The biggest news of the week is the release of Beyonce’s imaginatively-titled fourth album, 4. Or is it? The fact that it leaked three weeks ago and the response to it has been muted (both critically and commercially-in the form of track sales) has to alarm Camp Knowles. Might this be the album that cracks B’s golden bubble? Maybe, maybe not. It can’t be good when 1/3 of your album has already made it onto iTunes with minimal reaction. However, […]
Posts tagged "New Releases"
Blerd Radio Episode 7: Solstice Edition
Welcome to the lucky seventh episode of Blerd Radio, in which the special guest floodgates open. The episode starts as per usual-with Mike and Jesse talking about…death. We tribute Clarence Clemons and (somewhat less so) “Jackass”‘s Ryan Dunn. Then, we jump into this week’s new releases-a little (well, a lot) of metal for Jesse, a little Jill Scott and Liam Finn for Mike. We are intermittently joined by Regina A.K.A. Mrs. Jesse (she has finally decided to lift her veil […]
Spin Cycle: Bon Iver’s “Bon Iver, Bon Iver”
Reams and reams of paragraphs, enough (and steeped in enough mythology) to ink dozens of dead sea scrolls, have been devoted to Bon Iver’s 2007 debut, For Emma, Forever Ago, and not without reason; indie lovers and avid Pitchfork readers seem to flock to rootsy acoustic-slinging troubadours with gusto, special hipster points granted for being lo-fi. It doesn’t get much more lo-fi than a heart-broke woodsman holing up for the winter in a Wisconsin cabin and writing and recording his […]
New Release Report 6/7/11: Potpourri
While the music industry is still dealing with post-Gaga fumes, let’s see what the first full week of June has as far as releases are concerned. British outfit The Arctic Monkeys have managed to cultivate a solid cult, many of whom are salivating (no pun intended…you’ll see what I mean in about three seconds) for their new album, Suck it & See (album title of the year, I tell ya). They’re some cheeky bastards. They’re joined on the release docket […]
“NKOTBSB”: We’ll Be Loving Them (Forever)
Here’s a bit of frightening pop-culture math for you: the first record by the New Kids on the Block came out 25 years ago. The first LP by the Backstreet Boys bowed 15 years ago. Alright, quit screaming in agony. That may not be a terribly long time in human years, but in pop-cultural terms it’s an eternity. And how are those milestones being celebrated? How else? Both boy-turned-men bands are hitting the road this summer, playing surprisingly large venues […]
New Release Report 5/17/11: The Calm Before Storm GaGa
In the event that you’ve been living underneath a very big rock for the past several months, Lady GaGa’s Born This Way is scheduled to drop on May 23rd. Now that you know what NEXT week’s column is gonna be all about, let’s take a look at some of the albums that are coming out this week. We’ll start with Moby . Destroyed has gotten some pretty savage reviews already, but I like the bit I’ve heard thus far, so I’ll […]
The New Blerd Radio Episode 4: Sex & Violence
Girls-they run the world!! So Beyonce says, and Episode 4 of Blerd Radio puts that theory to the test. With five people talking in one room, things get a little interesting-aside from Blerd and Jesse, we are joined by Mrs. Jesse, Jesse’s BFF *sniff* Matt Cameron, bass player for Jack Burton vs. David Lo Pan and Matt’s wife, Liz. The girls lead us through a feisty few rounds of Fuck, Kill, Marry, we discuss the new releases of the week, Jesse gets a massive industrial hard-on, […]
New Release Report 5/10/11: Turtleneck, Chain & CDs
Spring is in full flower, y’all…and there’s another wide-ranging set of new music coming to you this week. A little bit of everything-from comedy to classic R&B to indie rock to Eighties icons-occasionally all on the same set. Here are the highlights from the May 10th release schedule. Raphael Saadiq–Stone Rollin‘: Following the critically acclaimed The Way I See It, former Tony Toni Tone/Lucy Pearl frontman Raphael Saadiq continues to mine the depths of classic R&B on this, his fourth […]
Chart Stalker: 1992 Flashback Edition
There’s not much going on as far as this week’s Billboard charts. People apparently ran away from record stores in droves following Easter weekend, and last week’s sales totals are pretty low. Thank goodness for Adele, who scans another 124,000 copies of 21 to land at #1 yet again. Without that number, the chart would look very dismal indeed. The Foo Fighters stand at #2 with a dismal 34,000 copies sold, and the three debuts in the Top Twenty (Explosions […]
New Release Report 5/3/11: Beastietude
The week’s biggest news is certainly the release of Hot Sauce Committee, Part II , the Beastie Boys’ first non-instrumental album in six years. The longest-running hit making rap act in history, this album has gotten universally solid reviews, proving that Mike D., Ad-Rock and MCA have not lost their mojo even in their mid-forties. However, it’s far from the only thing going on in a crowded new release week. The Beasties will likely be vying for the #1 spot on the album charts with […]