Thought I'd lay out a couple of impressive albums highly worthy of buying.

At the top of my list so far this year is the new CD from the amazing French band, Morglbl. Brutal Romance is an astoundingly good album full of catchy yet tongue-in-cheek jazz-rock. The band is a trio driven by an indescribably great guitarist named Christophe Godin. Not only is he fast and clean, he plays with more feeling than just about any world class guitarist alive today. By comparison, because somehow these guys are the gold standard, Godin highlights how Satriani's rhythms have become boring and how Vai's compositions are cold. Plenty of earworms are to be found here. For around $15 you just can't go wrong. Stream the title track here: http://www.decibelmagazine.com/featured/streaming-morglbl-brutal-romance/



Pulling in second although not a 2012 release is the latest album from bass monster, Bryan Beller. (Dweezil, Mike Keneally, Dethklok) Thanks In Advance is not merely a bass player's record. No, what you have here is really the same band as Mike Keneally's band playing Beller's compositions. Typical for a Keneally outing, the musicianship is off the charts but what really shines here is the songwriting capped by the epic Love, Terror, Adrenaline/Breakthrough. Also typical of this group of musicians is the outstanding recording quality.




Also not a new recording but one which rises to the top is the latest from Sweden's Freak Kitchen, Land of The Freaks. I tend to like things on the heavier side but so much of it has been done so many times that finding something with it's own merits can be hard. The songs are so well crafted you almost don't notice how incredibly difficult they must be to play. If you don't know of guitar hero Mattias 'IA' Eklundh I suspect that's about to change. Freak Kitchen have been around since 1996 slaying their way across Europe and Asia. Until recently it's been hard to get FK's music in North America, and when you did find it you were forced to pay ridiculous import prices. Not anymore. Freak Kitchen's entire back catalog of 7 albums are to be released in phases at LaserCD.com out of New Jersey

Some very interesting material there. Now I'm off to check out their discography in a little more depth.

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jac - desperaudio at large
Revival Audio - Edmonton, Alberta

What happens if two leading musical minds come together when each is renowned for musical mastery and compositional excellence? For me that question has been answered in the form of Wing Beat Fantastic, the newly released Mike Keneally album mostly co-written with former XTC luminary Andy Partridge.

For Keneally, the multi-instrumentalist vocalist who came to world wide fame as Frank Zappa's Mr. Everything in his last touring band, Wing Beat Fantastic seems to be his most commercially accessible album to date. Much of that may be owed to Partridge's pop song sensibilities shining through, yet it's Keneally who was left to flesh out the musical canvas the two had outlined together some years earlier. Typical Keneally albums (there are 20 of them now!) are chock full of musical left turns and sonic adventure tossing so many ideas at the listener you'd think there's enough present for two full albums while this album maintains a more focused approach unfolding cohesively, splendidly, ever on target. Superlative reviews are flying across the net.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sug4hC3Ysb0



-- 05 Oct 2012 02:49 --

This is the final release from the cultish '80's new wave ska-pop band Oingo Boingo. Though they had legions of fans back in the day I was not among them. In fact, I missed the Boingo train altogether. But while at the NAMM show several years ago I happened to see bassist John Avila perform and I was stunned by what I saw and heard. He was a beast! Leaping around on stage, Avila came across like a thundering elephant charging across a savannah of sound. He exuded the sheer joy of bass ferocity. I learned he had been part of that band whose name I recognized but never got around to looking into. Recently I happened across the following CD still shrink wrapped for cheap, and I thought 'Why not?' I've since read this album was a vast departure from the typical Oingo Boing owing to the fact that band leader Danny Elfman (from just about every Tim Burton film and he of the Simpson's theme song) had begun to incorporate his film scoring skills into the Boingo meme. The result is an album that's rich, lush, at times ethereal and thought provoking containing a musical craftsmanship second to none.

I still may not venture back farther into the Oingo Boingo back catalog feeling I have found their crown jewel recording.

Copies of this one can still be found for a pittance. Pounce when you see it.



-- 13 Jun 2013 17:10 --

Sure would be nice if someone else could point out some sonic bliss.

-- 06 Jul 2013 21:30 --

More music I've been digging on.

If you haven't run across Diablo Swing Orchestra yet you're in for a real treat. Here we have a big mashup of funk-metal opera and old time swing boogie. Picture The Brian Setzer Orchestra populated with zombies on a dark windy fall night. There's just too much fun happening here to describe in words. Go hit up youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsmAF9cVPm4

Bump for weitrhino

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Those who live by their wits are obliged to live beyond their means.

Nice bump, Chris. Fist-pump!

I read that last post with interest because I'm a huge XTC fan and it distressed me to hear Andy Partridges' name mentioned as a "former XTC luminary". Over the past several years, I've read that perhaps XTC is kaput and this really bums me out. Can't say it's unexpected though. How long can Andy and Colin Moulding keep banging their heads against a wall and wait in vain for the rest of the world to catch-up to their collective genius?

