Song of the Week : The National - Bloodbuzz Ohio

The National - Bloodbuzz Ohio
Ok, so as often happens with SOTW, there's a song that you'd like to choose and a song that chooses itself. I had a song picked out early in the week because I really liked it and then thought it too early. So I chose another last night (may make it to next week). Then this morning when the alarm went off, what was the 'yoof' station playing at me? The very same song I originally chose. ZOMG!11!!11WTFBBQ!

I found The National through an NY Times review of Alligator. So I checked the album out and then obsessively found whatever I could by the Brooklyn quintet made in Ohio. The new album is streaming online at NY Times funny enough. I freakin' love these guys.

This song is a sort of loser's lament about debts and despair and a lack of meaning. I chose it mostly for the fantastic lyric refrain "I still owe money to the money I owe" I mean, what better rhymes with Ohio? :) I tend to lean towards the drunken sad country touched indie rock style and The National does it really well. They're Whiskeytown for the 2010s :)

Looking forward to grabbing a copy of the new album when it drops later in May. While Alligator and Boxer have won all the critical acclaim, I am personally fond of the self-titled debut The National for world-weary alcoholic musings like The Perfect Song and Bitters & Absolut.

Playlist : April 5th - 9th, 2010

A short week this week with Easter Monday. The week's playlist, in no particular order, looks like this:

• Silver Jews - Bright Flight : An Alt Country melancholic way to start the week.
• InI - Center of Attention : More of the Jazz Hop I have been exploring lately.
• Paw - Dragline : Includes the great track Jesse that made the first JJJ Hottest 100 list.
• Stanley Cowell - Equipoise : Some instrumental smooth Jazz.
• M. Ward - Hold Time : An M. Ward album with guest vocals from Zooey Deschanel of She & Him.
• Syl Johnson - Is It Because I'm Black? : Funky soul tunes about class and race from 1970.
• Nas - It Was Written : The follow up to Illmatic and not an LP I've heard yet.
• Soundtrack - Jackie Brown : An underrated film and a great soundtrack.
• VA - Stolen Moments: Red Hot and Blue : Benefit LP featuring Jazz Hop artists.
• The National - The Virginia EP : Bundled with the A Skin, A Night DVD I recently purchased.
• Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings - 100 Days, 100 Nights : Added after hearing the new album on NPR last week.

On Friday night I hope to post Song of the Week and have one of these albums reviewed before Sunday night when the next list will be published.

Welcome to Work Tunes

While creating a new post for my movie blog Make Films Not Movies, it occurred to me that I should have a blog to review my other passion - music.

I am lucky enough to have a great job where I can listen to music all day while completing my duties - no contact with clients and minimal phone calls. Being a music tragic with eclectic tastes, I take a different playlist of albums in every week. Occasionally this means a new release I have bought or an old favourite I haven't heard in a while.

I have started this blog to hopefully review an album a week, or just when one inspires a post. I think music is easier to review than film, but we'll see, won't we. Posts will be linked on my Twitter feed (@coreyj) as they are published. I hope you'll check any out that interest you and maybe leave a comment.

Stay tuned for the next thrilling installment of Work Tunes next week when I'm back at work.