4Play

May 23, 2007

Michael Penn - Palms & Runes, Tarot & Tea: A Michael Penn Collection - Sony
This isn’t your average best-of set, being as that Penn hand-picked the tracklisting himself - and it shows in the range and depth of the songs included here. Although Penn never truly hit the mainstream
(as inexplicably happens to far too many of the de-serving musicians that are left strumming under the radar), chances are you’ve heard at least a few of these songs. If you haven’t, then congratulations - you’ve just been introduced to one of the best singer-songwriters out there. Most of these selections are alternate takes, slightly different versions, or album cuts;  highlights include the beautifully melancholy “Long Way Down (Look What the Cat Drug In),” the zippy “Cupid’s Got a Brand New Gun” (complete with horns) and Penn’s one genuine chart hit, the lyrically-and-musically-superb “No Myth.”
 
Limbeck - Limbeck - Doghouse
So-Cal boys Limbeck are offering up their third album on Doghouse Records, and although its thematically much the same as their previous efforts, parts of it are a surprisingly interesting twist on what they’ve presented before.  The follow-up to their 2005 set, Let Me Come Home, the new disc, simply titled Limbeck, was produced by Ed Rose and includes some newer sounds for the band, among them bar chimes, vocoder, horns, and a ukelele.  These instruments are used to great effect on songs as diverse as “Reading the Street Signs,” “Big Drag,” “Trouble,” and “Sunset Limited.”  Limbeck have really embraced the base of their alt-country sound - fans of Wilco, for example, will likely enjoy Limbeck’s music, as well - and they’ve infused it with enough indie-pop, quirk, and punk touches to give this set an intriguing amount of extra pep and depth.
 
Peter Bjorn and John - Writers Block - Almost Gold
Peter, Bjorn, and John - yes, that’s three separate individuals, although for some reason they eschew commas in their official band name - hail from Sweden, and follow much the same formula that fellow indie popsters The Cardigans and Shout Out Louds do.  That’s not to say that these tracks are formulaic, although their influences are apparant.  It’s folk, it’s shoegaze, it’s atmospheric-pop - it’s many things, all dolloped with plenty of slushy keyboards, ringing guitars, and simplistic drumbeats that nevertheless serve the songs quite well.  It’s a cheer-fest most of the time, given songs like “Object of My Affection,” and “Young Folks,” but there are also a few more pensive, chilly moments, such as on the aptly-named “The Chills” and “Paris 2004.”  It’s a focused and melodic set that takes an easily-simplified pop genre and shakes it up nicely.
 
Kaiser Chiefs - Yours Truly Angry Mob - UMVD
Irreverent, street, and - dare we say it again? - cheeky, the Kaiser Chiefs’ latest is a mob indeed, chock-full of singalongable rave-ups and songs with choruses big enough to hold all five bandmates and then some.  There are loads of hooks here and plenty of subterfuge in the form of lyrics;  when satire is hidden underneath a plethora of huge guitars and pogo beats, it takes a few listens to realize that singer Ricky Wilson is actually quite the smarty pants, and we mean that in a complimentary way.  Whether they’re ripping on their own youthful indiscretions (“Highroyds”), baiting their audience to loudly join them (“The Angry Mob”), slowing down (surprisingly) with “Love’s Not a Competition (But I’m Winning),” or setting the foundations for another “I Predict A Riot” with the rebel-rock of “Ruby,” the band is in their best form to date.