What's not to like?

Todd Rundgren- 4.5
I have not listened to this record- and I only own the record- in probably 10 or 15 years. So listening to it again brings back tons of memories from 1972 and 73. Great memories. I had forgotten how great this album is. Todd Rundgren is a genius. A mad, pop hound, fanatical, freaking genius. The first 3 sides are all Rundgren- he plays every instrument and each side has it’s own feel and on side 4 he plays with people like Rick Derringer, The Brecker Brothers, and The Sales Brothers and we get songs like Slut and Hello, It’s me. So, thank you Jay. Something/Anything has been on my turntable for weeks and I’m lovin it---- all over again.

Riot- 4.5
Bringing shit like this to the table is why I love D’Arcy. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a Riot song. I’m not a heavy metal fan and I avoid records that are listed with that moniker. But, I love this cd. Catchy songwriting; great vocals; energetic guitars with the “heaviness” carried thru the songs by a driving rhythm section. And all of it with a nice kind of bluesy feel as well. I love driving home from work with Riot blasting out of my speakers… . Really good stuff.

Amos Lee- 2.5
I had a hard time getting into this cd. The guy sure can sing- and he can write. The cd is full of nice sanctified country music with a soft rock feel to it. I really like Calexico so I was all excited to hear this cd because of Joey Burns producing it. But, alas this is nowhere even close to having a Calexico feel to it. Windows Are Rolled Down, Violin, and Flower are all good tunes but the rest of the cd is just, well, nice and a little too introspective for my liking. I just feel like Amos Lee could do so much more.

Wire- 3.5
Another band I am not familiar with so I can’t compare it to anything they’ve done prior to this. I liked this cd right from the opening track- a great pop tune with witty lyrics and lots of catchy hooks. While I could definitely hear their punk roots and edginess on a lot of songs, I think the cd as a whole is pretty accessible and pretty melodic. A fun listen.

MSHVB- 2.0
They should be called Field Fleet Music Foxes. To me, their sound is a cross between Fleet Foxes and Field Music and while, on paper, this may seem like a good combination- it just doesn’t work on this cd. I’m not sure that I can articulate what exactly about this cd is so difficult for me to like so I’m not even going to try. The vocals aren’t great. The songwriting isn’t so good. And, I think they try to put too many textured layers into a lot of their songs which makes them bog down in the complexity. Having said that I’m giving them a 2 for Hurrah and Messengers- the 2 songs I liked on this cd.