The Fruit Bats opened for Rogue Wave a couple months ago, and I was impressed enough to pick up this album. Considering SupPop’s roster of great bands, I probably should have given them a chance sooner. Their music isn’t really ground breaking, but that is ok. Sometimes you just need a fun, easy to listen to album. If you are a fan of The Shins and Rogue Wave, check out The Fruit Bats. I don’t really know what else to say…

It is no secret that I am a big fan of Iron and Wine, so it shouldn’t surprise anyone to hear me give a warm review to Iron and Wine’s collaboration with Calexico on In the Reins. It is a hybrid to be sure, but the influence of both groups is evident, and fans of both will most likely enjoy this album. On first listen, it seemed much different from Iron and Wine’s other albums. After a few days in continuous rotation though, the songs are really Iron and Wine, just with a Calexico arrangement. I am relatively new to Calexico, but I am already a fan after picking up Feast of Wire a couple months ago. I would have trouble classifying their sound, but Amazon calls it a “blend of mariachi horns, soaring strident pedal steel, and jangly ’60s-era reverb guitars.” That is pretty close, and it makes for a nice complement to Iron and Wine’s poetry.

I am going to see Iron and Wine on Wednesday in Denver, and I would be surprised if we didn’t hear any tracks off of this album. Although Calexico isn’t ticketed to join Iron and Wine, I think it would be great if they made a surprise appearance.

Most of the music I listen to fills the background of my day with rhythm, energy, and inspiration. I love my music, but it is rare that music touches me or resonate with my soul. On rare occasions, an album like Cripple Crow, breaks free of the background and forces you to engage it. You wrestle with it, you dance with it, you are transformed by it, and it becomes a part of you.

When I heard Devendra Banhart’s newest album, Cripple Crow, I felt something that I couldn’t pin down. I wanted to save the music for a time when I could be alone with it. I took it home and stayed up late being mesmerized and hypnotized. As I started to absorb this music, I remembered the last time I had this feeling. I closed my eyes and remembered my boyhood hiding place. I remember crawling in there, putting my headphones on and being transported to a different place. There alone in that little womb I really connected with the music. It became a part of me. Perhaps it is fitting that Devendra Banhart chose a “Sergeant Pepper” style cover for this album. No doubt, many children retreated to their secret place and wrestled with that album. Like that Beatle’s masterpiece, I think this album has the power to engage its listeners and really connect with people.

Last Friday I got to see Rogue Wave in concert. I saw them about a year ago, and am happy to report that they sound even better than before. A year of touring has really tightened up their set. In fact, all the songs seem to have a new energy that makes me wish they would rerecord their first album, Out of the Shadow which was made before there was really a band. I guess that might have been part of the reason for their iTunes Exclusive.

As a teaser to their new album that comes out October 25, you can pick up their latest single, 10:1. It is only 4 songs, but it does what a good teaser should: it gets you excited for the full length album. And as an added bonus, if you buy the single, you get to enjoy the album art of Jeff Kleinsmith. Good stuff…

Death Cab For Cutie

I heard “Soul Meets Body” on the radio, and it got me excited for Death Cab for Cutie’s new album, Plans. I was even more excited when I was lucky enough to get a sneak preview of the album before it hit stores. While the rest of you are waiting for it to come out, I have already been listening to it since Tuesday, and I am happy to report that it will be worth your wait. Easily as good as their last album, Transatlanticism, Plans delivers a new set of great songs.

As one of the world’s most loved indie bands, it should come as no surprise that there was concern that Death Cab for Cutie had “sold out” when they signed with a major record company. Death Cab’s first album under the Atlantic label does show some of the markings of a major label debut (polished production, and overall relatively low risk) but that doesn’t hurt this album in the slightest. I doubt that many of the long-time fans will be disappointed with this album. I cringe at the thought of Death Cab as a mainstream band, but Plans will surely attract many new fans. Who cares anyway? Does the line between indie and mainstream even exist anymore? It should be about the music and not music snobbery. Death Cab deserves all the praise that they can get.

