Grand Opening

I am proud to officially kick off my music blog. 2009 has been a wonderful year in music and I will be working on my first year-end "Best Of" list over the next several days. I will attempt to keep this blog consistently updated with my thoughts on new (and old) music and links to listen to or download tracks you might enjoy.

For now, here are advance tracks from forthcoming new albums by four excellent artists:

Spoon - Transference (drops Jan 19)



Coming off of the wildly successful, impressively tight Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga LP, Spoon's new singles maintain a rough edge with Britt Daniel's charismatic snarl but bring an upbeat vibe and jangle that hearkens back to "Sister Jack" and "Rhythm and Soul" from 2005's eclectic Gimme Fiction.

Spoon - Got Nuffin
Spoon - Mystery Zone
Spoon - Written In Reverse


Hot Chip - One Life Stand (drops Feb 1)



Hot Chip have a way with monster singles, and over the years mega-dance jams such as "And I Was A Boy From School," "Over and Over," "Ready for the Floor" and "Shake A Fist" have overcome my white-boy aversion to dancing with little or no help from alcohol. Lead single "Take It In" has the slickness dial cranked up so high that Chromeo comes to mind, but repeated listens have me convinced that the new album will maintain their bouncy standard.

Hot Chip - Take It In
Hot Chip - One Life Stand


Beach House - Teen Dream (drops Jan 26 US, Jan 25 UK)
Their 2008 sophomore release, Devotion, contained a blissed-out dream pop vibe that was distinctive, but needed an injection of a bit more complexity and unpredictability in its songwriting. Since then, lead singer Victoria Legrand has been "palling around" with nuanced songwriting virtuosos Grizzly Bear and it seems to have paid off. Lead single "Norway" is fighting hard for a spot on my year-end "Best Tracks" list, despite the album's 2010 release date.

Beach House - Norway
Beach House - Silver Soul
Beach House - 10 Mile Stereo


Jonsi - Go (drops March 23)
The frontman of orchestral post-rock maestros Sigur Ros reportedly has been recording quiet, acoustic solo music for years, but you'd never know it from this track. Laced up with more bells & whistles than a Sufjan Stevens or Arcade Fire track, this gorgeous snippet offers hope for an Eraser-quality solo project.

Jonsi - Boy Lilikoi

Happy Chanukah!