What We're Listening To - Frank Ocean's nostalgia, ULTRA.

I had put off listening to Frank Ocean for some time. I don't really dig much of modern R&B, and his association with shock rap collective Odd Future just kind of turned me cold. We have plenty of hypersexed crooners rocking the airwaves right now.

But his crooning on Watch The Throne piqued my interest, especially his notes on Made In America (maybe they can book him for the MLK Memorial dedication later this month in DC). It was tender and pure, and at the very least deserved a longer look.

nostalgia, ULTRA. is a near flawless debut album with pitch perfect singing, brand name production, smart lyrics and a groove that won't quit. it is challenging in the most desirable way possible.

Frank Ocean (nee Christopher Breaux) released it for free on his tumblr in February after Def Jam signed and ignored him. Since then, critics have heaped huge amounts of praise on it and Def Jam is scrambling to figure out how to give it a formal release. The album, while not only great, is a perfect picture of everything that's wrong with major labels.

Ocean has a keen ear towards what makes good pop music. He's penned a song for The Beebs (which doesn't disqualify him... people's gotta eat). But there're no R&B throwback covers here. He adds new lyrics and soul to Coldplay's Strawberry Swing, adds more sex to MGMT's Electric Feel, and ups the despair and indulgence of Hotel California. Even Radiohead's Optimistic makes a cameo (if only to serve as his foil that "bitches" would rather listen to Jodeci)

But on the original tracks, the boards are turned over to super producers Tricky Stewart and Midi Mafia (behind hits like Umbrella, Single Ladies, 21 Questions). But that only serves to make them radio friendly for your ear. Ocean is an artist with much on his mind and his lyrics go beyond just being sexy. They're thoughtful, humble and incredibly self aware. Songs For Women is a peek inside his head on his music and why he does it. Lovecrimes is backed by Nicole Kidman's tirade from Eyes Wide Shut

Novacane could be your newest sexytime jam (put it on random with Washed Out and you've got an all night party), a compelling story of girl he met at Coachella and the incredible high she gives him. And if there's any doubt his voice isn't the real deal, We All try is magnificent.

Ocean isn't as corny as Drake and not as earnest as Bruno Mars. He's more nimble and intelligent than Trey Songz, and not as overt or agressive as Chris Brown. Hopefully nostalgia, ULTRA and Frank Ocean mark the turning point for sensual, thoughtful contemporary R&B.

What We're Listening To - JAY Z and Kanye West's Watch The Throne

The long awaited collab of hip-hop's two reigning titans arrived this week, after fits and starts and a lock down so tight no one heard it until they said so.

And it's good. Not great by any stretch, but it shows Jay-Z back in good form and Kanye finding the sweet spot he hit on MBDTF and keeping it going.

When H.A.M. dropped, I was admittedly not impressed. That gaudy single art, the lackluster lazy rhyming, the trash heap beats. Then came the threat of a full collab album, something Jay has quite frankly never been able to pull off. Need I remind you of Best of Both Worlds AND Unfinished Business? Not to mention Collision Course and The Dynasty.

And Kanye, notoriously a weak rapper, has been growing lyrically and eating Jay for lunch. Where Jay killed it on Diamonds from Sierra Leone, Ye destroyed it on Run This Town and Haters.

But here we are, and in a weird bit of alchemy, all these elements that together should make a miserable album instead create a solid experience.

They've invited a ton of friends to come lamp: Beyonce, Frank Ocean, Bon Iver. It is an album that is singularly Kanye's vision in its scope, size and production. Prime example: they paid nothing short of a trillion dollars to clear Otis Redding's Try a Little Tenderness. It was 100 percent worth it and shows the two at their most comfortable. No hooks, horns and an Otis Redding that go nowehere, it feels simultaneously fresh and a throwback to early Kanye. Gotta Have It samples a skittish James Brown, with some assist from the Neptunes, you can tell this is going to be a party.

