Upcoming Releases - Summer/Fall 2009

Here are seven upcoming music releases I'm looking forward to in the next few months. There's a pretty big range in music here, and something everyone can enjoy! I'm gonna throw in some cool videos for each of the artists.

7. Flaming Lips - "Embryonic" Sept. 29

I'm looking forward to the Lips' new double album "Embryonic" because I can't wait to see what they come up with next. Being one of the most original and unique bands of the past 25 years, they're known for psychadelic sounds and bizzare lyrics. Check out this video of Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots below. Doesn't that giant bubble look so cool?!




6. Between The Buried And Me - "The Great Misdirect" Oct. 27

Between The Buried And Me are one of the most progressive bands I can think of. The only band that can go from thrash in one second to death growls to indie, new wave, grunge, salsa, jazz, bossa nova, and more styles and make it all sound amazing. I got the chance to see them a few years ago and they were just as clean live as they were on cd. I'm sure the new record won't disappoint. Check out the song Mordecai below. Watch how mellow it gets a couple minutes in, and how melodic the guitar is towards the end. Beautiful.



5. Monsters Of Folk - "Monsters Of Folk" Sept. 22

Monsters Of Folk is a supergroup of sorts comprising some great singer-songwriters: Conor Oberst (of Bright Eyes fame), M. Ward, and Jim James (from the band My Morning Jacket). Rounding out the band is Mike Mogis who is a multi-instrumentalist and also a producer and engineer. He is a member of Bright Eyes too. It will be interesting to see how these prominent songwriters will compromise their individual styles' together into a cohesive album. Here's a video of Conor Oberst performing "Get Well Cards" in some little record store. Looks fun!



4. Tegan and Sara - "Sainthood" Oct. 27

Tegan and Sara Quin are sisters that write and sing catchy indie pop. In the past, they've written their own songs individually but on this new record will be writing together. "Sainthood" will be the follow up to their critically acclaimed 2007 release "The Con." I really enjoyed "The Con" and their live performance when I saw them open up for Death Cab For Cutie last year. This song is called "Call It Off" and was performed on Letterman.



3. Devendra Banhart - "What Will We Be" Sometime in October

Devendra is one of my favorite song-writers. Some people describe his style as "freak-folk" but most of his stuff is low-fi acoustic songs. A couple of his newer records have some more rock moments thrown in there though. He has a cameo in the film Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist, and he got lucky enough to date Natalie Portman haha. I took the name of my music project from one of his songs. In fact, it's from this song "At The Hop."



2. Beatles - "Entire Catalogue" Sept. 09

It's about damn time! The entire Beatles catalogue has been remastered and is going to be reissued. All of the original (British) album artwork will be intact, and most cds will feature a bonus disc with special features. There is also going to be two box sets coming out as well. One for mono and one for stereo. Here's one of my favorites, "Don't Let Me Down." This was their last public performance together too!



1. AFI - "Crash Love" Sept. 29

Depending on how long you've known me, this may or may not be a surprise to you. AFI have been one of my favorite bands since I was 15, and I've always had a special place in my heart for them. I've met the band members countless times, and they are such nice guys. This will be their eighth full-length album, and I can't wait for them to come to Vegas again. They're a band that always changes with every record and always pulls it off. Their show is so energetic and passionate. Here's an old video of "Days of the Phoenix".



That's all for now!

-Joseph

Prologue - An Introduction

This first blog posting will be an introduction and explanation of what's to come. You'll get to know a bit about me, and also learn what the basis of this blog will be.

My name is Joseph, and I live in Las Vegas, NV. I am married and have a son, and my family is the most important part of my life. I have a strong interest in all things ART: Music, film, photography, paintings, literature, etc. I love to write and play music in my spare time. I work at a record store, and I love it. That's enough about me.

The purpose of this blog is to share with people my interests and views on things. Music reviews, movie reviews, upcoming releases I'm looking forward to, and any other things I like will probably be the basis of the blog. There probably won't be a lot of personal information thrown in, but some personal experiences and stuff may sneak in every once in a while.

With this stuff out of the way, stay tuned for the next blog to get this ball rolling!

-Joseph