Rockin' With Roth

At 24 years old, and armed with a degree in Elementary Education - Asher Roth is positioned to be the next hip-hop stalwart. He might not turn into a superstar but like such artists as Del the Funky Homosapien, RZA, or Aesop Rock - he might gently guide the emergence of true hip-hop from the sludge of modern rap. The social conscience and swagger of an emcee like Roth, reminds us why studio rats like T-Pain and Lil' Wayne should have their careers stripped as soon as possible.

Released for free last year through his website was The GreenHouse Effect Mixtape: Vol. 1. This plays like most underground mixtapes, with twenty-plus tracks and a smorgasboard of producers. And that is kind of the problem with this recording. Being an up-and-comer I can see the intimidation factor for Roth, but his flow seems forced and/or uninspired throughout the mixtape - as he lets iconic producers like Kanye West, Pharell, Timbaland, and Will.I.Am run away with the show, when it's supposed to be showcasing him.

However, if you move to his debut album Asleep in the Bread Aisle, you definitely hear what this kid is all about. Not enslaved to producers here, he plays mostly with a live band and spits rhythmically complex, and insightful lyrics through out most of the album. "Blunt Cruisin" and "La Di Da" are throw aways, they sound like hip-hop sound scapes that were thrown in to fill out a track obligation. Roth's rhymes feel tagged on.

Beyond those two there is not a throwaway song on the rest of the album (even the sarcastic, deadpan deliver that distinguishes his lead single "I Love College" works in the context of the record). You can tell this is an artist that does for a love of hip-hop and not to count their spins on modern radio, this feels like a throwback to the days when hip-hop was relevant and imporant...it has De La Soul written all over it. He even tackles the inevitable comparisons that sure to rise with the song "As I Em" - in which he praises and shows gratitude to Eminem for breaking the glass ceiling so that he could now be embraced by the industry he so obviously loves.

"Be By Myself" might very well be the sickest song on the album, with a beautiful hook from Cee-Lo (Goodie Mob and Gnarls Barkley) - I predict now that this will be the next single, as well it should be. But make no mistake, Roth does not hide behind guests on this album, only four songs here feature artists other than Roth himself, he carries this one on his own brilliantly.

If you liked rap, and you hate where rap has gone, you might just find a glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel by the time this record stops spinning.

Album Review: Conor Oberst & The Mystic Valley Band

Conor Oberst & The Mystic Valley Band

Outer South
[Merge Records]

# of spins (out of 5):

With Bright Eyes currently on the backburner, Conor Oberst is moving full-speed-ahead with his solo project, The Mystic Valley Band. Outer South is the follow-up to his self-titled 2008 release. Amazing this record feels more solid, more put together, and more collaborative than his first solo effort (and oddly enough, far more collaborative than Bright Eyes has ever been). In fact six of the fifteen songs on this album, Oberst doesn't even sing on. The band he has assembled features two (out of three) of his regular Bright Eyes collaborators, Jason Boesel and Nathaniel Walcott (Mike Mogis is surprisingly absent from this record), as well as two singer/songwriters, Nik Freitas and Taylor Hollingsworth, who have been marginally successful in their own right.

Oberst's voice is as aching and quivering as ever, while his lyrics feel far less personal, and in a lot of ways that's good thing. Oberst often has tendency to write lyrics so raw, that he sings so passionately, it becomes uncomfortable to even listen to - that doesn't really happen here. "Slowly (oh so slowly)" is a stand-out track that kicks off the album with a backbeat, and acts as a reminder to his loyal listeners, that they should never assume that know what Oberst might serve up next. "Nikorette" and "Ten Women" are solid folk/country compositions that blends the honesty of old country music with the beautiful symbolism of modern indie-rock.

Taylor Hollingsworth's two songs, "Air Matress" and "Snake Hill" actually steal the show from Oberst's heartbreak. "Air Matress" sounds like a surf-rock anthem that meshed with the cheese of 80's new wave, in a glorious anthem about joys of being in love and poor. While "Snake Hill" comes off as an old-school country ballad, tells a story in a way that only bluegrass crooner's could.

If you come expecting Bright Eyes...you are going to be disappointed. If you come expecting Oberst's last solo album...you are going to be disappointed. But if you come to Outer South (as you should with all of Oberst's incarnations) with a clean slate...then you couldn't possibly be disappointed.

