Robert Pollard – Coast To Coast Carpet Of Love / Standard Gargoyle Decisions

Type: Rock

Good Tracks:
CTCCOL
4. “Current Desperation (Angels Speak of Nothing)”
7. “Customer’s Throat”
SGD
12. “Folded Claws”

GAH! I was not impressed with this double album effort. “From A Compound Eye” was a great release, and ever since he’s been putting out slop. This is unacceptable. Fortunately he releases a new album every few months so it’s only a matter of time before he comes back into form.

Arcade Fire – Neon Bible

Type: Indie Pop

Good Tracks:
4. Intervention
6. Ocean Of Noise
10. No Cars Go

Certainly not as great as their first, but not bad. “No Cars Go” is easily the best song on the album, and “Ocean Of Noise” grew on me a lot. I really can’t remember liking too much of the rest, but i’ll keep trying.

Thingy – To The Innocent

Type: Alt Rock

Good Tracks:
9. Rope Swing
10. Ketchup Sandwich

This is not Rob Crow at his best. Anyone who says his work as Thingy is better than Pinback is just wrong. “Ketchup Sandwich” is the closest this album gets to a real song. Almost not even worth listening to.

The Forms – The Forms

Type: Indie Rock

Good Tracks:
1. Knowledge In Hand
2. Alpha
4. Focus
5. Borges
12. Getting It Back

Decent album. First track is the standout, and the last track has some sweet guitar work and is also nice. Not much replay value, but a nice listen the first few times. Not amazing, not bad.

Iron and Wine – The Shepard’s Dog

Type: Folk

Good Tracks:
2. “White Tooth Man” – 3:57
4. “Carousel” – 4:02
5. “House by the Sea” – 4:22
6. “Innocent Bones” – 3:43
9. “Boy with a Coin” – 4:06

Liked it. The production is very clean unlike earlier Iron and Wine, you may or may not like that. “Carousel” and “Innocent Bones” are nice. If you’re already an Iron and Wine fan then go for it. I liked the guitar work for “Innocent Bones” most of all.

Love Is Chemicals – Love Is Chemicals

Type: Indie Pop

Good Tracks:
1. Claw Your Sweater
2. Everyone Is In On It
3. Aquamarine

Started out nice then pretty much lost it. Second track is nice, but don’t expect much replay value from this album.

Circa Survive – Juturna

Type: Alt Rock

Good Tracks:
1. “Holding Someone’s Hair Back” – 3:22
2. “Act Appalled” – 3:20
3. “Wish Resign” – 4:14
5. “In Fear and Faith” – 3:35
6. “The Great Golden Baby” – 4:11

I love these guys. All of these songs listed are amazing. I don’t know about the second half of this album. I’m sure it will grow on me eventually. Circa is also amazing live (giant balloons, bubbles, fog machines, strobe lights, projectors, and confetti) and their singer is always on coke, which is bonus points.

Hard Fi – Once Upon A Time In the West

Type: U.K. Rock

Good Tracks:
1. “Suburban Knights” — 4:29
6. “Television” — 3:40

Somewhat overrated band out of London. “Television” is a catchy song and worth listening to, can’t say much for the rest. These guys get old pretty fast. Lame Lyrics.

Mum – Go Go Smear The Poison Ivy

Type: Electro Mellow-Indie

Good Tracks:
1. “Blessed Brambles” – 6:00
8. “Dancing Behind My Eyelids” – 4:07

Blah. Same thing different album. Track 8 is nice, but the rest feels like every other Mum song. It was cute back in 2000.

Wintersleep – Welcome to the Night Sky

Type: Canadian Rock

Good Tracks:
1. “Drunk on Aluminum”
2. “Archaeologists”
3. “Dead Letter & the Infinite Yes”
4. “Weighty Ghost”
6. “Search Party”
7. “Astronaut”

Could’ve been better, and definitely (i never knew how to spell definitely till now) not as good as their previous release. “Drunk On Aluminum” sounds like a complete ripoff of the song “Sine Wave” by Mogwai, and that is just stupid, but also what makes it decent. My favorite is track 3 and track 6 is also pretty sweet. “Astronaut” seems to be growing on me.

XXL (Xiu Xiu Larsen) – Spicchiology

Type: Ambient

Good Tracks:
None

Just awful. This isn’t something, this is nothing. Bad Jamie Stewart, BAD! Maybe he did this on purpose to make his actual band seem more awesome.

Motion City Soundtrack – Even If It Kills Me

Type: Emo

Good Tracks:
1. Fell In Love With You
4. Last Night
8. Broken Heart
9. Hello Helicopter
10. Where I Belong
11. Point Of Extinction
12. Antonia

Ok, i didn’t really like this album very much, but there are 7 tracks listed. There are portions of each of these songs that are pretty good but overall this album is nothing compared to their earlier stuff. I’ve heard it grows on you so i’ll give it my best. At this point i’m saying that this is almost not worth your time.