Patrick Wolf – The Bachelor

The Bachelor was originally supposed to be a double album but Wolf decided to release it in two volumes, with the follow-up due next year. As interesting as two volumes of Wolf could be, I tend to think he made the right decision. The only times he falters is when he tries too hard. Don’t get me wrong: Wolf loves to produce tracks within a beat of their life. Strings, electric beeps, children’s chants, hand claps, and distorted vocals have appeared on his albums, which is only remarkable when you consider he writes mostly accessible pop tunes. Normally he can push a song to its limit without becoming self indulgent. On occasion he goes too far, and the best example on The Bachelor is “Battle”. Alec Empire, notable for his involvement in Atari Teenage Riot, supplies the beats. Although the tune won’t bust your eardrums like ATR’s tracks could, its frantic pace feels overwrought when coupled with Wolf’s cheerleading. He screams for you to battle homophobes and conservatives and rise up for your rights. A worthy cause, but from the title to the delivery, it’s too done. Think Björk ‘s “Declare Independence” without her tasty Icelandic delivery. (Read Full Review)

Yim Yames – Tribute to

Although James recorded these tunes shortly after Harrison’s passing in 2001, it is only being released now. It’s a spare, simple affair that serves as a loving tribute to Harrison. Somber without being funereal. Typically on these songs, it’s just James and his guitar, with the sound is more aligned to the earlier Neil Young-ish My Morning Jacket than the more recent MMJ style. The arrangements aren’t embellished performances much, but James does add, for instance, a nice touch of banjo to “Love You To.”
But the disc’s gauzy sound well suits the material, as it feels like a stripped down version of Phil Spector’s denser work on the original. You can hear a fan working through his sorrow on the moving renditions of “My Sweet Lord” and the title track, with the inclusion of “Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp,” a very personal song of Harrison’s, is an inspired choice.
The six songs create an emotional mood of reflection and remembrance – from recalling George Harrison and the Beatles on one hand to the reflecting sheer emotional power of music on another. It achieves the nice trick of making you want to go back to hear the original while also appreciating the new renditions. (Read the Full Review)

Modest Mouse -No One’s First and You’re Next

No One’s First and You’re Next is not a real follow-up to We Were Dead. It collects eight songs dating as far back as 2005’s Good News for People Who Love Bad News, all of which have been previously released in one form or another: some A- and B-sides from earlier this year, along with album outtakes like “King Rat”, which is famous for having a video directed by Heath Ledger. A remora to the previous album’s shark, No One’s First recalls 1999’s Building Nothing Out of Something and 2001’s Everywhere and His Nasty Parlour Tricks, both of which assembled leftovers into stand-alone statements that sound as cohesive as the material that fed them. Building in particular stands as one of the band’s best releases of any length. (Read the Full Review)

Julian Plenti – … is Skyscraper

Not long ago, indie rockers seemed more intent on redrawing the dark shadows of Mancunian post-punk than seeking Vitamin D highs from African music, but things move fast in the ’00s. Julian Plenti is Interpol singer-guitarist Paul Banks, a well-dressed dude who spearheaded an armada of other well-dressed dudes with Ian Curtis’ ghost on the brain. Interpol did it best up to a point, and Banks’ first full-length as Plenti—a pseudonym he put aside as Interpol began to make moves in 2001—is a collection of songs that might’ve been born in his main band’s margins. It’s a frustrating outing that wavers quietly between uninspired and surprisingly vibrant, middling and fantastic. (Read the Full Review)