Jay-Z over his entire career has never dreamed this big (his masterpiece The Blueprint is remarkable for its restraint and smoothness). And at times he gets swallowed in. You would think New Life, a RZA coproduced track sampling Nina SImone would be perfect. And the idea is great: two guys rapping to their unborn children. But Jay doesn't do sentimentality (exception: Song Cry), and Kanye never sounds sincere (I find it hard to breathe in when the next track is That's My Bitch).

But when it shines, it burns bright. Niggas in Paris is possibly my favorite track on the album, built off of frantic rapping, a tapping high hat and synth, and some nonsense half bits from Ye and Jigga.

What is the end to this collaboration? These two have been appearing on each other's records for a solid decade now, so this is nothing new. I'm glad to see whatever falling out they had has been resolved. Ye still is looking up to his Big Brother, and in some ways, Jay-Z still needs Kanye to stoke that fire and hunger. But where this album leaves us I'm not quite sure.

Buy JAY Z and Kanye West's Watch the Throne from Amazon's MP3 Store

What We're Listening To - Dawes' Nothing is Wrong

I'm always amazed at the different sounds that come from LA. Maybe because of my East Cost leanings, but it seems like every lost dreamer and wandering soul who picks up a guitar out there coaxes a completely different sound out of it. When I read about the revival of LA rock, I'm continually baffled, not by the bands (because they are good) but by the fact anyone would try and lump that into one box.

Case in point: dusty American rockers Dawes, who are remains of previous post punkers that fell in love with some vinyl from CSNY, Graham Parsons, The Band and Jackson Browne at some point. Their sophomore album Nothing is Wrong is a marvelous slow build of harmonies, gentle folk guitars and wandering lyrical tales.

"You got that special kind of sadness. You got that tragic sense of charms that only comes from time spent in Los Angeles" Taylor Goldsmith sings on the album opener, and you know he's talking about a girl, but maybe himself a little bit. It's mostly hazy tales of love, growth and fishing for understanding on the album, redefining Americana a little bit. I tend to lose them when they slow down too much, and songs like Moon in the Water or So Well tend to fade too much into the background. But When Dawes shines on tracks like If I Wanted Someone, The Way You Laugh and Coming Back to a Man, it holds my focus intently.

It makes me want to drive, though not necessarily to LA. Dawes is evoking a picture of America far from LaLaland. But maybe that is America.

Listen to Dawes' If I Wanted Someone on Hard of Hearing Ep  013

Buy Dawes' Nothing is Wrong from Amazon mp3

What We're Listening To - The Postelles s/t

And here comes summer, skipping over spring with a fiery sustained furnace blast for the past two weeks.

A break from the heat would be entirely all to welcome. But if we didn't have summer heat, we'd have no reason for cookouts, pool parties and all night hangouts.

So I'm thankful for the summer heat like I'm thankful for the self titled debut album from The Postelles, a fun dancey rock album. It keys up on tail end of the surf rock from last year, but crossed with the pop rock catchiness of The Strokes, Weezer or Arctic Monkeys. This makes sense since Strokes' guitarist Albert Hammond Jr produced it. It's clean and not a note out of place throughout. Think a slightly older Surfer Blood.

Sing along choruses start bright and big from the album opener and keep going til the end. White Night, Sleep on the Dance Floor, and 123 Stop are party starters for sure. The lyrics don't run too deep (Boys Best Friend is a jokey little tale about falling in love with a lesbian). It does get mildly repetitive, but that's okay cos as soon as it starts it's over. No one's gonna blame you for hitting repeat.

I'd recommend going to catch them on tour this summer, and if you're in DC see them 11 JUNE at Red Palace.

Buy The Postelles's self titled debut album

Buy from Amazon

What We're Listening To - Amor de Dias' Street of the Love of Days

If you haven't been paying attention, Merge Records has been churning out an incredible string of must have albums in 2011. Telekinesis, Apex Manor, Mountain Goats, Times New Viking, Wye Oak, and Destroyer have added more trophies to a case already struggling under the weight of other great albums.

