The Hold Steady - Heaven Is Whenever
 |
| Buy Now |
Hipper-than-thou music enthusiasts are already well-acquainted with The Hold Steady ever since their acclaimed 2004 debut Almost Killed Me. Publications like Blender and The Village Voice were quick to herald the Brooklyn bar band for delivering rock with substance—perhaps partly due to their songwriting’s heavy “post-Catholic” undertones?—recapturing a classic sound influenced by Bruce Springsteen and The Replacements with elements of Thin Lizzy, Guided by Voices, Cheap Trick, and The Clash. With six albums in six years, they’re proven themselves champions of the workforce while gaining a larger following with each successive release.
But then more pop-minded listeners unfamiliar with The Hold Steady probably don’t get what the fuss is all about. Despite the band’s considerable skill, their indie production (on earlier albums, at least) makes them sound a little rough around the edges. Craig Finn’s vocals may be praised by critics and fans for sounding raw and earnest, but his nasal, sometimes half-spoken delivery isn’t always a pleasant, standout tone. And while the songs are rife with imagery, the impressionistic storytelling can be a little impenetrable (though certainly no more than other bands like Wilco, The Wallflowers, and even U2).
Read more...
Tags: American Idol Results - Top 5
The Best Is Yet to Come
Is American Idol the weirdest season yet or is it the most predictable? Things have been pretty rote as far as which contestants have been voted off—including last night’s exit—but at the same time, the performances have been all over the map.
Take last night’s festivities, which included guest mentor Harry Connick Jr and … and Lady Gaga. (Cue theme to The Odd Couple.) You’d think the producers would try to keep their focus on the theme from week to week, but where would we be without at least one insanely over-the-top stage production desperately vying to be the next day’s water cooler conversation?
Read more...
American Idol - Top 5
All or Nothing at All
We’re now down to the American Idol Top 5. It’s the point where (arguably) all the iffy contestants are gone. We’ve been listening to these five individuals sing for more than ten weeks now and have a solid understanding of what their strengths and weaknesses are, what their personalities are like, and more or less what kind of artist each one wants to be: the rocker, the country-pop singer, the blues man, the tender R&B crooner, and the rootsy alt-pop gal. At least one of these five (if not two or three of them) will be securing a record contract in the near future.
And so, in the infinite wisdom of the producers of American Idol, these five talented individuals with defined musical identities are forced to sing … the songbook of Frank Sinatra?
Read more...
The Letter Black - Hanging by a Thread
 |
| Buy Now |
Back in 2003, Evanescence exploded onto the scene and redefined pop-metal by fronting the band with a strong female vocalist. Bands and record labels have been trying to recapture that lightning in a bottle ever since.
Out of the Christian music scene, there’s Plumb, who sort of repositioned herself into Evanescence’s goth-rock sound, but she’s not nearly as loud—and besides, she influenced them. There’s Fireflight, except they sound far too soft and lightweight by comparison. And there’s Flyleaf, not quite as catchy a band, but certainly a loud enough successor.
Read more...
Jami Smith - Verse
 |
| Buy Now |
Verse is an album near and dear to worship artist Jami Smith. Having developed a passion for God’s Word at an early age through her church and family, she was encouraged by her brother Ryan to come up with a collection of music that draws completely from the Bible. After all, scripture is easier to memorize through a musical framework; Verse has the potential of teaching listeners 12 Bible verses (NIV version in most cases).
Setting scripture to songs (and hymns) is certainly nothing new, though it’s not always this intentional. Some artists lazily plagiarize the Bible because they have nothing else to say, while others adapt God’s Word to teach, and then there are those who use it in the context of worship. It’s never quite clear whether Smith intends these songs for congregational singing or for personal meditation and learning.—she only notes that she can’t add text to God’s Word, apparently taking Revelation 22:18 to heart.
Read more...
MercyMe - The Generous Mr. Lovewell
 |
| Buy Now |
Simple, anthemic, and worshipful adult contemporary has been the bread and butter of Christian music for the last decade. You could pretty much boil it down to three key artists in heavy rotation on Christian radio: Chris Tomlin, Casting Crowns, and MercyMe.
I’ve no personal beef with the artists themselves, but the overall lack of musical creativity has been stupefying. Especially after MercyMe showed considerable growth with their 2006 release Coming Up to Breathe, only to disappoint with a return to formula for the hastily recorded All That Is Within Me the next year. It sold well, of course—every MercyMe album has sold Gold or Platinum since Almost There in 2001—but wouldn’t it be nice to hear a band like this try something new?
Read more...
A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Downloads
Think most musicians make lots of money? Think again.
This graphic chart posted at InformationIsBeautiful.net does a terrific job at giving a visual illustration of how much artists really earn through online sales of albums, song downloads, and streaming audio.
Read more...
Sandra McCracken - In Feast or Fallow
 |
| Buy Now |
Generally speaking, faith-based songwriting tends to be an either-or proposition in the work of Sandra McCracken. When not offering introspective folk music about the human condition and everyday life, she’s typically dabbling with hymns, as heard on her 2006 project The Builder and the Architect and her contributions to Caedmon’s Call, City on a Hill, and other worshipful projects.
Is McCracken unable to blend together the sacred and secular? I wish she would develop a more introspective exploration of faith reminiscent of Rich Mullins, Amy Grant, Mark Heard, or Sara Groves to name a few. In some ways, McCracken’s 2008 release Red Balloon demonstrated this integration, which might be why I felt it was her strongest album to date.
Read more...
American Idol Results - Top 6
[She] Don’t Impress Me Much
There was indeed some drama with this week's Idol Results, though it was severely downplayed for an overabundance of (lackluster) country performances from Rascal Flatts, Lady Antebellum, Sons of Silvia … and Shakira???
Well, at least there was no group-sing for once. (Thank you Idol producers, for showing us mercy!!!) It only makes sense at this point with half of the finalists out of the picture. Of course, the show still found time for a stupid vampire themed Ford commercial, a long commercial for the forthcoming Shrek Forever movie, and the four musical performances. My memory isn’t what it used to be, but weren’t the results shows just 30 minutes once upon a time?
Read more...
The Arrows - Make Believe
 |
| Buy Now |
Are you like me and missing the days of creative Christian music? I can state it no simpler than this: The Arrows are the best example of intelligent faith-based artistry I’ve heard in a long, long time.
That’s not hyperbole on my part. The Arrows are the kind of artist Steve Taylor’s Squint Entertainment would have quickly sought after given the chance. More recently, I could envision the internationally-minded Inpop Records pursuing this Durban, South Africa duo for their label. But while I’d love to start a campaign to get The Arrows signed, it’s just not necessary nowadays with independent music. Frankly, a Christian record label would only find a way to screw up a very good thing—there’s no way this group would fit in with today’s stale Christian radio format.
Read more...
