Childish Gambino – Camp

You probably know him as Troy Barnes from NBC’s hit show “Community.” And if you don’t, then you should. Donald Glover (no relation to Danny) is a hilarious and fantastic actor. Which is why I was initially hesitant when I heard that he also rapped. How many times are actors/musicians/athletes able to shine when they cross over into another form of entertainment? Shaq and Allen Iverson’s rap albums were terrible. Some people like Bon Jovi’s acting, but I think he’s horrible. Ludacris was great in “Crash” but that’s the exception to the rule.

Metallica & Lou Reed – Lulu

Today’s New York Times article about the album begins: “The three titans of rock put down their sushi and unleashed a Babel of gush. Lounging in a luxury hotel suite 26 floors above Lower Manhattan…”

There’s so much about those opening sentences that makes me cringe. But am I surprised? Is it strange that the once long-haired, eternally-drunk, speed metal demons are now eating sushi and “lounging in luxury hotel suites?” Not really. Ever since the Napster debacle, when Metallica revealed their true colors as money grubbing rich bros as opposed to down and dirty metal rockers, the band’s sound and success has been a stagnant languid endeavor.

M83 – Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming

There’s a sense of youth that permeates M83s forthcoming album Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming. Stemming from each song seems to be not just a yearning for the glory days of one’s youth, but an actual recapturing of those days and moments. Anthony Gonzalez and his bandmates were able to capture that sentiment in the form of an expansive exploratory double album which soars and delights. And despite the times when the songs sound like third-rate Phil Collins knockoffs (which somehow isn’t as bad as it sounds), the album can only be properly described as an epic-indie-power-pop-soundscape, without the annoying ironic, emo, or sad-bastard tendencies that today’s state of indie rock normally falls under.

Wilco – The Whole Love

Most of the reviews I’ve read of Wilco’s The Whole Love, released today, have compared the album to Wilco’s previous records. And while I do see the purpose of reviewing an album in this manner, I’m going to refrain from doing so this time for two reason:

1. While a band’s full catalog is definitely an important thing to consider when looking at any album, each piece of music offered should be taken as is. Thus, since this was presented as an album, we”l do our very best to review it as an album, independent of anything else.
2. Despite my love for this band, my main focus has always been on Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (which is, I guess, like someone saying they’re a Beatles fan because they liked Abbey Road). I loved Sky Blue Sky and even think Wilco (the album) was brilliant as well, but I can’t really properly review this album in light of all of this band’s work because I simply have not mastered it well enough.

Girls – Father, Son, Holy Ghost

Girls followup album to “Album,” “Father, Son, Holy Ghost,” will be released on September 9th, but here’s a preliminary look at the album in 140 or fewer characters.

Jay-Z and Kanye West – Watch The Throne

Kanye West and Jay-Z. Two of the best rappers in the game. No one can match Jay’s flow – his voice was just made for hip hop and the beats he produces and sings over are always hard hitting and provocative. Kayne, alternatively, has developed into a hilarious and brilliant lyricist, perfectly toeing the line between self aggrandizing and self deprecating. His songs, likewise, have become grand productions, with his producer skills having skyrocketed in the last few years, as he manages the perfect balance between too much and not enough.

On their first full album collaboration, their styles mesh perfectly, and they play off one another, switching off between tongue in cheek lyrics and personal ones, and half-jokingly worrying that they’ve lost their positions at the top of the rap world.

Liam Finn – FOMO

Liam Finn’s new album, “FOMO” reminds me of late nights at Camp Stone. Not the music, per se, but the title. We first learned the word FOMO from one of the Australians who came to work at camp. FOMO stood for, “Fear of missing out,” and it epitomized basically everything that happened at camp after the kids were put to bed. As staff members, we were constantly reprimanded for staying up way too late, well past 3AM on a regular night, due to a combination of no curfew for staff and a serious case of FOMO. How could we go to sleep if our friends were staying up? What if something incredible happened after 230AM when we went to sleep but a few others stayed up? Needless to say, there was a FOMO epidemic at camp that year, a serious disease that has transferred itself to my need to go to every Pearl Jam show that I possibly can. What if they play Bugs? What if this is the show where I finally get to see Immortality, Red Mosquito, and Rival?

The Antlers – Burst Apart

I knew so little about The Antlers when I headed down to Pier 54 at Yishai’s suggestion to catch their free show. He had seen them open up for The National and liked what he heard, but I had only just heard of them. I hadn’t been to a concert in months and it was a gorgeous evening, and even though Elana wasn’t able to come and Yishai wouldn’t be showing up until later, I decided to go solo and check out the show for myself. What I remember most is the enduring thump of the bass drum that shook my chest throughout the show, as the album they were supporting, “Hopsice,” would later make my heart tremble once again, with lyrics that were a little too close to home.

My Morning Jacket – Circuital

My Morning Jacket’s forthcoming album “Circuital” just leaked today, and this is my very premature analysis of it, track by track. If you haven’t purchased this album, please do it now.

And away we go…

The Strokes – Angles

As always, The Strokes have delivered.

“What?” you ask. “Are you serious? You think this is good Strokes.”

To which I must reply, yes, it’s good. It’s not their best, but it’s good. There’s just something to their music that works every time for me. Even if the music is somewhat 80s inspired and there are overtones of intra-band fighting, it still has the tight drums of Fabrizio Moretti which work unbelievably well with Nikolai Fraiture’s always-turned-up bass, the brilliant guitar interplay of Albert Hammond Jr. and Nick Valensi, and the lazily intense vocals of Julian Casablancas – an immediate recipe for success. This combination makes me highly doubt this band could put out a bad album.