Adding to that list is the debut from Amor de Dias, the new duo featuring Alasdair MacLean of The Clientle and Lupe Núñez-Fernández of Pipas. Street of the Love of Days is a fantastic album, echoing the gentle Brazilian samba and bossa nova of Getz/Gilberto/Jobim. It is one of the most gorgeous releases I have heard all year.

Recorded over three years with the help of friends and when they had time from their various tours and main bands, Núñez-Fernández and MacLean are two peas in a pod complenting each other perfectly. Lupe occassionally sings in Spanish, to delightful effect on songs like Wandering and Late Mornings. Alasadair takes lead some, cooing on House on Flint to come dance, an altogether pleasing comeon. But the song and album sounds like a dream you can barely catch, so lounging lazily seems like a better activity.

If you're looking for something to help you fill upcoming weekend morning at home or those afternoons that meander into dusk, Amor de Dias' Street of the Love of Days will fit that bill nicely.

Street of the Love of Days will be available 17 May 2011.

Buy Amor de Dias' Street of the Love of Days from Merge Records

What We're Listening To - Jamaica's No Problem

Aside from the fact that I really like it, I'm kind of unsure what to make of French pop duo Jamaica and its album No Problems. It's immensely enjoyable, and what could be easily dismissed as a Phoenix ripoff it bucks that notion at each turn. It's more like a dancier, funkier Hall and Oates.

Stick with me here.

Justice's Xavier de Rosnay produced it, so it's got a certain polish to it; every guitar strum, drum pop, and layered effect starts and stops on cue. But listen to tracks like Gentleman or She's Gonna. These are fun filled, 80's adult rock kissed songs, with the strolling guitar and faux r&b singing.

That's not an indictment, cos Jamaica has a definite understanding of what makes you move. Simple chorus and lyrics (possibly the result of French to English singing... see Phoenix) are through and through, repeated for an effect that's more instrumental than conveying a message. Album openers Cross the Fader and I Think I Like U 2 beg to be played in the middle of weekend pool party in July.

The remixes on the deluxe edition are even more delicious, mor spaced and synthed out versions of the original.

It's an album that is ringing the bell to welcome in summer. Mix it in with a few tracks John and Darryl for an even better time.


Buy Jamaica's No Problems at the Amazon mp3 Store

What We're Listening To - Pains of Being Pure At Heart's Belong

"Be you and the best possible you there is." Probably something you heard your mother, guidance counselor, or some self-esteem guru mutter over and over again. But it's the truth. Growth is good, but why go try and reinvent yourself, mucking up the best possible you there is?

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart have taken this bit of wisdom and run with it for their sophomore album Belong, turning in again another marvelous album chock full of jangly guitars, brainy love lyrics, and whispery vocals.

But the guitars have gotten louder, the sound slightly more full. And instead of so much John Hughes nostalgia, the band is looking towards the alt rocky 90s (assisted by Flood and Alan Moulder, who produced The Smashing Pumpkins Simaese Dream, Mellon Collie, NIN's Downward Spiral, and some EPs for My Bloody Valentine). Heart in Your Heartbreak and Belong are the biggest sounding things they've done, and the band is better for it. And tracks like Strange and My Terrible Friend (with that nonstop drumming and synth overload) are just as familiar as anything before. It's shoegazey/dream pop that's on the verge of exploding. And it's delightful.

Listen to your mom. She was right most of the time.

Buy The Pains of Being Pure At Heart's Belong from the Amazon mp3 Store

Buy the CD or LP from Slumberland Records

What We're Listening To - Disco Vietnam's TOTALLY AWESOME DECISIONS

I'm late to the Disco Vietnam bandwagon, but I'm going to bet that you probably are too. No worries, because they haven't run out of copies. On 2010's TOTALLY AWESOME DECISIONS, Disco Vietnam is crafting what I can only describe as some of the best fucking power pop out today.

