By the mid-’70s, even Dylan’s most ardent supporters began taking his artistic decline for granted. Albums like NEW MORNING and PLANET WAVES were fine works, but lacked the visionary spark of his seminal ’60s recordings. At 34 he was already being written off as a has-been. That presumption is what made BLOOD ON THE TRACKS such a glorious sucker-punch of a record.

One of Dylan’s most mournful efforts, this album, which easily ranks among his best, is full of stories about lost love and the struggle for peace of mind. With a simple, country-flavored backing somewhat akin to NASHVILLE SKYLINE, he recounts shattered love affairs in heart-breaking detail on songs like “Simple Twist Of Fate” and “If You See Her Say Hello.” On the vengeful “Idiot Wind” he rails mercilessly against the ignorant and self-obsessed a la “Like A Rolling Stone.” The difference here, and the major breakthrough for Dylan, is that by the end of the song, he’s lumping himself in with those he excoriates so vehemently.

Tracklisting
1. Tangled Up in Blue
2. Simple Twist of Fate
3. Youre a Big Girl Now
4. Idiot Wind
5. Youre Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go
6. Meet Me in the Morning
7. Lily Rosemary & the Jack of Hearts
8. If You See Her
9. Say Hello
10. Shelter from the Storm
11. Buckets of Rain

Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (12/11/03, p.96) – Ranked #16 in Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Albums Of All Time” – “…No one disputes the album’s luxuriant tangle of guitars, the gritty directness in Dylan’s voice and the magnificent confessional force of his writing…”

Q (1/03, p.69) – Included in Q Magazine’s “100 Greatest Albums Ever”

Q (12/93, p.131) – 5 Stars (out of 5) – “…Suddenly Dylan no longer seemed to be straining to recapture the surreal poetic torrents of the ’60s….this is probably Dylan’s most complete and most unified album–and yes, damnit, his best…”

Alternative Press (5/01, p.104) – Included in AP’s “10 Essential Breakup Albums” – “…Dylan has never been so thematically clear….representing a man full of regret and misery, singing through his tears.”

Vibe (12/99, p.157) – Included in Vibe’s 100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century

Q (Magazine) (p.110) – “Against the backdrop of his own collapsing marriage, it’s as close as he ever got to the confessional school of singer-songwriters…”

NME (Magazine) (10/2/93, p.29) – Ranked #85 in NME’s list of the “Greatest Albums Of All Time.”

NME (Magazine) (9/18/93, p.19) – Ranked #29 in NME’s list of the “Greatest Albums Of The ’70s.”

NME (Magazine) (8/12/00, p.28) – Ranked #13 in The NME “Top 30 Heartbreak Albums” – “…A bitter, sorrowful eulogy to love and the pain of breaking up.”

Featuring a new lineup, an open-ended definition of Americana, and the backing of a major label, Band of Horses’ third album is a game changer. What began as a partnership between Ben Bridwell and Mat Brooke has since blossomed into a five-piece band, with Bridwell serving as the only link between the group’s 2006 debut, Everything All the Time, and the present. It’s only natural, then, that Infinite Arms sounds wholly different from the albums that came before it, both of which mixed guitar-driven rock with dusty, jangled folk. There’s still plenty of folk to be found here, and Band of Horses bang their way through “Compliments” as a concession to their rock fans. Infinite Arms is a borderline pop album, though, dressed up in flannel and facial hair to disguise the fact that these melodies are, with few exceptions, the sweetest of the group’s career. There are harmonies galore, simple fifths and thick, Sacred Harp-type chords that beef up Bridwell’s vocals while drawing parallels to Fleet Foxes and the Beach Boys. At times, it’s hard to separate Band of Horses from such influences; “Blue Beard,” although downright gorgeous, cops its verse from Smile-era Brian Wilson and its bridge from the Starland Vocal Band, and “Older” is the country-rock single Gram Parsons never wrote. But the album’s willingness to sample from so many different genres — roots, soft rock, alt.country, power pop, indie folk — makes it sound like nothing else in 2010, and Band of Horses connect the dots by layering everything with canyon-worthy reverb and cinematic guitars. For those who let it sink in, Infinite Arms could be a contender for the year’s best summer album, not to mention the band’s most cohesive album to date.

Tracklisting
1. Factory
2. Compliments
3. Laredo
4. Blue Beard
5. On My Way Back Home
6. Infinite Arms
7. Dilly
8. Evening Kitchen
9. Older
10. For Annabelle
11. Nw Apt.
12. Neighbor

Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (p.68) – 3.5 stars out of 5 — “Suddenly, the band has blossomed into something more like the Band, with rich harmonies — even when Bridwell just multitracks his own voice — and fuller arrangements.”

Billboard (p.59) – “[T]he stomping rhythm and mammoth chorus of first single ‘Compliments’ make it the most flat-out enjoyable track the band has ever recorded.”

