The Three That Got Away
It's typical music-journalist bellyaching: So much music, so little time. When you're sent dozens of promotional CDs, streams, downloads, USB sticks, and singing telegrams each and every week, you're physically incapable of listening to it all. I know, I know, boo-effin'-hoo. But as the editor of a national music magazine, it's my professional duty to give it my best shot. Too bad I always fail miserably, and inevitably some worthy sounds fall between the cracks, whether it's stuff that's eventually recommended to me or something I discover outside the office. Here, then, are three (very different) recent finds currently in my heavy rotation.
Nicole Atkins, Neptune City
Oddly enough, I first caught on the old-fashioned way: By seeing the bizarre video for the title track on a local cable music show. In a year bursting with strong female-fronted rock and pop (Feist, Amy Winehouse, Rilo Kiley, Kate Nash, etc.), Atkins' brand of melodramatic girl-group suss stands out because it's as catchy as it is off-kilter. And for this Jersey Shore girl, it seems fitting that her vocals often recall those of Linda Ronstadt in her Stone Poneys days. Producer Tore Johansson (Franz Ferdinand, the Cardigans, OK Go) helps strike a perfect balance between authentically retro and wonderfully fresh. This is no campy tribute (a la the Pipettes, with whom Atkins just toured), but a thoroughly modern update on an exquisite era.
Jesu, Lifeline
Spleen-shakingly heavy but also surprisingly delicate, this slab of shoegaze metal from former Napalm Death and Godflesh member Justin Broadrick is the definition of a grower. On just four tracks in 23 minutes, Jesu layer heaps of otherworldly fuzz and sustain over otherwise gently strummed or plucked melodies. Sure My Bloody Valentine are getting all the attention these days with their reunion news, but could Jesu be the next best thing?
The Stablisers, Wanna Do The Wild Brane Plastic Love Thing?
Notwithstanding some dubious spelling (they're Brits, which explains their band name, but Brane?), this quartet locates the sweet spot between the Knickerbockers and the Buzzcocks, which is no doubt why Little Steven Van Zandt scooped them up for his fledgling Wicked Cool label. This album, an apparent distillation of the best of their two U.K. releases, bubbles over with smart, raucous garage rock and '77-style punk. "Belinda" (one of the greatest-ever one-night-stand songs) and "Born to Kiss Arse" are the obvious standouts, while "She's a Goth" contains what may be the funniest lyric this year (not counting the new Turbonegro album), managing to rhyme "there's no doubtin'" with "Einsturzende Neubauten."