Part hyperbole, part flattery, it's all truth. Disco Vietnam's Barry and Kenny Schwartz are making music that's aggressive, fun, catchy, and surprisingly meticulous in its production. Harmonies and three chord guitars run rampant. At times it reminds you of the best of Weezer (you remember, when they were good), songs about being young, but it goes further than that. They're imbued with the wisdom that age brings but not forgetting the sting. On the EP closer they proclaim "Even if the world starts over, I will still be here by your side. This song's not about you anymore." Little Infinity, Homecoming Queen, Luck Into Skill, and the rest are simply well crafted song.

An even better song not on the album (but available via Amazon) is the 2008 single The NP (Natalie Portman) a quasi ode to the actress. All eight tracks together make a terrific little package.

Buy Disco Vietnam's TOTALLY AWESOME DECISIONS directly from the band for $5

Buy Disco Vietnam's The NP (Natalie Portman) from the Amazon mp3 Store

What We're Listening To - The Rural Alberta Advantage's Departing

What I found so captitvating about The Rural Alberta Advantage's deubt album Hometowns was that a band could capture so much emptiness and lonliess with lyrics and sound, but still manage to be outsized pouring out my speakers. Every song seemed deliberately sparse, with what seemed like driving drums and little else. It was stunning, a crystal clear picture of the bleakness of Alberta, and what it must be like to fall in love, breakup and wish you had that someone back again.

With Departing they've filled out some of the space a little bit, with more pianos here and there, backing vocals and harmonies rounding it all out. But still remaining are strident songs about love, lonliness, and loss. "Our love will hold you tight or tear us apart tonight" sings Nils Eldenloff on Under The Knife. It's convincing, and you believe it.

All the songs are gems, but there are some real standouts. The song writing on North Star puts you in the car on the pitch black road, looking for that star to guide you home and back to his heart. Stamp is just a rail train of percussion that won't stop.

Departing's sparseness, like Hometowns, is its most winning feature. Truth: less is more with The Rural Alberta Advantage.

Check out the songs North Star and Stamp at the The RAA's website

Buy The RAA's Departing from Saddle Creek Records

Buy Departing from the Amazon mp3 Store

What We're Listening To - Yuck's s/t

There's nothing really overly phenomonal about Yuck's sound. They're playing music that's sweetly derivative of 90s fuzz sound melody masters like Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr, and Buffalo Tom. It's music that for me is evocative of sitting on the couch and watching The Real World: Boston for some odd reason.

What Yuck lacks in lyrical maturity (no I don't find rhyming crucifixion, benediction, addiction and affliction to be all that interesting) they make up for spades in tuneful chops. Georgia rules with its sweet girl-guy harmonies, along with Rubber, Sunday and Suicide Policeman for their gentle melodies. The four-minute Rose Gives a Lily shows a band comfortable enough with their instruments and source material to do eschew lyrics all together.

It's a perfect lazy springtime album, one where melody and youth reign supreme.

Buy Yuck's self titled album at Amazon's mp3 Store

What We're Listening To - Telekinesis' 12 Desperate Straight Lines

On tour , Telekinesis' Michael Benjamin Lerner has taken to covering, of all things, Justin Bieber's Baby.

Ignore that it's Bieber. The lyrics are a simple broken heart love song, and Lerner strips away the production and makes it a wonderful tune.

And this ability to capture, interpret, and express such youthful emotions made the Telekinesis debut an irresitible album I found myself listening to over and over again (it was our Best Album of 2009).

But what the first album captured so perfectly with it's tales of falling in love, 12 Desperate Straight Lines captures succintly the reverse feelings of breaking up and being hurt. Lerner lost a love and got a bad case of vertigo, which would affect anyone. But he adheres musically to the formula that he's perfected: quick power pop songs, with splashes of guitars and effects to break it up a bit.