Derby City Scene

Neil Hulsewede

Army of One

Local singer/songwriter Neil Hulsewede's album Army of One has been in constant rotation since I laid my hands on it a few months ago. He plays a blend of straight, old fashioned, no frills country music, accompanied by lyrics that are achingly relevant for a young man who is still trying to find his place, in a world that hasn't quite embraced him the way he had been promised. Topics range from an ode to his father, to drinking anthems, to love lorn tales of heart break, to the universal dissidence of isolation. Basically, it bears the themes of old-fashioned country - but these are not your parent's country songs.

DO NOT skip these songs: "Army of One", "Oh Baby, You", "Drinking Out on the Town too Late At Night", "I've Been Reflecting"

My Morning Jacket
Celebracion De La Ciudad Natal [tanslated: Celebration of the Hometown]

My Morning Jacket ceased to be Louisville's band quite a few years back. Once critics in L.A. and New York began to hail them - while people like Dave Grohl and Cameron Crowe were name dropping them in interviews or sticking them in films. Those of us who remember their final 2 night stand at Headliner's (and far smaller venues) before sending them off into the big bad music industry - could no longer claim the band as our own...we had to learn to share. And MMJ has been back many times since those fairwell shows...but the venues have gotten larger - when Headliner's sold out at 800, they went to Brown Williamson which sold out at 1,500, they then moved to The Palace which sells out at just under 3,000, then they moved to Louisville Gardens which sells out at 8,000, before their most rescent show at the Waterfront where they sold out over 10,000 hometown tickets.

Alas, it is that show from where this live album, an ode to their home town is recorded (half of it anyway, they other half is recorded at a in-store performance in their hometown local record store Ear X-Tacy). Eventhough it's only 7 songs, I say album because it clocks in over 47 minutes long (to give a point of reference it's signifantly longer then EVERY album Weezer has ever put out, with approximately half as many songs). There's a good mix of old and new tunes, while avoiding the ones you might expect. "Evil Urges", "Highly Suspicious", and "Librarian" are the three songs off their epic 2008 release Evil Urges; and these were by far the strongest tracks on that record, and have translated wonderfully to the stage. The band digs deep for expansive, new takes on some of their older crowd favorites...the songs that would have filled these very same streets a decade ago, at the band's inception, songs like: "Where to Begin" and "Phone Went West". But the band also doesn't let you forget about the creative outpour that came with their groundbreaking album Z, with "Gideon" and "Dondante". Noticeably absent are any songs from their Earth-shattering major label debut It Still Moves.

John Swift

More Taylor Swift kicking more ass. This time it's a co-kick with John Mayer, from her concert at the Staples Center in L.A. 5/22/09.

The two songs (one from each artist) span two aspects of a relationship. The first "Your Body is a Wonderland" is about the playful, seductive aspect of a healthy thriving relationship. While "White Horse" is the resignation and realization of a relationship that fell apart long before you ever realized it.

(excuse the quality but they're from YouTube, you know what to expect)

"Your Body is a Wonderland"


and "White Horse"

Album Review: Depeche Mode

Depeche Mode

Sounds of the Universe
[Mute/EMI]

# of spins (out of 5):


Depeche Mode is not a band who's know for pushing their own boundaries. They have an effecting sound that has worked for three decades now. And its obvious that this late in the game Dave Gahan and company aren't going to mix it up now. For those who aren't enamored by the band's retro-new-wave appeal - this album won't interest you. But for those who can't get enough of it, will be thrilled.

Sounds of the Universe sounds vaguely like every Depeche Mode that has come before it, which is why several of these new songs have a timeless, familiar quality to them, even on the first listen. A prime example is "Wrong" - a buzzing synthezizer laden track that echoes the band's pinchant for brooding pop-hooks.

"In Chains" and "Hole to Fee" show the band's playful side, as they seem to ironically play on their reputation as Mope Moguls. Both songs cut with emotional urgency eventhough they still seem over the top, even for Depeche Mode. "In Sympathy" is an aching analysis of someone dealing with the loss of a loved one. Gahan's lyrics brilliantly reflect the raw emotion that comes with saying an unexpected goodbye. While at the same time vividly recounting the speechlessness of friends who try in vain to help the narrator cope: "You're bright, you're strong/You know your right from wrong/At least to some degree/You're wise, you're tough/You've heard their lies enough/You smile in sympathy".

Sounds of the Universe won't convert Depeche Mode any new fans, but it certainly won't offend any of their old fans.

Previous Albums:
Speak & Spell
A Broken Frame
Construction Time Again
Some Great Reward
Black Celebration
Music for the Masses
Violator
Songs of Faith and Devotion
Ultra
Exciter
Playing the Angel
Sounds of the Universe