Judging An Album By It's Cover

In hopes of staving off my desire to hunt down and post the new Paula Abdul single, I'm giving you something a little less flashy. New albums from Regina Spektor, Paulo Nutini and Patrick Wolf come out in next month or two, and the cover art is leaking. New music from the Soviet Kitschy one, not so much... Here are the covers and the anticipation levels they create:


Regina Spektor: Far - This cartoony artwork is pretty cool, the blank wall that is seen outside the window stands in contrast to the puffy white clouds on the piano. A metaphor for music as a window to better place? Perhaps. I just wish some quirky new single was leaking soon. I need some fresh Regina in my life, Narnia soundtrack songs and Ben Folds collabos are not enough! The artwork makes me hope for some dreamy soundscapes and lots of piano. Anticipation: four out of five Heinz Bottles.

Paolo Nutini - Sunny Side Up: This cover is also a bit animated, and the Jason Mraz-esque hat and singing ants are cute. I'm just worried that it's a little too cute, I want another torchy "Last Request" just as much as another "New Shoes." Also, I've heard snippets of lead single "Candy" and I'm a bit worried Paolo is going down a 1960s folkie route that I will hate. This cover doesn't bolster my hopes much. Anticipation: two out of five Heinz bottles.


Patrick Wolf: The Bachelor - This scene looks like a Photoshop student's homage to sci-fi pulp novel covers. The font seems at odds with the photo, but all-in-all it reminds me of Bat For Lashes cover for Two Suns. And that disc is burning up my players. I'm digging the outfit Pat is sporting, like he's the lead in a production of Little Lord Fauntleroy set in the year 2999. Future/retro is hot right now... Anticipation: three out of five Heinz bottles.

Five Songs On Shuffle Vol. 11

This is the eleventh installment of my weekly blog entry series "5 Songs On Shuffle." I’ll put my iTunes on shuffle and blog about the first five songs that play.

"Last Request" - Paulo Nutini These Streets
A gorgeous and bluesy torch song from the Scottish import who should have a career like fellow Scot Rod Stewart, minus the "Great American Songbook" years. The single mix is better than the album cut, but you can't go wrong with lyrics like "I know I can't except that we're going no where/but one last time lets go there/lay down beside me"

"Carbon Monoxide" - Regina Spektor Soviet Kitsch
This is not one of my favorites from Regina's first major label LP, in fact I often get it confused with "Sailor Song" another goofy piano song from that disc. But Regina's shit is better than most people's gold. She has a nice song that closes the latest Chronicles Of Narnia film which is really weird, since Imogen Heap had a song in the last Narnia film and I bought both of their albums on the same day. Coincidence?

"No More Drama" - Mary J. Blige No More Drama
The Queen of hip-hop/soul makes the most brilliant sampling choice in hip-hop history. Utilizing the piano theme from sudsy TV daytime drama The Young And The Restless as the backdrop to song about freeing oneself from drama, ironic and hot. Plus the choir breaking loose with a cry of "No! More! Drama!" at the end would be fly on any track.

"Set Fire To The Third Bar" - Snow Patrol feat. Martha Wainwright Eyes Open
Snow Patrol's lead vocalist Gary Lightbody and sister-of-Rufus/daughter-of-Loudon Martha Wainwright duet on my second favorite Snow Patrol song. It's one of those duets where both sing simultaneously, creating a strange harmony over a slightly creepy music bed, with pianos and guitars dueling for the spot light. The lyrics are haunting in their beauty: "Miles from where you are/I lie down on the cold ground/and I pray that something picks me up/and sets me down in your warm heart"

"Knock 'Em Out" - Lily Allen Alright, Still
A funny song from the bratty Brit, lampooning barfly girls and rude boys hitting on each other and making up excuses for not passing out their digits. "Yeah, I'm pregnant/I'm gonna have a baby in about six months/I've gotta go, my house is on fire/I have herpes"

Five Songs On Shuffle, Vol. 4

It's late, I know, but here is the fourth installment of my weekly blog entry series "5 Songs On Shuffle." I’ll put my iTunes on shuffle and blog about the first five songs that play.

"New Shoes" - Paulo Nutini These Streets
A minor hit for the Scottish pop-rocker. I loved it, not just because of my natural affinity for footwear, but because it's catchy as hell. And so true! "Hey, I put some new shoes on and suddenly every thing's right" is the way I always feel. There is no better feeling then putting on some hot new Chucks in a funky design, or a pair of sweet black sport fusion casuals with a contrasting white stripe. Well, maybe there is, but it still ranks pretty high.

"Like A Prayer" - Madonna The Immaculate Collection
The original album mix is far superior to this one from Madonna's greatest hits collection. The choir has a weird breakdown at about the 4:23 mark, the guitars are not as strong. However, it still remains one of my favorite songs of all time.

"Strange Fruit (Tricky Remix)" - Billie Holiday Necessary Beats: The Mix Tape
"Strange Fruit" makes me angry. It boils my blood to know the inconceivable evil man can visit on his fellow man. (I also have the original version as well as a version by Nina Simone on my iPod.) This remix is bizarre, spare and haunting with harp-like guitar plucking and a strange horn and random electric guitar for the beat, it doesn't have the same emotional impact, but it's not a club banger either. But when I do my updated Top Twenty Songs Of All Time, this song will be on it. No other song stirs such emotions: bitter sadness, vengeful anger, a hopeful optimism that one day we will just all get along. Racism is the ugliest thing, we must never forget just how ugly it can get.

"Stay (I Missed You)" - Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories Stay (I Missed You) [CD Single]
I love this song, I think it my also end up in my top twenty. The simplicity of the arrangement, the emotional vocal, the heartbreaking lyrics, all combine to make a perfect indie-pop single. Heartbreak is a painful thing, but also a inspiration.

"Laura" - Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters
I must love the Scissor Sisters, this is the second time one of their songs have popped up on my five songs on shuffle series. This isn't one of my favorites of their songs (that would be "Tits On The Radio" and "Take Your Mama Out") but I do love the kiss off line "This'll be the last time I ever do your hair" Oh, snap!