So...I was looking at the ever-growing collection of CDs that have come in since the year began, wondering how I let myself get so far behind in the O/CD Tally and I asked myself, Why not just list five each day? How Hard Can It Be? [fans of “The Office,” there’s your headline.]
So, let’s try that, at least for now.
Today’s Five:
DAVID WILCOX - Open Hand (What Are Records)
I bet David Wilcox is a damn nice guy. He’s a stalwart touring singer/songwriter who plays nice with others. I saw him once at a sparsely attended Jammin’ Java where he hopped on stage to sing with the band (I think it was Monk) and then faded quietly into the background, even though he probably could have sold out the same venue four times over on his own. And this new CD is beautifully designed - a 5-panel fold-out ecologically pure cardboard cover that folds and unfolds like a neat little puzzle. But what of the music, you ask? I listened to this one all the way through on Saturday’s drive to a Maryland party and found myself impatient for the music, not the drive, to end. Wilcox is sensitive and earnest and has a nice voice. I could see why many people probably think of him as a new James Taylor. But he leaves me restless, missing Sweet Baby James’ humor and playfulness and his ability to be sweet without being cloying. Sorry, DW.
And now we’ve got the My Own Cash Money group, purchased earlier this merry month of May when Borders was having a 50% off clearance sale. It was hard to resist deluxe editions from The Replacements, Justin Timberland and Beck, but even at 50% off, they were gonna break my budget. Still, I got some goodies (the first two for less than $7 each):
BRIGHT EYES - Motion Sickness (Team Love)
Here’s a guy who goes the extra distance to make albums that you want to buy in physical format. This one, a live set, includes a thick booklet with lots of photos and extended liner notes. I saw Bright Eyes a few years back at DAR Hall with a sprawling band and, while I didn’t always like what Conor Oberst did, he was totally intense doing it. Much the same can be said for this CD. Oberst has a tendency to jump into his higher, angry register at the 3/4 mark of just about every song which makes the dynamics predictable, but he always gets crack players to support him and knows how to use a trumpet like nobody’s business. “Mushaboom,” a song I associate with Feist, was a pleasant surprise here, especially as it shows a sense of joy that’s absent in much of his work. And “When the President Talks to God” always makes me want to throw something, but thankfully, we now longer have that particular Cowboy King to worry about.
SEU JORGE - The Life Aquatic Studio Sessions (Hollywood)
Where do I file this? Under Jorge’s name? Or under soundtracks? (He did the music for the Wes Anderson film of the title.) Or under David Bowie, since every song save one was written by him? If you’ve ever wanted to hear Bowie songs sung in lilting, acoustic arrangements with just a breezy voice and a guitar, here’s the album for you. And if you don’t speak Portuguese, the language in which all these songs are sung, that’s another layer of chill.
YEAH YEAH YEAHS - Gold Lion EP (Interscope)
Got the new CD on my Get List, but this will tide me over for now - a 4-track EP with a sticker on the cover promoting the (then-) upcoming “Show Your Bones” album. Three versions of the title track and a demo of “Let Me Know” - one single buck after half-price discount.
AMY MCDONALD - DVD Sampler (Melodramatic/Decca)
A freebie - 3 videos from her “This is the Life” CD.
Okay, so this makes the YTD O/CD Tally: 153
In Other News....Counting Crows have cancelled two shows (so far as I know) in their current British tour due to illness. We’re a Crows fan household, so Get Well Soon, Crow-dude(s) from all of us here.
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