Surprisingly, all my responses are correct this month

Field Music – Reminded me of XTC, with the semi-pop sound in tandem with a lot of herky-jerky rhythm changes. Like XTC, I was indifferent to most of it. The production was great, loved the sound, but the songs just didn’t hold up. Seemed like they got a little too cute on a few tracks, and had they kept thing simpler, the results would have been better. Not bad, but nothing remarkable. 2.5 stars

Vampire Weekend – 2nd rate “Graceland”, which to their credit is better than anything Paul Simon has done in the 25 years since that amazing record came out. Like “Graceland”, there’s lots of world-music textures and beats, good chops, clever lyrics (yes, I had to google the definition of “Horchata”). The question is why I would ever put this on instead of the original? Some of it is entertaining enough, but most of it sounds cold and calculated. The best song here (“Giving Up the Gun”) pales in comparison to anything on “Graceland” or the first two Talking Heads albums for that matter. If you’re going to as blatant about your influences as Vampire Weekend are, you need to bring a little something else to the table, and ultimately, they don’t. 2.5 stars

Yeasayer – So who let Jen back in the group? Nothing about this disc changed my undying hatred of synth-pop. For further details, see my review of Chemical Brothers, Fischerspooner, etc. 1 star

Ike Reilly – Just a great disc. A unique blend of old school rock and roll with a touch of hip-hop. The lyrics are delivered with tongue in cheek humor and sarcastic self-depreciation in a very Lou Reed-ish style. “Commie Drives a Nova” would have made the list for my favorite songs of the 90’s. The best work to date of a sadly ignored artist. 4.5 stars

Raging Slab – A nice slice of southern rock circa 1980. Can’t help but see this as a combination of Black Crowes, Drivin’ & Cryin and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Loved the 3-guitar attack, particularly the slide work throughout the album. Melodies were catchy, but start to sound the same as the disc progresses. 5 star guitar work combined with 1 star vocals. 3 stars

Ghits – As much as I love the Who, I’ve always preferred Pete’s solo material to most of their work. Daltrey is a great rock and roll singer, but Pete’s slightly shaky, vulnerable voice better matches the pathos so often portrayed in his lyrics. It’s sad that he hasn’t done anything worth talking about in 20+ years, solo or otherwise.