Here's what I've been listening to. Indie rock hit a peak this summer (Spoon, Interpol, Ted Leo, The White Stripes, Art Brut), so this fall I'm shifting to a lot of hip hop and random insanity:
UGK - Underground Kingz. This is my first non-Atlanta Southern rap CD (mostly I'm an East Coast hip hop snob). But I like the Outkast collab (Int'l Players' Anthem) and there's a lot of other crossover potential. Sure, it's a little long at over two hours (one trimmed-up disc would've been fine with me) and some questionable lyrics, but overall a solid listen. I was a little surprised.
Junior Senior - Hey Hey My My Yo Yo. Actually, this was disc originally released in 2005, finally released stateside with a bonus EP. Much like UGK, there are some solid songs on here (Can I Get Get, Hip Hop A Lula, Itch U Can't Skratch), but definitely some places where I skip around a bit. Good stuff, especially taken with a grain of salt...
M.I.A. - Kala. This disc is amazing. Arular had a few good songs, but Kala is much more focused, entertaining and solid. This one will definitely end up on my "best of the year" list.
Dungen - Tio Bitar. The most "rock-ish" thing I'm listening to is this follow-up to another in the latest of Sweden's finest imports. Most would likely claim that Ta Det Lugnt is the way to go for this band, but I'm a big fan of their latest, which introduces strings and is a little more laidback than that CD.
Talib Kweli - Eardrum. The latest album to enter my rotation is smart East Coast rapper Talib Kweli. When I heard it initially, I wasn't really blown away, but since I picked it up for 3 bucks at a book sale, I've been able to get into a lot more. I'd throw it in the top hip hop CDs of the year along with Pharoahe Monch's Desire and Common's Finding Forever. Hopefully Kanye's new disc (out next week) will make its way into this list as well...
1 comment:
Told you that Talib would be the best $3 you'd spend on a CD all year! It's a "Hot Thing!"
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