So very sad. These guys deserved to be superstars. They definitely had legs though - their 1st album came out in 1978. But perhaps it was a fait accompli when they (Andy, rather) decided to take the Steely Dan approach and put a kibosh on touring to support their album releases. Andy used to have panic attacks during some of their live shows. It think it's safe to say that they made their bones on college radio for the past 30 years and I guess maybe it wasn't enough. I did my best to support them; I have every studio album they've ever released - either on LP or CD, with the exception of several of the compilations.

IMHO, no comprehensive music collection can be complete without: Black Sea, English Settlement, Skylarking, Oranges and Lemons, Nonsuch, Apple Venus Vol. 1 and Wasp Star (Apple Venus Vol. 2).

Get 'em. Life Is Short.

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I think, therefore I am not sure.

Got 'em. I'm a big XTC fan as well.

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Those who live by their wits are obliged to live beyond their means.

This thread is alive??!?

I started this thread in the hope that others would post up favorite albums from deserving artists who fall outside of the mass produced and mass marketed hype. C'mon people! Share the music that merits your support!


Next up is Cameron Allen. Here's a guy fresh out of music school who was encouraged to enter an international guitar competition so he submitted a video of him playing one of his original compositions. He received enough votes from all across the internet that he was a finalist selected to go to Paris to perform live in front of a panel of music industry personnel and compete directly with all the other finalists. Allen walked away victorious beating guitarists from across the globe. Fast forward a few months and he'd landed in the opening slot for the Winery Dogs on their US and European tours. Yes, it was a good year for Cameron Allen. Check out his debut, Between The Lines, an album of jazz-rock filled with blazing runs and memorable melodies. This kid is on the rise and you heard it here first.




Hephystus is a progressive-tinged metal band out of North Carolina that seems ready to break in a big way. In fact, I attended the CD release party just last weekend for their second album, Fragmenting Shadows. At the show these guys just crushed it. I mean really, they just crushed it that night. All the pieces seem to be in place: huge sound, terrific stage presence, well crafted songs. Check out their video Malice In Wonderland from their debut album Burn The Page on youtube and you'll see what I mean. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGd71ip4Bhc

The silence is deafening, eh?

This site seems to be populated by folks who have nothing to say or no time to say it. They just want to list their gear and be done with it and that's unfortunate. I've been an AudiogoN member for 9 years and I have exactly 4 forum posts on that site. Four.

Been a Canuck Audio Mart member for 3-1/2 years and have 336 posts there.....and counting.

"The company you keep", as they say......

If you want more responses, start some new threads on CAM. You will get replies there as well as ideas for new music.

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I think, therefore I am not sure.

Blackberry Smoke-"The Whippoorwill"





Boz Scaggs-"Memphis"

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"Did I listen to pop music because I was miserable? Or was I miserable because I listened to pop music?"
-Rob Gordon-

Great stuff folks. Love XTC, but had not heard of this collaboration, and had not thought about Oingo for some time. Will check out everything here, so thanks all.

Screaming Headless Torsos have been a band I have liked from afar for some time. They really do have intense musical moments, and boy can they play! Walked into a club in '95 er so, and they were playing to a crowd of 10 or so folks, and perhaps two of the 10 were actively listening.
I was supposed to join a very popular, and greatly entertaining touring band that night, so everyone was at the club next door seeing them (2 Skinnie Jays), but a doorman made me stop and come in to see the Torsos, and I hung with them that night instead of getting on the bus with the Jays. I joined another band that I also had my eyes on later that month, but SHT was great that night without a crowd at all.

Angel Olsen

If your preferences for female singer/songwriters' run the gamut from Katy Perry to Sara Bareilles to Miley Cyrus, then this one is probably not for you. If you prefer them a little edgier with a decidedly darker vision and a neo-blues folkie delivery a' la Neko Case, then you must hear it. A truly great album. Angel Olsen has definitely got it going on.

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I think, therefore I am not sure.

Great cd's! Tks!

Good call on Screaming Headless Torsos although I must admit I preferred Headless Torsos before the Screaming part was added. In fact I'm a David Fiuczynski fan in general. Check out Kif and Kif Express if you can find them. The 'Fuze' plays like no other.

I checked out Angel Olsen. My take is she's channeling a mix of David Byrne and Roy Orbison in female form.

She's definitely not for everybody. And I'll admit it's not a particularly easy listen. Mellow it ain't.

I think it's safe to say this chick has some baggage. Good for her....and for us.

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I think, therefore I am not sure.

Have been liking all of this music, appreciate you folks!

Had a friend over earlier today and he brought over a record by a "metal,hardcore, er whatever the kids call it today" band called Cancer Bats, thusly starting a "Metal Monday" of sorts(I had been listening to Elvis Costello all day). They were ok, but he also had in tow a band I used to see live when I could. Since you, weitrhino, are from N. Carolina maybe you have heard of them.
Rock and Roll!!