Mojo (Publisher) (p.92) – 3 stars out of 5 — “They’re aspiring to lofty melodic standards, and on the lilting sing-along ‘Older’ and the earthy lo-fi contemplation of ‘Evening Kitchen’ they achieve them in timeless fashion.”

Uncut (magazine) (p.93) – 4 stars out of 5 — “[W]hile it sees Ben Bridwell leaving his lo-fi past behind, INFINITE ARMS is a neoclassic landmark that you’ll need to get on vinyl.”

One of the most anticipated CD releases of 2010 is set to drop in January. MGMT follow up their all conquering debut Oracular Spectacular with Congratulations which they are currently recording with Pete Kember from the seminal 80s early 90s band Spacemen 3 (who also featured Jason Pierce who went on to form Spiritualized). This partnership sounds like a match made in heaven and should show a progression, and possibly more experimental approach, from the debut CD.

The band have been previewing 4 new tracks in their recent live sets Congratulations, Its Working, Flash Delirium, and Song For Dan Treacy. Describing the album title, the band explained “It was more of a sarcastic congratulations. It just feels right. It’s funnier now. We had no idea what was going to happen with the first album in terms of success or radio play. You know, it’s been a crazy year so now it’s even more annoying that the second albums called congratulations.”

This is going to be a brilliant way to start 2010.

Tracklisting
1. It’s Working
2. Song for Dan Treacy
3. Someone’s Missing
4. Flash Delirium
5. I Found a Whistle
6. Siberian Breaks
7. Brian Eno
8. Lady Dada’s Nightmare
9. Congratulations

Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (pp.63-64) – 3 stars out of 5 — “[The album] testifies to MGMT’s restlessness as songwriters and human beings….The set closes with the title track, a spangled folk rocker about the weight of success…”

Entertainment Weekly (p.70) – “[T]his odd little sonic onion ultimately rewards those patient enough to peel the layers.” — Grade: B

Billboard (p.32) – “[The] album blends psychedelia with elements of post-punk, surf rock and even folk. The track ‘Someone’s Missing’ begins sparsely with soft guitars and sitar-like effects that echo the falsetto vocals before swelling into an easygoing funk jam.”

Mojo (Publisher) (p.96) – 5 stars out of 5 — “[The album] explodes with the colour of British psychedelia and bulges at the seams with irresistible melodies….A weird, wonderful, complete work…”

Paste (magazine) (p.89) – “[I]n between enlightened ramblings, the band interjects a refrain that bursts forth brighter than a July sun and cues up psychedelic moments that wash ashore like the calmest of waves.”

Uncut (magazine) (p.87) – 4 stars out of 5 — “This is a willful and lovably eccentric second album from a band who’ve decided they’d had a sniff of being pop stars and decided they’d much rather be weird and esoteric, thanks all the same.”

Purple is an album showcasing a band hitting its stride. Considerably more mainstream than their peers, time has proven that that’s their primary charm, since they were unafraid to temper their grunge with big arena hooks and swirling melodies. It works particularly well on the tight, concise ‘Vasoline’ and the acoustic-based ‘Pretty Penny,’ but it really shines on the record’s two masterpieces, ‘Big Empty’ and ‘Interstate Love Song.’

Tracklisting
1. Meatplow
2. Vasoline
3. Lounge Fly
4. Interstate Love Song
5. Still Remains
6. Pretty Penny
7. Silvergun Superman
8. Big Empty
9. ‘Unglued’
10. Army Ants
11. Kitchenware & Candybars

Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (7/94, p.106) – 3 Stars – Good – “…[Stone Temple Pilots] play arena rock in the tradition of long hair and pot smoke. There is nothing grungy or alternative about STP’s palatable suburban riffs…”

Spin (7/94, p.68) – “…Stone Temple Pilot’s clumsiness is itself a sign of life, a sign that there’s still more weird energy in heaven and Earth than is dreamt of in Punk Rock 101…”

NME (Magazine) (6/11/94, p.34) – 3 – Average – “…Stone Temple Pilots throw every influence from Traffic to Hawkwind in the pot and finally come up with something good…

Diamond Eyes, the latest from heavy favourites the Deftones, is produced and mixed by Nick Raskulinecz (Alice in Chains, Coheed & Cambria, Foo Fighters), and recorded and engineered by Paul “Fig” Figueroa (Alice in Chains, Bad Religion) Diamond Eyes is “a powerful combination of muscular impact and expansive and atmospheric clarity that propels DEFTONES through their ever-evolving new sonic terrain”.

Tracklisting
1. Diamond Eyes
2. Royal
3. Cmnd/ctrl
4. You’ve Seen The Butcher
5. Beauty School
6. Prince
7. Rocket Skates
8. Sextape
9. Risk
10. 976-Evil
11. This Place Is Death