OK Go's Of The Blue Colour Of The Sky is the band's chance to capitalize on the success and fame that came with their world-famous treadmill clip for "Here It Goes Again."
Surprisingly, rather than go with the quirky dance-pop that'd been their bread an butter for so long (going back to their first single, "Get Over It"), they've opted to make a record that sounds an awful lot like Prince. Specifically, Purple Rain, according to the band in an interview with NPR's Morning Edition. "Needing/Getting" sounds like Fleet Foxes, but it's the exception. The rest of the album is a straight take on Prince's cooing, yelping funk. It works well, even if it's a transparent homage.
Ghosts On the Boardwalk has technically already seen release as a series of monthly downloads and quarterly 7" releases that the Bouncing Souls called "The 20th Anniversary Series." It's a novel way to do a record -- vinyl or download, with the option of just waiting and buying a compact disc at the end. It reeks a bit of a cash grab, as the vinyl singles didn't come with download codes, so if you'd like to put these songs on your iPod, you're forced to either pay for the music again on CD or as a download, or risk downloading it. The music on the album is good -- definitely on par with Anchors Aweigh, but I don't like it enough to pay for it twice, nor should anyone. Of course, if you disagree, you can buy the limited edition box set, which comes with special pressings of all four singles, as well as the CD and a poster.
Vampire Weekend's sophomore release, Contra, has a ton of hype to which it needs to live up. Their first album had two songs which would've made a stellar single ("A-Punk" and "M79" would've been totally worth buying), but the rest of the record felt rushed and overly breezy. Now that they've had time to tour, work on their sound, and spend some time, what do we have? Pretty much a repeat of their debut, only this time, we know all the tricks and are far less impressed. Vampire Weekend attempt some new things, like the addition of electronic elements on "California English," but it just comes off a remake of "Oxford Comma." The only song on the album I really like is "Taxi Cab," which has a lovely piano minuet feel to it. Past that, it's a rehash.
MP3: Vampire Weekend, "Horchata"
Jason Boesel is best known for his work as a drummer, but he's stepped from behind the kit to release a solo record, Hustler's Son. The album is some very pleasant, low-key country rock, not unlike a lot of the solo singer-songwriter stuff in the '70s. It's a lot like Townes Van Zandt in terms of laid-back lyrics, but the delivery is pure Conor Oberst. That's not surprising, considering Boesel's work as a drummer for Oberst's Mystic Valley Band.
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