He goes a little harder with 50 Ways, a nod to the cheesy Paul Simon song ("There truly are 50 ways..."), and even a little Cure-y with Please Ask For Help. He cleaned and sped up his 2010 Record Day and Parallel Seismic Conspiracies EP single Dirty Thing, stripping away the fuzz and distortion and adding a toy piano. It's a different take, but the first iteration is a beautiful kiss off.

But it's still the same Telekinesis, rocking it on Car Crash, having some delirious redemptive fun on Gotta Get It Right Now. The latter is a song my two-year-old loves, singing along to the simple "ba ba ba" chorus. You probably will too.

Stream and buy Telekinesis 12 Desperate Straight Lines at Merge Records.

Buy Telekinesis' 12 Desperate Straight Lines at the Amazon mp3 Store

What We're Listening To: Radiohead

This one certainly snuck up on everyone. Out of nowhere, Radiohead decided to self-release a new album via the Internet, informing the masses through Twitter, Facebook, and their email listserv. I didn't have to think twice about purchasing the album, and after two listens, they didn't dissapoint. In Rainbows could be considered a return to form, after 2003's heavy and angst driven Hail to the Thief. With In Rainbows, Radiohead honed their craft by cutting out all of that Bush induced anger, and focusing on the music. Their new album, The King of Limbs, is heavy on synthesizers and electronic noise (for a lack of a better word), but it doesn't exactly pick up where Kid A left off. Instead, it plots new ground, creating a musical world that is as mysterious as anything they have done before. The songs flow together extremely well, and before you know it, the album has finished as quietly as it began. This is the sound of the twenty first century. Go check it out!

What We're Listening To - U.S. Royalty's Mirrors

The buzz around DC band U.S. Royalty reached me before I had even heard anything. I think a coworker told me to check them out, or I heard them on a podcast, or possibly saw a poster at a club. Who knows.

Mirrors is an effort that barrels out of the gate and mellows quickly, trying to hold in big guitars and meandering lyrics and vocals. After a short instrumental piece, nothing has as much swagger 60s psych rock as second track Hollywood Hollows. And it's probably just as well, because the band shines better when it's not doing that. Monte Carlo, Vacation Vacation, Old Flames are solid pieces of Americana rock (less southern, more hazy... think Fleet Foxes, Band of Horses, My Morning Jacket). Fool to Love You is a good finger drumming jam, probably even more so live.

But there's Allman Brothers/Lynyrd Skynyrd touches there, like Give Up The Ghost, with its Muscle Shoals stomp in the front and Freebird uptick on the backend. Fun all the way around.

This will no doubt be a big year for US Royalty. Catch them live before they get too big.

Stream for free and Buy US Royalty's Mirrors for $7.99 directly from the band at its website.

Or the other usual suspects have it as well (Amazon, iTunes)

What We're Listening To - Ponderosa's Moonlight Revival

There's so much to like on the Ponderosa's Moonlight Revival, it kinda hurts when it hits its low points. Luckily those few low points are bolstered by enough southern rock swagger to bring back Ronnie Van Zant.

Very firmly paying homage to the Allmans and Skynyrd, Ponderosa also sound a lot like Whiskeytown, early Kings of Leon, and labelmates Old 97s. Which means your getting a lot of songs unabashedly about being young, falling in and out love, chasing girls and drinking. The songs are loose, like they've been played live plenty of times, and the band knows where it's going.

It works a lot of times. On the white boy soul-burning ballad Hold On You, lead singer Kalen Nash is puts every inch of his voice into it. I imagine live, this nearly five-minute diddy gets taken out for a 10 minute Freebird-esque walk. Old Gin Road is raucous and fun, a romp about trying to leave a small town. But the slower, darker songs (Girl I've Ever Seen, Broken Heart) just seem to get in the way of the party here. But there's still fun to be had all over (Pretty People, Devil On My Shoulder), and the band jams so well, it's makes the whole album an easy listen.

But for a debut, it's pretty remarkable. I wish it was a little warmer so I could blast it and drink beer on my porch.

