid a paltry $5 cover (best five bucks one could have possibly spent in Orlando that night) and were joined by maybe 150 others. That's not a big payout for a blues veteran such as Mr. Ellis. I hope he got a % of the bar! I will say that the food we ordered was quite tasty, on par with, or even better than the kitchen at HOB. I hope BB Kings does well with their house bands, one of which we saw briefly at the downtown concert a few months ago opening for Joe Cocker. The tourists should eat this up!

I came away with the new CD that streets today, actually. Of course, you pay a little more for it at the show, but you get it a couple of days before everyone else and you get a chance to talk with Mr. Ellis while he signs it for you. I laughed at one of his concert comments about doing some of the new material that would be available, theoretically, in music stores everywhere today. I mentioned to him why I found it hysterical in our brief conversation in light of my retail background, and next thing you know we are talking about Cat's, Peaches, and NARM events in town over the years.

So let me quickly give an overview of both the show and the record. I've spun it once and realize he performed about half the tracks for us that night. Over the years I've helped sell many of his records but never ended up with one in my vault. I now realize that one should witness a live show to better appreciate the recorded versions. He's not a flashy, in-your-face performer, but he coaxes so many sounds from the guitars. Once you witness the effortless ability, the recorded music is much more meaningful. He's not the vocal presence of other notable blues artists, but that's not to say he's incapable. One of the later tracks on the record had me harking back to a pre-Steve Perry Journey sound that featured a young Greg Rolie on vocals. In concert the bass was a bit muddy, but on record it is crisper. Drums were sturdy and strong, and yet subtle in other ways. The drummer was the most showy on stage, but that's a relative term as it was the music that was the highlight of the evening.

Porcupine Tree "The Incident"



As I mentioned in the previous post, PT is probably one of my favorite discoveries of this decade. Now that I've given this record the requisite three spins, I'll say what I can for now so you can decide for yourself if you want to try it. This is prog rock for the 21st century. A concept album (wow, there's a lot of those recently... that's a good thing!) that encompasses the entire first CD. I've read comparisons to Rush "Hemispheres", but I get Pink Floyd's "Animals". Either way, that's pretty good  company. "Incident" isn't as tuneful as Rush and by that I mean sing-a-long stuff. This is more meat and muscle where Rush is flash and technique. Don't get me wrong, this is a good album, but now I'm looking forward to sitting down for a listen with the headphones on, uninterrupted. These types of albums are what I've called "20th century classical music", and now 21st century. The band has been playing the entire work in concert and they have a statement read at the beginning asking the crowd for quiet during the softer passages. And apparently, "Incident" is striking a cord with new listeners as I've read where it has debuted on sales charts all over Europe higher than ever before and here in the US at 25. There are four tracks on the second CD which are more typical of recent PT work if you have to get that fix. Prolific as Mr. Wilson is, I'm sure we'll hear something else soon from PT or his side projects.

Jay Jesse Johnson "Play That Damn Guitar"

I don't remember how I stumbled onto this, but once I did I found a video that stoked my interest. As it turns out, JJJ played on the "Arc Angel" album in 1983. That was a great record, and now I'll have to plow through my stash to find and revisit. It's on a cassette somewhere, so it may not play anyway at over 25 years of age. He was also on a record in 1989 called "Deadringer", and I recognized the cover but I don't own it.

This release smokes something fierce. As I spun it the first time I heard Frank Marino, Blackfoot, Indigenous, with a splash of Robin Trower. And those influences go for the vocals, as well. If you like any of the aforementioned artists, this would be one to seek out for your collection. Hard rockin' and bluesy!

New Porcupine Tree

I bought this on its release date Tuesday and started the initial listen today. One of my favorite bands from this decade. And, finally, I have a list of new releases to get, including Muse, Masters of Reality, and Chuck Prophet, to name a few.