Sufjan Stevens ambitious project of recording an album for all 50 states is almost to weird to take seriously. Is he really going to do it, or is it all tongue-in-cheek? Well, Steven’s second state themed album, Illinoise, suggests that Sufjan just might do it. Helped by publicity over the recall of the album due to an unauthorized Superman image on the cover, Illinoise seems to be receiving good reviews. Steven’s first state album, Michigan, plays like a photo album of memories and sketches of the state where Sufjan was born. Not only is Illinoise a big commitment by Stevens, but it also takes a commitment by anyone patient enough to sit through all 22 tracks. Nevertheless, the diligent will be rewarded. Easily as strong as Michigan, Illinoise has plenty of wit, honesty, and stories to stand on its own as a strong album. With two states down, Stevens still has my attention as an artist to watch. We will have to see if my enthusiasm can hold up after a few more states, though.

It is going to be hard to find a review of The Bravery’s self-titleed album that doesn’t mention The Killers. Clone wars are nothing new in music, so you either accept the inevitable comparisons, or begin the hopeless quest for the first band that sounds like nothing else. Still, why would anyone want to listen to an imitation of The Strokes, Interpol, Scissor Sisters, or Franz Ferdinand? Maybe because they are more than just an imitation. Their songs are catchy, and I would be surprised if The Bravery avoids the radio overplay that The Killers have enjoyed. They won’t reinvent modern music, but they will fill the gap while we wait for the next big thing.

Man, Jack White can craft some great songs. The White Stripes new album, Get Behind Me Satan is made up of 14 songs that resist classification. I guess this album is much different that the earlier White Stripe releases, but you can be the judge for yourself. I can’t see a White Stripes fan not enjoying their new album. The sounds are inventive, the lyrics are raw and intelligent, and the music is great.

My only concern is that it might not have much staying power in my rotation. Earlier White Stripes albums are great, but I don’t find myself returning to them regularly. Maybe that is because the music demands attention. I can’t listen to them in the background, which is what I like to do alot. When Jack White starts singing, I have to stop what I am doing and pay attention. That is more of a compliment than a complaint, so don’t let that discourage you from getting it. It really is an impressive album. The cover design is nice, too. Staying true to the White Stripes brand, they are sticking with the black/red/white color photography. You can’t go wrong with that.

*Push Barman To Open Old Wounds* is a two disk collection of Belle & Sebastian LP’s that were released from 1997-2001. These songs were only written over a 5 year period, but they fit together very well. Some of the 25 songs have never been released in the United States. When I heard about this album I rushed to iTunes only to be disappointed that they were asking $19.99 for it. Why do they do that? I waited a couple days and picked it up at the store for $13.99. Having the liner notes is really nice because it shows the cover art for each of the LP’s not to mention the lyrics and some band history.

Belle and Sebastian are so untraditional that I think it causes many people to question how relevant they are in today’s music market. They fill a unique niche that few bands would dare embrace. B&S write songs that are intensely vulnerable both musically and lyrically. Their lyrics humbly struggle with personal weakness while backed by orchestration that elevates the words beyond the mundane or trivial. I think that is why this album rises above the traditionally mediocre unreleased music compilations by other bands. It is a great collection that I highly recommend to anyone who missed the LP’s the first time around.

The Eels new album, *Blinking Lights and Other Revelations* is a two disk masterpiece that relieves my disappointment from their last album, Shootenanny. It was interesting to learn that Shootenanny was actually recorded during a break from the recording of Blinking Lights. With the weight and importance of Blinking, it is understandable that the Eels would use a break to produce a more carefree and less serious album like Shootenanny.

*Blinking Lights and Other Revelations* could easily be considered the second chapter of Electro-Shock Blues. Blinking finds E still wrestling with the emotional demons that spawned his Electro-Shock breakthrough. He explores the dark side with a blunt wit, and ultimately an optimism that could be easily overlooked. Optimism is the revelation that E is talking about in the title of this album. Lights go out, but their is comfort in the realization that they will come back on. The lights aren’t burned out, they are just blinking.