The Wheel's Still In Spin

Best Albums Of March 2007

Already, 2007 is shaping up to have much stronger releases than 2006. This month, there were quite a few great albums released. Because of this, I have decided to expand the Top Five Albums Of The Month List to a Top Ten Albums Of The Month.

1. Son Volt - The Search

   This is the best album Jay Farrar has released since his days in Uncle Tupelo. There are the standard references you’d expect from Farrar: Guthrie, Young, etc. But there is the addition of electric piano, organ, strings, loops, and horns to make The Search Farrar’s most diverse album to date.



2. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible | buy it at insound!

   Arcade Fire dominated the month. Everywhere you turned you heard more about this band. But this album, their second full length, is brilliant. Every thing this band has released has been incredible.



3. Gruff Rhys - Candylion | buy it at insound!

   This is a very eclectic acoustic guitar-based album. Gruff Rhys, the lead singer of Super Furry Animals, adds strings, keyboards, xylophones, trumpets and flutes to the music. Candylion is pure ear candy.



4. Amy Winehouse - Back To Black | buy it at insound!

   This album is very good modern soul. It is very pop, but with an angst side, with an edge. She’s got a great voice and the music is very well produced. It sounds like the album Macy Gray wished she released this month. Everyone’s probably heard (or at least heard about) the first track, “Rehab.” There are other tracks that are just as honest and blunt and almost as good as the standout first track – like the refrain of “What kind of fuckery is this?” during “Me And Mr. Jones” and “He left no time to regret/ Kept his dick wet” of the title track “Back To Black.”



5. The Fratellis - Costello Music | buy it at insound!

   This band makes great pop music. It’s light-hearted and very well produced. The guitar tones and arrangements change up throughout each song. It’s not deep, thought provoking music, but it keeps you body into the music.



6. Ted Leo & The Pharmacists – Living With The Living | buy it at insound!

   Not his strongest album, but that doesn’t diminish how good it is. It’s a great post punk album. There are solid guitars and vocals from Ted, strong support from The Pharmacists, and well-written songs. I’ve come to expect a certain amount from this guy and he’s come through again.



7. Modest Mouse – We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank | buy it at insound!

   This album continues where Good News For People Who Love Bad News left off. However, this album is more consistent than Good News…. The older album had some great tracks – some songs that were some of Modest Mouse’s best – and some songs that were weak by comparison.



8. The View – Hat Off To The Buskers | buy it at insound!

   It’s a real good pop album. Reminds me most of some pop bands of the 90’s. I could hear this band being on an Aware Records sampler from years ago.



9. Albert Hammond Jr. - Yours To Keep | buy it at insound!

   Starts out with Beach Boys-esque vocals and shifts to classic rock and indie pop styles. It’s full of lush production. Overall, Yours To Keep a very convincing first solo album from the guitarist from The Strokes.



10. Mika - Life In Cartoon Motion

    This album starts off great. “Grace Kelly” is a remarkable track. “Lollipop” is a catchy song. The rest of the album good, but doesn’t stand up to the way the album begins.

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The Fratellis - Costello Music

Release Date: 13 March 2007 (Cherry Tree)

Costello Music is a well-produced album full of intense guitar tracks, resonant bass lines, exceptional drumming, and commanding vocals. The songs are captivating and earned the band the Brit Award for British Breakthrough Act.

Henrietta (video) | Flathead (video) | Whistle For The Choir (video) | Chelsea Dagger (video) | Baby Fratelli (video)

The Incorrect Fratellis

Mikey Walsh got the gang back together. It wasn’t too tough. Since they saved the Goon Docks, they never left the area. Actually, Chunk asked Mikey to get everyone together. Chunk, who’d lost a lot of weight and was now unable of performing the “Truffle Shuffle,” knew some people wouldn’t show if he organized the meeting.

“Alright, Mikey, what was so important that you called this meeting?” asked Brand, his older brother.

“Yeah, Mikey. Spill it,” demanded Clark “Mouth” Devereaux.

“Actually Chunk has an announcement.” Since Chunk lost the weight, he has gone by his given name of Lawrence Cohen. But his old friends still call him Chunk.

“The Fratellis are out of jail,” announced the once chubby Goonie.

“Not that again,” said Richard “Data” Wang. “You keep saying that.”

Stef Steinbrenner stood up. “I’m out of here.”

“Yeah, me too,” added Mouth. Everyone started to get up.

“Guys, wait. We’ve got prove,” declared Mikey.

“Like when Chunk saw that black Jeep Cherokee and was certain Ma Fratelli was driving it?” Brand asked rhetorically.

Andy Carmichael-Walsh, now Brand’s wife, added, “Or when you lost your marble bag, Mikey, and Chunk swore the Fratellis must have stolen it looking for One-Eyed Willie’s treasure?”

“No.” Mikey took a hit from asthma inhaler. “This.” He held up the new album Costello Music by The Fratellis.

Son Volt - The Search

Release Date: 6 March 2007 (Transmit Sound / Legacy)

After Uncle Tupelo, Jay Farrar has recorded as a solo artist, as part of Gob Iron, and most notably as Son Volt. The Search is his most recent album and the fifth with the moniker of Son Volt. On this album, the band adds organ, electric piano, string effects, backwards loops, a horn section, and electric bouzouki to its familiar sound. By doing so, they have created their best album to date.

The Picture (mp3) | Circadian Rhythm | The Search

Developing In Shade

The rehearsal was over. Kevin had about an hour to burn before the dinner would begin. It would be enough time to smoke a few cigarettes. Ryan, his younger brother, was marrying a beautiful woman. Kevin, two years older than the groom, was still single. In fact, he didn’t bring a date to the wedding.

