MOG

For your pleasure and disgust, here's the next installment of instant reviews based on your recomendations (they're just honest first impressions, kids, don't hate). Got an album suggestion? I welcome it!

And we're off:

The Roots - Game Theory (recommended by several MOGgers over the past few weeks) Instant rating: -blows- -ehhh- -whelming- -worth a few spins- you gotta hear this -buy it now!-

First of all, I have to admit that most rap/hip-hop turns me off. Call me narrow-minded or lame, I've just always had a hard time getting into it. While I'm a sucker for the big fat beats, most rap feels foreign to me. That being said, there have been exceptions over the past few years (who doesn't like "Hey Ya" or "Golddigger"?). More specifically though, is "Seed 2.0" by The Roots. My admiration for "Seed 2.0" convinced me to check out Game Theory, and I'm glad I did. It's authentic, to say the least. Instead of a bunch of guys rapping over a slickly produced beat, The Roots make music as a band. And there's the drums. Sweet, kickin' drums. An actual drummer vs. a drum machine. I love it. The rapping still puts me off a little bit, but there's a lot to enjoy here. Check out Don't Feel Right for a taste of what you're in for. The downside to Game Theory is that it suffers in it's second half. The arrangements become simpler, and the music doesn't have as many layers. Maybe it's because I'm not into the lyrics (shame on me, I know), but I prefer the intricate first half. Still, I recommend giving this record a shot, even if you're not a fan of hip-hop.

Komeda - What Makes it Go (recommended by 530nm) Instant rating: -blows- -ehhh- -whelming- worth a few spins -you gotta hear this- -buy it now!-

This makes me feel like I'm relaxing on a beach, martini in hand. At it's heart, What Makes it Go is pop, with hints of retro funk and R&B mixed in. My favorite track, Campfire, is a fun folk-pop experience that would sound perfect over the ending credits to a Tarantino film. It's not the best example of how the rest of the record sounds (it's the only track featuring a male on vocals), but a good starting point. The female lead singer's vibrato-y voice lacks nuance thoughout What Makes It Go, but I think there's more going on here that I can put my finger on yet.

Meat Puppets - Meat Puppets II (recommended by lemontwist) Instant rating: -blows- -ehhh- whelming -worth a few spins- -you gotta hear this- -buy it now!-

I was a little surprised by this recommendation, but I went for it. I remember Nirvana covering some of these songs for Unplugged in New York, and it was fun to hear the original versions ("Plateau", "Oh, Me", "Lake of Fire"). The short blasts of punk-folk on Meat Puppets II make me feel like going on a cross country crime-spree for some reason. I can just picture it - hanging out the passenger window and firing a gun into the air during News Gods, screaming "WOO-HOO" to the passer-bys. All in all though, this isn't something I can see myself listening to more than once or twice. There's too much pounktry and not enough crunch.

Next Up:

1. Neverending White Lights-Goodbye Friends Of The Heavenly Bodies 2. Gogol Bordello-Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike 3. (open to suggestion)

(apologies to Yah-Shua & Manos, I haven't found Joe Christmas or Mike Doughty's full albums)