Feel free to comment and suggest new music for me to hear. I spoke with an old co-worker of mine from the Music 4 Less days, Wayne Netzler, who has to be one of the world's biggest Cheap Trick fans, and he hated their studio album from this year. I didn't hate it, but it took some measure of patience to get to the last couple of tracks, which I thought were pretty good. Am I going to get their live rendition of Sgt. Pepper's? Maybe...

I've Been Going Through an Oldies Phase

There just wasn't much new music available that I had a desire to try, so I went back to some old CD storage and pulled about 20 to listen to over the last couple of months. I chose specifically for a continuous project of mine that I hope to bring to fruition one day in some form or fashion. Anyway, I thought some of you would appreciate these selections, and for those of you new to me a chance to see into my experience just a small bit. Granted, many of these are fairly popular, but remember, I'm working on a little something...

Berlin "Count Three & Pray" 1986
The Cure "Kiss Me..." 1990
Deep Purple "House of Blue Light" 1987
Elton John " Captain Fantastic..." 1975
Jerry Harrison "Walk on Water" 1990
The Freddie Jones Band "FJB" 1994
Billy Cobham "Best Of" 1988
Extreme "Waiting for the Punchline" 1995
Frank Marino & MR " Tales of the Unexpected" 1979
George Michael "Listen Without Prejudice" 1990
Mansun "Six" 1999
Ours "Precious" 2002
Rick Derringer "Blues Deluxe" 1998
Styx "Equinox" 1975
Terrell "On the Wings of Dirty Angels" 1990
Wire Train "Wire Train" 1990
Supertramp "Even in the Quietest Moments" 1977
Marty Willson-Piper "Art Attack" 1988
10cc "Deceptive Bends" 1977
Propaganda "A Secret Wish" 1985
Pink Floyd "Piper at the Gates..." 1967

See? All over the board...

Paper Route "Absence"

I really liked the EP so I decided to give the new full length a try. If I did not know these guys were from Nashville, there would be no possible way to discern it from their sound. Since I'm older than many of the current music reviewers out there, I recall the 80's from an adult point of view already involved in the music business, not a kid or pre-teen associating the music with their parents or hormones. This sounds like straight up Euro synth pop, invoking Spandau Ballet, A-Ha, late model ABC, etc.. I swear that Richard Ashcroft sings one of the tracks! If it reminds me of anything current it would be Keane. I had it in the player alongside the Dredg release and it meshed well, though a lighter weight than Dredg. I was drawn in to the unique drum patterns and the overall production of "Absence". i now wish I had caught their tour stop here in town.

Had to put this up in light of recent news...

Check out this picture of the Ol' Mad Rocker and Paula Abdul from March of 1995. This was at a NARM convention in San Diego on a Capitol Records sponsored boat trip around the bay, harbor, whatever they call it. That also explains the nautical accessories... Anyway, Paula was looking good at 32, tiny thing that she was/is. There must be a few hundred pictures like this floating around the country. That boat gig was also memorable as one Garth Brooks was on-board signing anything that was shoved under his nose. The cruise circled back to the dock and most all the label artists escaped to shore, but not Mr. Brooks. He stayed on board to allow everyone to have their shot at meeting him. One of the reasons the man was so admired. There may have been three others besides myself who did not bother him. We were too busy trying to drink the bars dry on the second trip around the bay, harbor, whatever... Oh, yeah, there was this amazingly incredible Latin beauty on board in a form-fitting purple pantsuit that stopped everybody in their tracks, male and female! We finally had to ask and it was Selena. At the end of that month of March she was murdered.

dredg "The Pariah, Parrot, Delusion"