As he burned through his cigarettes, he kept thinking, “Feels like driving around in a slow hearse.” That was the opening line to the new Son Volt album. With mellow piano line, twirling guitar part and muted drums, “Slow Hearse” captured his emotions.

Kevin didn’t just grow up in Ryan’s shadow. The younger Spinter brother eclipsed him. It was as though Kevin vanished in the shade of his younger brother. They were two years apart, but Ryan was more popular. Ryan was the younger of the two brothers, but not the smaller of the two. At the altar, he would stand over six feet tall. In high school he was a running back in the fall and the power hitting first basemen in the spring. He was also the third runner up to valedictorian at graduation. Now he was quickly moving up the corporate ladder at Dell and marrying his college girlfriend, the stunningly gorgeous Lisa.

The Hold Steady and The Thermals - Music Mill, Indianapolis, IN - March 16th 2007

When I saw that The Thermals and The Hold Steady were playing 7 shows together, I was very excited. The Thermals’ The Blood, The Body, The Machine was my favorite album of 2006 and The Hold Steady’s Boys And Girls In America made number 11 on the list. The Hold Steady’s Separation Sunday was also one of my favorite albums of 2005. This seemed like a great opportunity to see 2 of my favorite bands in one night.

Friday night of the tour was scheduled for The Music Mill in Indianapolis, IN. Saturday night was scheduled for The Newport Music Hall in Columbus, OH. Both venues are about a 2-hour drive from Cincinnati. Since I’ve seen a number of shows at Newport Music Hall (from The Shins to Buddy Guy) and my girlfriend spends a fair amount of time in Columbus for work, we decided to make the trip to Indianapolis.

The drive gave us enough time to listen to The Blood, The Body, The Machine and Boys And Girls In America in their entirety. Mapquest gave us the directions. As we approached the venue, we couldn’t help noticing the fact that the area was full of new strip malls. Then we saw The Music Mill. It was in one of these strip malls, a few doors down from a Barnes & Noble and an Office Depot.

Arcade Fire - Neon Bible

Release Date: 6 March 2007 (Merge)

Neon Bible is one of the best albums of 2007. It showcases diverse dynamics and instrumentation. Many of the songs consist of multiple scrolls worth of lyrics. The themes in this album are of fear and anger. Overall, the sound is a mixture of beauty and gloom. It has a pace and undercurrent that keeps it hauntingly moving forward.

Black Mirror (mp3)

Saving The World

“Reverend Ted Haggard stepped down from his position as pastor of the New Life Church in Colorado Springs after being accused of purchasing methamphetamines from, and having a homosexual relationship, with a male prostitute.”

Click. “A helicopter was shot down today in Iraq. The government has not released any further information at this time.” Click.

John took a sip from his bottle of Fat Tire. He asked Steven, “So what’s your new job.”

“I work at a biodiesel plant in Boulder. Testing the fuel.”

“You enjoying it?”

“Yeah. It’s not a bad job. And it’s a renewal energy that’s going to be the future. It feels good to know I’m doing my part to fuck the man.”

John and Steven often did this. They got together and talked about the issues that were shaping the world and sharing stories of affecting change. It almost always took place over a twelve pack of beer.

Gruff Rhys - Candylion

Release Date: 6 March 2007 (Team Love)

Candylion is a concoction of psychedelic, folk rock, and pure pop music. For his second solo album, the lead singer of Super Furry Animals, mixes acoustic guitar, strings, some keyboards, an occasional xylophone, and a few trumpets and flutes. Gruff Rhys creates an eclectic album that will leave sugar dripping from your ears.

Candylion (mp3)
Candylion (video) | Gyrru Gyrru Gyrru (YouTube video)

My Rental Truck Chauffeur

My girlfriend and I were buying a used couch from some friends. Since they were purchasing new furniture, we bought their matching set of couch and chair. To get it to our house we had to rent a U-Haul. The reservation was made about a week ago, but when we went to pick up the U-Haul truck I was told that the reserved vehicle was not available. They were expecting to get a return around noon, but the customer called and pushed it back to the middle of the afternoon. There was a truck available but it would have to be picked up from the service station – about 45 minutes away. We could drive and pick it up or U-Haul could drive me there. As compensation, they gave me my first 50 miles for free.

I decided to take the free ride. My girlfriend went back home. I went to tell the guy behind the counter that I’d ride with him – thinking I’d be riding in a U-Haul truck.

I made a phone call to my friends to tell them I would be late picking up the furniture. Then I found out I was riding shotgun in a small Ford hatchback. The backseat of the car was loaded with trash – discarded paper plates, empty fast food bags, and crumpled paper – piled to the top of the front seats. There were sticky dark stains, soda or coffee (I hope), that looked splattered across the inside of the windshield. There were empty Starbucks one shots scattered on the floor. And there was a white sock slightly hanging out of the full glove box.

My U-Haul guide, Jay, literally fired up the car. I think a caught a view of sparks in the rearview mirror. The engine sputtered and we were on our way. Jay pressed play on his CD player. Out came a wondrous, new album. Candylion by Gruff Rhys.

The album started with a track called “This Is Just The Beginning.” It had some trippy keyboard parts and acoustic guitar as a base. Spoken like a 60’s instructional record, a female voiceover declares, “Welcome to Candylion, an album of 11 songs for the acoustic guitar and voice. But this isn’t a song. This is just the beginning.” This was going to be a unique drive.