Get Ponderosa's Moonlight Revival at Amazon's mp3 Store

What We Are Listening To - The Drums s/t

I wish I could say I came across The Drums s/t album through some awesome bar playing it in Boston (though a lot of restaurants brought it musically), but a simple 140 character suggestion from Amazon mp3 was the selling point for me "Suggested if you like the Smiths, Surfer Blood, driving up the coast."

Which are three things I like on an above average basis (the Surfer Blood album is one of the years best and most earnest efforts). Also should be added to that list is dancing. And surf pop.

But these 12 stripped down minimalist synthed songs are fun. Very Pretty in Pink as cowrker said. The handclapping on Skippin Town and the whistling on Let's Go Surfing is fun. And Morrissey he's not. He goes dark but think simpler. "You're my best friend but then you died." "Baby I don't know what to do without your love. Tell me what to do-ooo-oo-oo"

Every song is great though, rising above most other surf pop clogging up this year. Grab the album and pull a few songs off for a mix tape or two.

If you're interested in hitting up their 9:30 club show on 9/12, leave a comment or send me an email.

What We're Listening To - Janelle Monae's The ArchAndroid

I remember when neo-soul was a cheap way to lump black artists who were doing things that pushed the boundaries of contemporary R&B and hip hop.

It essentially was indie rock for black people.

RES, the original Black Eyed Peas, Knaan, India. Arie. This is just a sample, but these were artists with little to no commercial appeal, peddling their brand of music to highly educated black 20 somethings.

I blame the movie Love Jones.

So now we have Janelle Monae, who's making records about android uprising and falling in love, garnering 8.5 from the color-phobic Pitchfork, and sampling every single music genre, collaborating with some of ATL's finest.

My friends, this shit is indie (well polished indie, as it's on Bad Boy. If Diddy did any producing, you can tell he restrained). It's a close cousin to what Cee-Lo was doing before he met Danger Mouse.

The middle two parts of her four suite Metropolis story, The Archandroid crams 20 mostly brilliant songs (or song thoughts... Neon Gumbo is a 97 second cascade of blips and sounds) into what should be a double album. It's dizzying and tiring.

You spot influences all over. "Oh Maker" is probably the best Lauryn Hill song that Lauryn Hill never wrote, except it's about robots. "Say You'll Go" is beautiful Stevie Wonder-esque love song. She channels the helluva out of Prince on "Mushrooms and Roses." "Tightrope" could be this summer's jam and YouTube dance sensastion, straight off of Stankonia.

Her inner rock goddes takes hold and she invites Of Montreal to help her rock it on "Make The Bus", but she's capable all by herself on the much better and more resonant "Cold War," borrowing some of Andre 3000's freakiness (and his Bombs over Baghdad drums) with some of her own blend of weird thrown in there.

The concept, like most album themes, kinda gets old. Her voice and the music doesn not.

Seeing as how Outkast isn't putting anything out for a bit, pick this not to hold you over or replace, but to fall in love with, to remind you that weird is good.

Buy Janelle Monae's The ArchAndroid from Amazon's MP3 Store

What We're Listening To - Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings' I Learned The Hard Way

When I listen to Sharon Jones, one of the questions I always myself is, "Exactly how deep is the well of spurned love?"

Apparently pretty fucking deep.

Sharon Jones and Dap Kings don't grow so much as polish and evolve with their latest release, "I Learned The Hard Way." I almost like this album more than 100 Days, and I absolutely LOVED that album.

It's almost as if Sharon's mellowed a bit. Not so much in the lyrics ("I've got better things to do than remember you") but more in the vocal intensity. Before it was almost as if she was channeling so much of that feeling through her voice, it felt aggressive. But songs like "Give It Back" and the title track are calm, though sharp and pointed. Listen to that plaintive call in "Mama Don't Like My Man." assisted by only a guitar and some backup vocals, she births a classic as good as anything coming off of Motown or Stax in the 70s. Her voice is an instrument every bit as integral as those Dap Kings horns.

