- Arctic Monkeys- Humbug: This is the third album from this band from Sheffield, U.K., and it sounds nothing like their previous two albums. The boys have clearly decided to ditch their up-tempo, dance-along numbers for a more muscular and brooding type of sound. So for those who are big fans of songs like "I Bet You Look Good On the Dance Floor" and "Teddy-Picker," Humbug might take a little getting used to. If you're patient with the album though you'll find that the band has really matured in all phases, with lead singer Alex Turner's deft social observations and clever lyrics still front and center, backed up by a sound reminiscent of some of the best rock of the 1970s. While this may not be an improvement over any of their previous albums, Humbug definitely represents a positive evolution for a band that's still extremely young (all in their early twenties), and that promises to be around for a very long time. Favorite songs on this album include "Crying Lightning", "My Propeller", and the vaguely Dylan-esque "Cornerstone" (see below)
- Jay-Z - The Blueprint 3: The legendary Brooklyn mc is back, this time with the much anticipated third installment of the blueprint triology. Why there needs to be three blueprints you got me, because The Blueprint (2001) pretty much defined the very meaning of the word blueprint, and set the tone for hip-hop this decade. Indeed, there's very few similarities between the first and third blueprints. Whereas the first pretty much featured Jay and no one else, the current blueprint is basically an endless parade of guest vocals from some of the hottest names in hip-hop today (including Kanye West, who's come a long way since producing some of the songs on the first blueprint). Not that the guest vocals are a bad thing, The Blueprint 3 was undoubtedly meant to be one big spectacle of an album, and believe me it delivers. So even though Jay-Z breaks very little new ground on this one, it's fun to listen to the man sitting back and actually reveling in his status as arguably the greatest living rapper. As far as highlights, everyone has heard "Run This Town" by now, but there's future chart-toppers galore, such as "Off That" (feat. Drake), "Already Home" (feat. Kid Cudi), and "Empire State of Mind", Jay's answer to Kanye's "Homecoming."
- Muse- The Resistance: When I saw that Muse was releasing an album called The Resistance, I thought to myself, oh boy, here we go again with another british band with delusions of grandeur (cough...coldplay...cough). Of course, Muse has for a while now been a band known for it's stadium filling anthems about the people rising up against some faceless oppressor, but they've never quite over-played their hand, because the grandiose theme of their music has always been bolstered by Matt Bellamy's combination of powerful vocals (think Thom Yorke on steroids) and guitar thrashing (think Jonny Greenwood...on steroids). And while the trio doesn't quite overdo the theatrics on The Resistance, they're teetering dangerously close to the abyss. Matt Bellamy pretty much throws everything but the kitchen sink at the listener, with pervasive use of synthesizers, drum machines, even a full string orchestra. (Fyi, the last three songs are actually part of what Bellamy calls "Exogenesis: Symphony") Despite the dramatics, I still find that The Resistance offers a pretty good pick me up, and definitely has its place in one's playlist. It's also a shame that "Battlestar Galactica" went off the air this year, because this album probably would have made a perfect soundtrack for the highly underrated sci-fi drama. My favorites on this one include "Guiding Light," "Unnatural Selection," and "Uprising." (see below)
- Kid Cudi- Man on the Moon: The End of Day: Another highly anticipated hip-hop album, this one from the Cleveland based Kid Cudi. Unlike The Blueprint 3, this one is more of a concept album, the premise seeming to be a voyage through the dreams and nightmares of a slumbering hip hop star (whose dreams just also happen to be narrated by Common). Be patient with this one, because if you're coming in looking for an array of radio friendly jams like the previously released single, "Day and Night", you're likely to be disappointed. But if you can get past the darker mood of his sound, and the borderline farcical narration of Common, this is actually a pretty good album. He may not be a great lyricist, but without a doubt, Kid Cudi is a fresh sound in the world of hip-hop, one that showcases raw angst and human emotion more than any other hip-hop artist out there (you might even call him the very first "emo" rapper, and just think of Kanye West's 808s and Heartbreak if you don't know what that means). Man on the Moon particularly gets going in the second act, starting with the rousing "Cudi Zone," then "Pursuit of Happiness" (feat. MGMT) (see below) and finishing up with the defiantly upbeat "Up Up and Away."
-PG
