But OH!, how wrong I was. Maybe they took a hint and went back to their old roots? This new album, The Feel Good Record Of The Year is as melodic as melodic punk rock gets. Yes, I did just sort of coin that genre, but as I’ve mentioned in previous posts, melodies and vocals far outweigh the instrumentals for me. If you are like me, then what are you waiting for? Put your name down for a copy! Tony Sly does an amazing job of singing, and not yelling or screaming as many punk rocks have turned to. I URGE you to just play that first song. One chance, and you will be hooked. You can listen to this album on a lonely winter night as well as a summer cruise with the convertible top down (or windows).

For those who have never heard Nufan’s stuff, or even heard of the band, start here and dig through YouTube videos of their older songs. I’m one very music connoisseur today.

Within the depths of Davy Jones’ locker lie treasures so vast that they’d send the most humble and selfless of men scouring to their banks. Luckily, a gem like Little Death has surfaced from the bottom of the sea for all of us to scour over and remind us how great an album can sound.

Just about every CD has that one song that you wait in anticipation for. As the tracks slowly cycle through, you’re constantly skipping parts of songs just to get to the one you’ve been waiting for. Finally, you reach your nirvana and the climatic conclusion of the song gives you chills. You have your fix and you’re finally at ease with the world. Well, the difference between all that and Little Death is that they don’t have a single song like that. Their entire album is composed of bone-chillingness! I haven’t found a single track from this CD that I haven’t over-enjoyed. Pete & the Pirates are another indie-rock band except with some small hints of pop to make it nice and sweet. The group hails from Reading, England and bring a fresh breeze of music along with them.

I’m not going to lie. Reviewing a band as diverse and unique as DeVotchKa is a little intimidating; not to mention this being their first album I’ve listened through. I personally can’t describe the band any better than their Wiki page: “DeVotchKa is a four piece multi-instrumental and vocal ensemble that fuses Romani, Greek, Slavic, Bolero, and Mariachi music with American punk and folk roots.” See what I mean by diverse and unique? They started off playing burlesque shows before breaking it big with “How It Ends” and playing at the Bonnaroo music festival in ‘06. Now they’re kicking off their biggest tour yet at Coachella, this April.

My expectations for A Mad & Faithful Telling weren’t entirely high so there wasn’t any chance of disappointment for this album, but I’ve listened through it a few times now and this is truly a work of art. They really separate themselves from the crowd with something so much more different but it comes out divine. It is a universally beautiful album in the sense that everybody will enjoy it. That doesn’t necessarily mean that the average person can listen to this on their way to work, but if they had to, they wouldn’t be complaining. The vocals, the instruments, the rhythm–it’s all just a wonderful blend and mixture of an audible-harmony.

Personally, no track sticks out as a favorite because they were all rendered so well. Each individual song shines bright enough to light up a small city. A Mad & Faithful Telling is a melting pot of far too many genres to give proper comparison, but it shouldn’t really matter since you will get this album and see for yourself ;). Now, you’re getting sleepy.. your eyes are growing heavy.. you’re opening the iTunes store..

Writer’s Block is Swedish, indie-rock group, Peter Bjorn and John’s (PB and J *wink*), latest album that hit the charts hard with songs catchy enough to reel you in a massive catfish. And that’s exactly what the trio is, a big fish in a small pond. Starting off with very little resources, the gang worked hard with that they had: small labels and an even smaller following for their breed of sound. Despite these handicaps, Peter Bjorn and John continued to create music. But it wasn’t just music, or at least it wasn’t until Writer’s Block.

Their first single “Young Folks” swept America by storm. Ranking within the top five tracks of 2007 of many distinguished music lists, including #1 for Apple’s most downloaded on iTunes, this is one song that couldn’t be stopped. “Young Folks” had been placed in more advertisements, T.V. shows, and remixes (including one done by Kanye West) than you can wave a stick at. It was definitely Peter Bjorn and John’s ticket to stardom. While the rest of the album may be hiding in the shadow of this superstar track, there are still a few other songs that keep this CD from becoming another one-hit-wonder. “Up Against the Wall” , “Paris 2004″, and “Amsterdam” are just a few that support Writer’s Block’s backbone into standing up straight.

But like everything in the world, there are two sides to the spectrum. A few times I’d find myself skipping through the album because of certain songs becoming too boring or just horribly dragged out. To put it bluntly, “Roll the Credits” and “Poor Cow” are an endless eleven-minutes of guitar strumming and irritating vocals that can make a deaf man cringe.

This is it. Panic’s new album…and I’m not going to beat around the bush…it’s dismal and disappointing. And…I wasn’t expecting very much at all. I had heard that they were changing directions with their music, which would be a good thing, considering their first album was basically a copy of Fall Out Boy, but with even stupider lyrics and even worse vocals.

You see, on the face of it, Pretty. Odd. is an exciting new album for them to really show what type of band they are and the direction they are going in. In fact, I have no doubt that some people will like it. There are girls out there that will draw immense pleasure from this. But if you actually listen to it, you don’t hear originality at all. What you hear, is just stolen melodies from old films and stage plays. I just learned today from Wikipedia that the band began by covering Blink-182 songs. This was no surprise, since they are still copying others. You might argue that it’s just “influence” but one go-through of this album and you’d be convinced. Actually, to be honest, they haven’t changed AT ALL. They have the same style, same tempo, and same tacky song titles. Perhaps they say it best themselves in “We’re So Starving”. “You don’t have to worry ’cause we’re the same band.”

