Category: Rock Babes (Page 7 of 15)

Steal This Song: Metric, “Help, I’m Alive (Acoustic Version)”

March 5, 2009 /

This news will make our friend Heidi happy: Metric are about to release Fantasies, the band’s fourth album, and if the first single, “Help, I’m Alive,” is any indication, these guys are about to make the jump into the big leagues. Nice combination of electronic flourishes and acoustic instruments, and a Velcro hook in that “Beating like a hammer” line. Check it out.

And for you Metric fans who want more more more, the band is also giving away an acoustic version of “Help, I’m Alive,” for the low, low price of…your email address.

Alternative, Downloads, Electronica, Rock, Rock Babes, Steal This Song

Various Artists: He’s Just Not That Into You: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

February 20, 2009 /

If a dude admits that he likes a chick flick, he might lose certain privileges, like, you know, the privilege to not be hassled by his buddies. But soundtracks are another story, because sometimes they surprise us with songs we actually like or even ones we have listened to and purchased on our own before. As for “He’s Just Not That Into You,” which is the chick flick of chick flick titles, there are some songs on its soundtrack that will let you guys keep your street cred and then some, such as My Morning Jacket’s “I’m Amazed,” the Black Crowes’ “By Your Side” and the Replacements’ “Can’t Hardly Wait.” But even the estrogen-heavy stuff isn’t bad – Tristan Prettyman’s “Madly” and Erin McCarley’s “Love, Save The Empty” are catchy and worth a download, and make up for the sappy James Morrison tune (“You Make It Real”) or the over-played Human League hit, “Don’t You Want Me.” But the kicker? Scarlett Johansson’s “Last Goodbye” is the closer, and it is so not bad at all – there’s no surprise she has a sexy voice, but it’s her delivery and the beauty of the song itself that will surprise the most skeptical of you all. (Warner Bros.)

Movie Website

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop, Rock, Rock Babes

Kylie Minogue: Boombox: The Remix Album

February 13, 2009 /

It physically pains us that Kylie Minogue isn’t big in America. Heaven knows that we’ve embraced singers with thinner voices and weaker tunes, not to mention there are few pop stars on the planet as awesomely hot as the Divine Miss K. Capitol thought they had lightning in a bottle when “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” exploded, but once “Love at First Sight” scratched and clawed its way to #23, they learned the same lesson that Geffen learned a decade before: in radio terms, Kylie’s not a girlfriend – she’s a one-night stand. With the release of Boombox: The Remix Album, it appears that Capitol (who shuffled the contract off to hipster indie Astralwerks) is fulfilling their obligation to releasing Minogue’s records, and the choice is a curious one. On the one hand, compiling the remixes will rope in her gay club-going fans, but will they be satisfied with edited versions of the mixes? Astralwerks better hope so, because the mixes on Boombox are not going to play to mainstream dance popsters. The mash-up of “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” with New Order’s “Blue Monday” is cute, and the Chemical Brothers add a nice dose of sleaze to “Slow,” but the majority of the mixes are relentless, thumpa-thumpa-thumpa dub-style mixes (“Wow,” in particular, is hacked to bits). If we had our way, Boombox would use single edits, with a bonus disc of full-length remixes. With any luck, a more commercial-friendly version of Boombox is in the works. (Astralwerks)

Kylie Minogue MySpace page

CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Dance, Electronica, Pop, Rock Babes

Erin McCarley: Love, Save the Empty

February 6, 2009 /

How does a solo artist stand out in a crowd these days? It’s not an easy task, due to the sheer number of singers and/or songwriters that seem to be on every street corner no matter what part of the globe you’re on. To help listeners and fans find you, it helps to be quite talented, and that can be said about newcomer Erin McCarley and her debut album, Love, Save the Empty. McCarley has the kind of radio-ready sound that is sure to please the “One Tree Hill” producers and fan base alike, but this sultry vocalist writes songs that run deeper and darker than that. What you’ll hear on most of Love, Save the Empty is a gloomy undertone, and McCarley openly admits that she is most inspired when sad. But that dark feel, akin to maybe Fiona Apple or Alanis Morissette, is also tempered by an accessible yet sophisticated side to her songwriting – think Aimee Mann or Luscious Jackson’s Jill Cunniff. And while McCarley does have a nice set of songs to debut to the world, the wispy Hotel Café vocal thing does get a bit tiresome after a while. It’s also what is selling right now, so you can’t fault the artist or label. Among 11 great pieces, the ones you should keep coming back to are the opening single, “Pony (It’s OK),” the peppy “Sleep Walking” and the beautifully melancholy “Lovesick Mistake,” easily the album’s best track. (Universal Republic 2009)

Erin McCarley MySpace Page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop, Rock, Rock Babes

Dana Falconberry: Oh Skies of Grey

February 5, 2009 /

Sometimes new artists come out of nowhere to brighten our day and sometimes they help by painting beautiful images in our heads with their music – be they bright, or be they cloudy and drizzly as Dana Falconberry does on the aptly titled Oh Skies of Grey. Falconberry is an Austin Texas singer/songwriter who moved from her hometown of Dearborn, Michigan a few years back and has been hanging around the camps of Patty Griffin, Peter Buck and Alejandro Escovedo. What you’ll hear in Falconberry is equal parts sultry folkster (Griffin), rainy day alt-popster (Suzanne Vega), and bombastic arrangements that give her songs incredible character (think Laura Veirs). All of this is wrapped up in a neat package and delivered with authority on Oh Skies of Grey, and it’s the kind of moody fare that you stick in your CD player and forget about for a while, or at least until the sun starts peaking through. The best tracks among 12 varied and well-crafted ones are the shuffling, hauntingly sexy “Love Will Never Leave You Alone” and “Flourescent” as well as the unofficial title track, “Blue Umbrella.” (2:59)

Dana Falconberry MySpace Page

Alternative, Ambient, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Folk, Pop, Rock, Rock Babes

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