So this is the album that is truly their own. The deal with Interscope was up and The PPD is released on the band's label. This is what I so anxiously waited for? They previewed a couple of tracks on their stop at The Social in support of the Live @ Fillmore release, and they sounded pretty good. But as much as I hate to say it, this album is a letdown from the previous two albums. 2005's Catch Without Arms is possibly one of my favorite albums of this century. The PPD still has the lush, dreamy auralscape I enjoyed before, but it doesn't have the same song quality as Catch, or even El Cielo. This album seems to compromise the band's epic power for a little more mainstream approach. Maybe this album will pull in some more radio airplay (and with it fans). They just came through town as a support act for Rx Bandits, I think, and that may add to their fan base as well. They are an impressive live show. I'm still adding The PPD to my collection, and I'm going to give it one last spin through some headphones before putting it away, but I doubt I will ever reach for it before Catch.

and the last two before some newer additions

The Killers - Day & Age

This came out around Thanksgiving last year and hit its chart peak immediately. This record took repeated spins through the car stereo and the ipod, probably netting it the most plays of anything I've listed so far. It's every bit as good as Hot Fuss; over-the-top pop songs, some quite danceable, all ultimately catchy. "Are we Human or are we Dancer"(...wha wha what?!?) is a great dance track that should be in clubs everywhere. "The World We Live In" has smash hit all over it. Hell, I think I've talked myself into another listen.


U2 - No Line on the Horizon

One of the great bands of the 80's that continued to improve and impress through the 90's, but hiccuped a bit with "All That You Can't Leave Behind" in 2000, and then dropped the ultimate turd of "...Dismantle an Atom Bomb" in '04. God, what an awful record. Corporate, by-the-numbers, safe as a spork...awful turd. And then I hear the opening single of the new album, "Get On Your Boots". Eeewww, something stinks. But based on the band's history, I give "Horizon" a shot, and it's brilliant outside the "Boots" track and one other about going crazy. Come to find out, the album is produced by Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, who helmed Joshua Tree and Unforgettable Fire. Run a credits check on either of those two guys and tell me you don't have at least double digits in albums that feature either one of them in any way. "Horizon" is packed with aural sculptures that are gripping in their depth. "Moment of Surrender" just may be the finest U2 song in twenty years, featuring each band member's strengths in a loopy, dirty groove. I'm playing it now and, yep, there they are, goosebumps. That should say it all.

Almost there...

Prince - LotusFlow3r

The "guitar" record of the 3-disc release. Not too shabby...good enough for me to add to the vault as a whole. Is it great guitar? Nah, just some nice flashes here and there wrapped into some decent song structures. But live I'll bet he heats this material up like we all know he can. The man can shoot fire from that axe when he wants.

Steven Wilson - Insurgentes

The brains of one of my favorite discoveries of this century, Porcupine Tree. Those who know me well know that I rarely go backwards in an artists work if I find them, say, on their fifth release. I found PT ten years into their history in 2002 and been a fan since. Even though I researched their previous music, I still liked this decade's sounds much better. Mr. Wilson has worked eponymously as other bands as well (anyone who works with Robert Fripp must be good), also collaborating on a couple of others (I did find myself retaining a Blackfield record). Insurgentes took a few spins for me to grasp its subtlety, sort of a PT-lite, which isn't a bad thing at all.

And On...

Evermore - Truth of the World: Welcome to the Show

I get asked how I find these bands nobody seems to know about. I'm a sick pup, really. This one I found looking at the Australian ARIA charts. I always had a thing for Aussie music ever since Spaceman brought back some from there on his exchange term. I've even got a old Mad Rocker show on cassette that has me playing some new "Australian punk-rock by a band called AC/DC"! Anyway, these guys are actually New Zealanders that sound like Muse, or the Music to me. How ironic, huh? I don't know much about them, but apparently this is a 4th album and it is different from what made them popular Down Under. Fine, then I don't want to hear the others because this one is fantastic! A concept album with a story on the control the media has on the general public...outstanding! Catchy hooks, cool lyrics, and you can dance to it.... Plus, they opened for the legendary Split Enz on their reunion tour in '06! How awesome to be that close to the greatest living pop songwriting team of the Finn brothers.