“Nine In The Afternoon” was their single released months ago to build hype for this album. Obviously they consider this their best song, and do you know what? Radio stations haven’t been playing it. Rightly so.

“She Has The World” and “Do You Know What I’m Seeing” both begin with extremely familiar melodies.

Nothing about this album is exciting. Their lyrics feel disgustingly elementary. How can they be a dance/pop band and have 10 seconds of silence in the beginning of every song and have so many boring filler songs? I hate to say this, but you really need to listen to this album to know what I’m on about…You are left with an empty, “what did I just listen to?” feeling.

I also didn’t like the fact that homeless people who camp out by taco trucks, strumming their guitars, with a hat full of coins in front of them, can play better music than Panic! At The Disco can at a live performance. Their shows were weak, their music even weaker. And their momentum died down as emo, another “trend” began to fade away.

Which leads me onto today’s review. The Hush Sound’s Goodbye Blues, is set to be released on March 18, 2008. This album really combines the unlikely combo of soft piano/vocals that are Ben Folds-esque with the dance beats of Panic! At The Disco. If you only pick one totally random song to listen to off the album, you will NOT know their music. If you switch around through the album, you might not get a single soft song, and just think they are a copy of Panic!. But in reality, it is a great lineup of songs. The ordering is perfect. This album is perfect if you are not in any certain mood. If you just want some, any, music on, then you will cherish this.

Goodbye Blues jukes you around like a star quarterback on steroids. Some songs, like “As You Cry” and “That’s Okay,” really display solid/polished vocals. We’ve got a winner here. I promise you that their songs will be used in some upcoming movies.

Elephant Shell is the Canadian-pop sensation, Tokyo Police Club’s, first full length album set to be released late this April. The small group, composed of four members, have been hard at work in the studio under their new label, Saddle Creek Records, creating blessed music for your ears. And I must say, they’ve certainly done a great job.

This newest album is a lot of what you’d expect from Tokyo Police Club but you can certainly hear a huge growth of maturity from the boys. Elephant Shell definitely sounds a lot more like an actual album than just a compilation of demos. Everything is crisper, cleaner, and clearer than it was in A Lesson in Crime. Their new sound is a lot less “punk” and everything is much more relaxed. It’s not going to put you to sleep, but it’s not going to pump you up either. Elephant Shell eased off the gas pedal and decided to cruise along while A Lesson in Crime is more concerned about speeding past you; leaving you in a cloud of dust.

Dave Monks’ (lead vocals) voice is now very soothing in his own, unique and shockingly, a little feminine, way. In the first track, “Centennial”, you may be a little surprised to notice that Monks’ testicles are actually quite possibly..ascending? But not to fear, just like a thirteen year-old boy going through puberty, his voice slowly starts to enter manhood throughout the album’s tracks. Overall, the whole CD sounds a little the same but this is a positive for someone who really enjoys their stuff. All-in-all, no complaints here.

Do you like rock music? I sure hope you do, because British Sea Power’s third album release will surely rejuvenate your deprived iTunes playlist. They’re an awesome foursome that deals out some gruesome indie-rock music for your sore thumb (if that makes sense). Based out of England, they share a lot of similarities with oh so many bands. More than you can count on one centipede, little man.

Do You Like Rock Music? starts off a lot more pop than it does indie. They hook you in the beginning with catchier songs like “Waving Flags” and “No Lucifer” that’ll keep you speeding 85 in a 55 mile-per-hour zone without even noticing. After awhile, the energy tends to die and you get a flat tire in your fantasy Ferrari. Like in “The Great Skua”, the tempo slows down, the melody kicks up, and they bring on a similar sound of Broken Social Scene. Being strictly instrumental, this song sounds more like an outro away from their Arcade Fire-esque sound and an intro into their easier-going, Coldplay-sounding portion of the album.

British Sea Power is known to have very entertaining and eccentric shows. Lots of stage divin’, set climbin’, and bear beatin’ fun for everyone. They’re definitely something that shouldn’t be missed if they’re making an appearance in your area. Whether you like things soft or you like things rough, you will be pleased with Do You Like Rock Music?.

This album is grungy, VERY dark, and deep. Usually, I can enjoy any type of rock, but they sound like a typical Seattle area grunge band. Most of their songs have good parts (usually in the beginning), and then they just leave you with a sense of dreary disappointment. Songs like “Seven Stories Underground” and “Who Will Lead Us” are just pure album filler. Annoyingly, many of these songs have the same beat and rhythm. The vocals are deep and hardly display any sort of melody.

I enjoyed “The Body”, “Idle Hands”, and bits of others, but having listened to it before bed last night, and on the way to work, I found that getting through the entire album was difficult. I was always skipping songs as they just began to fade into distant noise. It was like pushing a piano up a hill…it felt like a task just to listen to everything. Therefore, I cannot recommend Saturnalia to anyone; even pure enthusiasts of lazy grunge music.

Most of their songs are posted to their MySpace page, where you can get a taste of music that will suck the energy out of you. The type of person who chooses this as their profile song is in depression, and probably has a black background with pictures of dark landscapes…it isn’t emo by any means, just devoid.