Although we have before us another rather short list of new album releases this week, there are quite a few interesting ones to consider. The biggie this week is of course the new one from Beck — produced by Danger Mouse no less. Our own Josh "Meet Him At Mary's Place" Hathaway will be along shortly to talk about that.
Also worthy of note is the new one from Patti Smith, a collaboration of her poetry set to the soundscapes of My Bloody Valentine's Kevin Shields. Perhaps more worthy to regular readers of NAR however, is that Mark Saleski has returned to the fold following a long sabbatical to give his thoughts on the Smith/Shields collaboration.
Some of the other more interesting things you'll find this week at the record store include the new solo release ¿Como Te Llama?, from Strokes guitarist Albert Hammond Jr., which is said to sound quite a bit like a Strokes record itself. From the Melvins — these are the guys who put the "sludge" in Seattle's nineties grunge sound — comes their latest, Nude with Boots. Jordan Richardson has a full review of that one up on the site which you can check out by going here.
The trend of expanded versions of albums, classic or otherwise, continues this week with last year's Maroon 5 album It Won't Be Soon Before Long getting the deluxe treatment with the usual additional live tracks. Billy Joel's landmark multi-platinum The Stranger gets itself a full boxed set on the 30th Anniversary Legacy Edition, that includes a previously unreleased DVD performance from Carnegie Hall recorded just before the album was recorded in 1977.
And now to talk about the new Patti Smith, we welcome back our missing brother in action, Mark Saleski.
I've always loved it when Patti Smith busts out the poetry notebook. Long before I ever knew what the hell she was talking about, I loved the passion. Aside from a few of the more mainstream poets (Robert Frost, etc.), poetry has always been considered a fringe sort of art.
So be it.
This is the kind of release that might send a few people screaming out of the room. Patti Smith puts on a live performance of her long form prose poem/requiem for friend and icon Robert Mapplethorpe. Guitarist Kevin Shields (My Bloody Valentine) provides the backing soundscapes.
Two discs. Not for the faint of heart.
There are dozens of artists who've been labeled innovative and original. Only a few are deserving – and Beck is one of them, which is an amazing and ironic achievement considering his albums are pastiches of familiar sounds and ideas. Also amazing is that a long line of superstar producers have helmed his records – Modern Guilt marks the first collaboration with Danger Mouse – yet each of them sounds uniquely Beck.
On MG, he takes a step forward using his technical wizardry to create soundscapes that express more than the hipster wisecracks of Odelay or heartbreak of Sea Change (both of which I love), and does it in a mere 33 minutes.
Note to audiophiles: Modern Guilt is available on vinyl with a bonus download of the album in DRM-free MP3 included.
Here are all of this week's new album releases courtesy of All Music Guide:
Beck
Modern Guilt
DGC
Alternative Singer/Songwriter, Neo-Psychedelia
Albert Hammond, Jr.
¿Como Te Llama?
