Richmond Fontaine - Thirteen Cities

The new Richmond Fontaine record produced by JD Foster have enlisted the services of Joey Burns of Calexico and Howe Gelb of Giant Sand and have frankly, hit one out of the park. There's nothing like the lugubrious musings of one Willy Vlautin.

2007 : Now Playing

Son Volt - The Search
Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
Dungen - Tio Bitar
Kings of Leon - Because of The Times
The High Llamas - Can Cladders
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists - Living With the Living
Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank
Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha
Lucinda Williams - West
Earlies - The Enemy Chorus

Teri Falini - The Room

'The Room', the follow-up to her angsty debut 'Sun Under Me', shows a level of songwriting that continues to grow which in my opinion was only alluded to on her debut. Listen to the tracks 'Cut' & 'Broken Man' from her debut for confirmation. While 'The Room' is more of a 'downer' record, there's something about it that draws me in and forces me to hit play again. Some great tracks here from the 'trippy' opener, 'Tangerine', the hooky 'Undressed', the tribal-esqe title track 'The Room' and my current favorite song of 2007, the epic 'My Father'. It's refreshing to listen to a female artist who's unlike anything I've heard. PJ Harvey comes to mind, the singer from Concrete Blonde perhaps. Still, you're nowhere in the ballpark.
Highly recommended (Amazon review)

Undressed

My Father

The Room

The Shins - Wincing The Night Away

Once indie, now headed for the mainstream The Shins have created something quite unique. Taking their time in James Mercer's basement studio with help from Joe Chiccarelli, Wincing the Night Away might be the best Shins record to date.

Phantom Limb

Top 25 Records of 2006

01. Robert Pollard - from a compound eye
02. Drive-by Truckers - a blessing and a curse
03. Sparklehorse - dreamt of light years in the belly of the mtn
04. M.Ward - post-war
05. Calexico - garden ruin
06. Benoit Pioulard - precis
07. The Keene Brothers - blues & boogie shoes
08. Minus 5 - gun album
09. Deadstring Brothers - starving winter report
10. Frank Black - fastman raiderman
11. Bob Dylan - modern times
12. Norman & Nancy Blake - back home in sulphur springs
13. Loose Fur - born again in the usa
14. The Hold Steady - boys & girls in america
15. Howe Gelb - 'sno-angel like you
16. Robert Pollard - normal happiness
17. Richard Buckner - meadow
18. Scott Biram - graveyard shift
19. Pernice Brothers - live a little
20. Tim Easton - ammunition
21. Gob Iron - death songs of the living
22. Midlake - the trials of van occupanther
23. Neko Case - fox confessor brings the flood
24. Destroyer - rubies
25. The Flaming Lips - at war with the mystics

Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts of The Great Highway

If you do nothing else today go out and pick up 'Ghosts of the Great Highway'. It will be the best thing you do all day.