And whoa. The Dap Kings sound tighter than ever. There isn't a horn out of place, a drum beat off time, or a guitar lick out of sync. "The Reason" a 2 1/2 minute instrumental track is proof of how amazing this band is.

if you've ever wondered what the fuss is about, now is the time to discover Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings.

What We're Listening To - She & Him's Volume 2

For the past two weeks, I've been listening to what easily is my album of the year.

I may not have gotten into the groove that was Vol 1, but Vol 2 has me hooked.

Zooey's sweet, sugary, candy coated piercing vocals. Her cooing on Thieves can only be matched by her indomitable songwriting prowess.

Coupled with M. Ward's fuzzy, Phil Spector lite production values. Yes, he's pining for a time on the musical spectrum that literally existed for half a second. But just because your mark of perfection is tiny doesn't mean you shouldn't try to aim for it. Because my friend, he hit it.

What I'm saying is this. I'm a convert. They've done it for me. I looked at my iTunes playlist count and I can only imagine that to hit such a number over the past two weeks I must've been listening to this album on repeat in my bed while I sleep.

She & Him are rocking my ears, my heart and my soul. Thank you.

What We're Listening To - The Bird and Bee's Interpreting the Masters Volume 1: A Tribute to Daryl Hall and John Oates

An album of Hall and Oates covers, synth jazzed out.

There is simply no selling or categorizing this album. It is one where either you're repulsed and won't listen, or find the idea so corny you feel compelled to pick it up. Trust me, pick this up.

I don't even know if Daryl Hall and John Oates are worthy of having their music lovingly and appreciatively covered, but if they do, The Bird and The Bee did it.

Inara George and Greg Kurstin, as they did on their s/t debut and Ray Guns Are Not Just The Future, are making music that is loungey and nice. Indie pop for your mom and dad.

But an entire album of Hall and Oates? The beauty is that you know these songs, so they're comforting in that sense. You immediately sing along. Kurstin never wanders too far from the original music. But it's George's voice. It's jazzy and soulful, breathing some new life into Sarah Smile, turning it into an amazing song. She sounds like a direct descendant of Bonnie Rait and Annie Lenox. You can see why Blue Note signed them. She might be on the sidelines, but she's a direct fit at their roster.

All the H&O favorites are here, and you won't be disappointed. Maneater, Private Eyes, Kiss on My List, Rich Girl. And instead of being karaoke, Kurstin and George were very deliberate. There's no snickering, or oversinging. No kitsch.

Not sure if I'd call Hall and Oates masters. But Interpreting The Masters is a lot of great fun. Here's hoping Volume 2 will keep that spirit alive and is better than some other Volume 2's released last week.

Buy The Bird and Bee's Interpreting the Masters Volume 1: A Tribute to Daryl Hall and John Oates

Buy from Amazon

Stream the Entire Album at CBS Radio's StreetDate

What We're Listening To - The Soft Pack's s/t

The Soft Pack's self titled kinda debut album (the first under the band's new name) is a fun 10 song, 40 minute ride, full of garagey punk guitars and mopey lyrics. It's an odd combination that works much better than you would think.

If I hadn't been hooked by the opener "C'Mon," I wouldn't have stayed for the rest. With its Dick Dale surf rock guitar opening, pushing drums, and ridiculously catchy chorus, these guys got the order right. "Move Along" and "Answer to Yourself" melds those depressing lyrics ("I don't know what shape I'm in/Living here I just can't win") with some classic punk motifs of simple guitar chords and bass.

My favorite one-two punch is "Flammable" and "Mexico," two songs that can't seem further apart. Flammable with all this bottled up quick energy, sounds like a train about to derail. Then it's back to that dreamy surf rock with Mexico, a song that almost twice as long as the one before it. It slows you down to a crawl, and it's beautiful.

In a year that so far has seen some pretty stellar releases, this is another notch on 2010's music belt.

Download for FREE The Soft Pack's "Answer To Yourself" from Amazon mp3