Red Ink
Indie Rock
Billy Joel
The Stranger [2CD Deluxe Edition]
Sony Legacy
Album Rock, Pop/Rock, Soft Rock
Willie Nelson/Wynton Marsalis
Two Men with the Blues
Blue Note
Standards
Abe Vigoda
Skeleton
PPM
Indie Rock
Albatros Ensemble
Nino Rota: Improvviso
Stradivarius
Modern Chamber Music
Bad Religion
New Maps of Hell [Deluxe Version]
Epitaph
American Underground, Hardcore Punk, Punk, Alternative Pop/Rock, L.A. Punk
Chiara Banchini
Giuseppe Tartini: Sonate a violino solo; Aria del Tasso
Zig Zag Territoires
Classical Vocal and Chamber Music
The Baseball Project
The Baseball Project, Vol. 1: Frozen Ropes and Dying Quails
Yep Roc
Jangle Pop, Alternative Pop/Rock, Folk-Pop
Black Ghosts
The Black Ghosts
Southern Fried
Indie Electronic, Electronica
The Capstan Shafts
Fixation Protocols
Rainbow Quartz
Indie Pop, Lo-Fi
Chromeo
Fancy Footwork [Deluxe Edition]
Vice
Indie Electronic
Diplomats of Solid Sound
Diplomats of Solid Sound Featuring the Diplomettes
Pravda
Deep Funk Revival
Donna the Buffalo
Silverlined
Sugar Hill
Jam Bands, Alternative Folk, Americana, Contemporary Folk, Zydeco
Isabelle Faust
Fauré: Sonates pour violon & piano
Harmonia Mundi
Post-Romantic Chamber Music
Jean Grae
Jeanius
Blacksmith
Underground Rap, Hardcore Rap, Hip-Hop
Eddy Grant
The Very Best of Eddy Grant: The Road to Reparation
Island/Mercury
Contemporary Reggae, Reggae-Pop, Urban, Club/Dance, Pop/Rock
Vladimir Horowitz
Horowitz In Hamburg: The Last Concert
Deutsche Grammophon
Classical and Romantic Piano Music
Kerli
Love Is Dead
Island
Alternative Pop/Rock
Leila
Blood, Looms and Blooms
Warp
IDM, Electronica
Little Jackie
The Stoop
S-Curve
Neo-Soul, Urban, Alternative Singer/Songwriter, Hip-Hop
Maroon 5
It Won't Be Soon Before Long [US Deluxe Edition]
A&M/Octone
Pop/Rock, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock
Del McCoury
Moneyland
McCoury Music
Contemporary Bluegrass, Bluegrass, Traditional Bluegrass
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
Have Another Ball!
Fat Wreck Chord
Punk-Pop, Punk Revival, Comedy Rock
Melvins
Nude with Boots
Ipecac
Alternative Metal, Heavy Metal
Mighty Mighty Bosstones
Medium Rare
Junket Boy
Alternative Pop/Rock, Ska-Punk, Third Wave Ska Revival
Mika Miko
666
PPM
Punk-Pop, Indie Rock
Opiate for the Masses
Manifesto
Cma
Goth Metal, Alternative Metal
Dennis Russell Davies
Philip Glass: Waiting for the Barbarians
Orange Mountain
Contemporary Opera
Original Soundtrack
Weeds: Music from the Series, Vol. 3
Lions Gate
TV Soundtracks, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Contemporary Singer/Songwriter, Indie Pop, Indie Rock, Comedy Rock
Johnny Osbourne
Truths and Rights [Deluxe Edition]
Heartbeat
Roots Reggae, Dancehall, Lovers Rock
Ratatat
LP3
XL
Indie Electronic, Indie Rock, Indie Pop
Ron Sexsmith
Exit Strategy of the Soul
Yep Roc
Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, Alternative Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Singer/Songwriter
Patti Smith/Kevin Shields
The Coral Sea
TBC
Experimental Rock, Poetry
Son, Ambulance
Someone Else's Déjà Vu
Saddle Creek
Indie Pop, Indie Rock
Street Dogs
State of Grace
Hellcat
Punk Revival
Sunny Day Sets Fire
Summer Palace
IAMSOUND
Indie Pop, Twee Pop
Telepathic Butterflies
Breakfast in Suburbia
Rainbow Quartz
Indie Rock, Neo-Psychedelia, Pop Underground
Vancougar
Canadian Tuxedo
Mint
Punk-Pop, Indie Rock
Various Artists
Life Beyond Mars: Bowie Covered
Rapster
New Wave/Post-Punk Revival, Indie Electronic, Tribute Albums, Club/Dance
Doc Watson
Americana Master Series: Best of Doc Watson
Sugar Hill
Traditional Folk, Traditional Country, Old-Timey
Whitechapel
This Is Exile
Metal Blade
Death Metal/Black Metal, Grindcore
Saul Williams
The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust
Fader Label
Hip-Hop, Underground Rap, Poetry, Political Rap
Edgar Winter
Rebel Road
Airline
Boogie Rock, Hard Rock, Blues-Rock