It is appropriate that “Mythmaker” radiates impending doom. Group member Ogre is ringing the death knell for relationships that did a number on his psyche, which explains the tolling bells that sound during “magnifis–t.” Curiously, the air of a requiem is more distinct when you hear the watery piano intro of “haZe” than the bombast […]
Ty Herndon fell under the radar after dazzling country radio last decade with No. 1s “What Mattered Most” and “Living in a Moment” — and then seeing his previous Epic project aborted just before release. He returns with a vengeance on indie Jackson/ Titan Pyramid via “Right About Now,” a classic country ballad that rereveals […]
The inadvertent first hit from Gym Class Heroes’ sophomore effort — the song was picked up by radio while the band’s label was working another track — is an ostensibly gooey-eyed ode to the sweet if fickle ways of teenage love. A hip-hop quartet that plays live instruments, GCH combine skillful rhyme slinging with sturdy […]
Fans of Train, Five for Fighting and Counting Crows will line up for this ride to “Boston.” The one-way trip is courtesy of gentle rock act Augustana to an ancient destination: a place where no one knows your name. An almost merry piano leads the way as Dan Layus sings of his lady ditching him […]
Imagine a poppier Pat Benatar fronting a more dance-oriented Berlin—big vocals, big beats, big guitars–and you’re just about there. Like fellow Swedes ABBA in the 1970s and A-Ha in the 1980s, platinum pixie Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle generate a bright, glossy sound that transcends borders. In 20 years, they’ve sold 45 million albums […]
A newcomer to the musical progression and legacy of the Byrds could hardly expect to find a better crash course than this: four discs with 99 songs, a DVD of ten previously unissued television performances, extensive annotation. Yet longtime fans of the band might wonder what the point is. Any riches buried in the […]
Sometimes recording even a single Beatles cover can be a perilous undertaking. So for the Smithereens to have the impudence to rerecord Meet the Beatles in its entirety (even though some purists don’t recognize it as canonical) is like taking the studio to edge of the cliff. But wait! While reaching the Fab Four […]
This is music of great diversity and charm. Lang Lang returns here to his native China for solo, chamber, and orchestral music. Those expecting great exoticisms will not find them here. We are all aware of how the East influenced the West in music – Debussy, Ravel, and other composers have picked up the […]
Plenty of contemporary artists have addressed the classic American songbook, but few have romped through it with more playful verve than Erin McKeown. Fans of Norah Jones will find a kindred spirit here, though McKeown’s singing is sunnier and her instrumentation more syncopated. (Or, since music like this has become increasingly associated with upscale […]
While this soundtrack is very solid overall, it’s also rather subdued and perhaps not as immediately likable as composer Alexandre Desplat’s previous offerings (most notably The Queen and Syriana), so it could disappoint fans of the immensely gifted Frenchman. But a certain old-fashioned charm does operate after a while, which, after all, is exactly […]
It’s always a pleasant surprise when a soundtrack contains an interesting collection of under-heard or under-appreciated tunes, but it’s to be expected from Grey’s Anatomy–a TV show that is packed with sharp dialogue, honest characters, and wall-to-wall good music. The head-bobbing starts immediately when the Postal Service opens things up “Such Great Heights,” a […]
One of the most common complaints about musicals is that the books are flimsy pretexts from which to hang numbers. Wicked runs into the opposite problem: it has a great plot, but too often the songs just get in the way. Based on Gregory Maguire’s novel of the same name, Wicked tells us what […]
With these astounding 54 songs (plus two bonus tracks) Tom Waits has added a vital new work to his catalog. The title, Orphans, refers to the songs either being from a range of outside projects, various impulses, and whims, or simply not having found a place on the albums for which they were intended. […]
Though the arrangements stray from Lucinda Williams’s motherlode blend of blues, country, and folk, West may well be her best album. It is easily her most musically adventurous, and often her most lyrically inspired. Williams’s singing has never sounded better, from the aching tenderness of “Where Is My Love?” to the ravaged catharsis of […]