Ian Gillan - One Eye to Morocco

I've always said he's one of the greatest rock voices of our time, and at 63 he's still sounds as if he's 33. Amazing. Deep Purple is one of the all-time greats, right there with Floyd, Zeppelin, etc.

Outside of Purple he has probably 30 records of his own, and I own several of the heavier ones from way back in the day. Over the years his releases have been spotty at best, sometimes his vocals are sketchy, or the music is contrived, or some combination of the two just sounds forced or wrong. But when he's on.... This album caught me totally by surprise. It's nowhere near a rock or metal release. This a worldly, seasoned, eclectic pop rock album. The voice is spot on, gracing various styles of musical origins, almost the sort of thing Robert Plant was doing in his solo career before Ms. Krauss.

Next...

Chickenfoot

Best Van Halen release this decade, hell, since OU812 in 1988. What, you say, there hasn't been a Van Halen album this century? Well, there is now, it just doesn't have the VH brothers in it.


Cracker - Sunrise in the Land of Milk & Honey

The seventh album in my vault with this version of the David Lowery hour. If you don't find yourself smiling at least a half dozen times while listening to this album, then you just don't get it, do ya?


Decemberists - The Hazards of Love

If you are just now discovering this band with this release, do yourself a favor and backtrack to Picaresque or The Crane Wife. After listening to these two for the last three and four years, Hazards pales in comparison. Don't get me wrong, Hazards is an excellent release, but the other two will receive consideration for my "Best Of The 21st Century..So Far" list.

A BLURB ON EACH OF THE 2009'S SO FAR

Bell X1 - Blue Lights on the Runway

I liked what I'd heard from the 2006 release and sought this out upon release. Hard to pigeonhole this sound, but it's certainly intelligent alternative creations with a vocalist who at times recalls David Byrne. Heck, I'd even go as far as saying the music is a more subtle Talking Heads in style just for the sake of a reference on the fly. Irish band that deserves a listen or three if you like intellipop music.

Blue October - Approaching Normal

I think they are one of the best rock bands to arrive this decade. Angst my ass, this guy is truly pissed off and unafraid to commit it to record, which is probably why I like it so much and many reviewers don't. Pansies. "Hate Me" from the previous album got them the attention they deserved, but make no mistake, you won't get an album full of "Hate Me" clones just because it was a hit. I don't listen to much terrestrial radio but I did hear one of the new tracks on a drive through Atlanta recently and damn near drove off the road in shock!

For Consideration in 2009...so far

• Bell X1
• Blue October
• Chickenfoot
• Cracker
• Decemberists
• Dredg
• Evermore
• Ian Gillan
• Prince
• Steven Wilson
• The Killers
• U2

As if I need more music...

I stopped my yearly "Best Of" series after 2003 since I wasn't exposed to the full schedule of releases anymore, exiting the biz completely in September '04. You never get to listen to it all anyway, no matter how entrenched in the biz you are, but you do get to listen to more releases than the average consumer. But I still find myself acquiring 20 or more new releases each year, mostly from artists already included in my ridiculous collection, but occasionally it's new music heard on satellite radio (don't get me started on how bad terrestrial is). The list below contains my top picks for 2008 in no particular order. I've left out some of the big names like REM, Plant/Krauss, Eagles, etc., opting more for the new artists and/or deserving releases from established musicians. I will strive to feature new additions to my collection in future posts.

• Airbourne "Runnin' Wild"
• Panic @ the Disco "Pretty, Odd"
• Fleet Foxes "Fleet Foxes"
• My Morning Jacket "Evil Urges"
• Portugal. The Man "Censored Colors"
• The Verve "Forth"
• Elbow "The Seldom Seen Kid"
• Ray LaMontagne "Gossip in the Grain"
• Steve Winwood "Nine Lives"
• The Zutons "You Can Do Anything"
• Black Kids "Partie Traumatic"
• Gary Moore "Bad For Your Baby"
• Ours "Mercy (Dancing for the Death of an Imaginary Friend)"