New Albums / CDs

via CMJ:

The New York Dolls, the glammed up early-'70s band responsible, in large part, for the creation of punk rock, have announced that they will be working on their first new album, One Day It Will Please Us To Remember Even This (Roadrunner), in over 30 years. The 13-track album, due in US stores July 25, will contain guest appearances from R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe, Iggy Pop, Against Me! frontman Tom Gabel and rock 'n' roll pioneer Bo Diddley. Vocalist David Johansen and guitarist Syl Sylvain will represent the original lineup. Rick Rivets, however, will not be on the album. The band will be filled out by Steve Conte on guitar, Sami Yaffa on bass, Biran Delaney on drums and Brian Koonin on keyboard.

Talking about the album on Roadrunner's website, Johansen said, "There's so much negative bullshit being forced down people's throats in the marketplace, we really wanted to create a thing of beauty that will stand the test of time, and hopefully add something positive to people's lives..."

Neil Young just posted the news on his website that, in a 3 day span this month, he suddenly popped out an entire album.. it's entitled Living With War, and it's ten songs are said to go after Bush, and hard.. one track entitled "Impeach the President." Here's the info from his site:

...just finished a new record.... a power trio with trumpet and 100 voices ... recorded earlier this month...i think it is a metal version of Phil Ochs and Bob Dylan ... Metal folk

protest? its called LIVING WITH WAR... the title song is the second of 10 songs

on the record... we will be releasing lyrics on this ticker...I would like to thank Warner Bros/Reprise records for the support...as well as the 100 vocalists and my three musicians,

Chad Cromwell, drums, Rick Rosas, bass, Tommy Brea , trumpet ... and Nick Bolas, Larry Johnson, John Hausman, John Nowland, Tim Mulligan,Darrell Brown and Rosemary Butler, Redwood Digital Studios, Capital Studios ...

And the lyrics to Living With War:

I'm LIVING WITH WAR everyday

I'm LIVING WITH WAR in my heart everyday

I'm LIVING WITH WAR right now.....

And when the dawn breaks I see my fellow man ...

And on the flat-screen we kill and we're killed again...

and when the night falls, I pray for PEACE...

Try to remember PEACE (visualize)...

I join the multitudes...

I raise my hand in PEACE

I never bow to the laws of the thought police

I take a holy vow...

To never to kill again..

To never kill again...

I'm LIVING WITH WAR in my hear

I'm LIVING WITH WAR in my heart and my mind...

I'm LIVING WITH WAR right now...

Don't take no tidal wave...

Dont take no mass grave...

Don't take no smokin' gun....

To show how the west was won....

But when the curtain falls,

I pray for PEACE....

Try to remember PEACE (visualize).......

So far 2006 is surely a year Busta Rhymes would rather forget, but despite all his troubles the "Big Bang" album still has to be one of the more anticipated releases of the year, especially for those clamoring to "bring New York back", whatever that means. It was due out already by now, but has been pushed back and allegedly hits May 16th:

Busta Rhymes' Big Bang Will Come Later Than Expected

Busta Rhymes' The Big Bang was supposed to come out this week, but the album's release has been pushed back to May 16.

Aftermath/Interscope will release the follow-up to Rhymes' 2002 album, It Ain't Safe No More, which was the rapper's last release for J Records.

The single "Touch It" has already been released and a new one titled "I Love My Bitch" will hit the airwaves later this month. The track features Rhymes (real name Trevor Smith) alongside Black Eyed Peas member Will.i.am and milkshake enthusiast, Kelis.

The album will feature many other high-profile guests as well, including Mary J. Blige, Missy Elliott, DMX, Stevie Wonder, Ludacris and Lloyd Banks. It was produced by Aftermath main man Dr. Dre, Swizz Beats and Will.i.am...

Yung Joc's (not Young Joc) album "New Joc City" arrives May 23rd, coming on the heels of his "It's Goin Down" single.. maybe it won't be too late for Bad Boy can still milk a few more bucks out of the southern rap boom.. Different Kitchen aka "the guy i know who likes this stuff" is into him, so that should be a good sign for the project.

Block Enterprises/Bad Boy South artist Yung Joc (not Young Joc) is currently enjoying a huge buzz throughout Atlanta over his first single "It's Going Down." SOHH recently had the opportunity to chop it up exclusively with the young rapper about his newfound fame and his upcoming album.

As SOHH previously reported, Sean "Diddy" Combs' Bad Boy South recently inked a multi-million dollar deal with Block Enterprises CEO Russell "Block" Spencer, the man behind the success of Boyz N Da Hood and Young Jeezy.
As the first release for the new label, 23-year-old Joc is confident that his music will set the pace for the new label.
"I'm focused right now so I'm not feeling any weight on me as the first artist," Joc told SOHH. "I'm an every dude, I believe perseverance is key; I believe in hustle smarter not harder, plan your work and work your plan and put God first."

"It's Going Down," produced by Nitty (Boyz N Da Hood "Them Boyz"), is the first single off Joc's forthcoming album New Joc City...

...While New Joc City will boast several guest appearances, Joc is staying quiet so far on what to expect. "There's gonna be a lot of them, but I ain't going to tell you now. I want to leave something to the imagination. I don't want to use everybody else's credibility just to sell records, I would rather you pick the CD up off my credibility..."

Here's a review of People Under The Stairs' latest batch of beatdiggery:

People Under The Stairs' Stepfather album is due to be officially released on April 18 but I got a demo version of the EP last week and am still listening to it. I think that this collection of songs is the one that will propel Mike Turner (Double K) and Chris Portugal (Thes One) to better recognition on the world stage. From Los Angeles, the two got together in the late 90's, formed People Under The Stairs and have been developing their unique sound and entertaining crowds all over the world since then. They have released several records together previously as well as each having solo projects.

Stepfather is the kind of fresh, innovative music that these guys are known for. Somehow they manage to draw together many varied elements of style and approach and end up with a finished product that never stops entertaining from start to finish. They utilize bits of audio taken from old TV shows to accentuate some of the songs and I think that is really cool and it just "fits" with the music on the EP. Their styles range from danceable Hip-Hop to twitching the turntable on some Old School rap flavored tunes (which is still a favorite of mine) and even includes some Reggae flavored bits. They manage to seem natural no matter in what style they present themselves and, in my opinion, they are one of the best representatives of the West Coast Hip-Hop/Rap sound today...

Those lovable Yankee-haters, Field Mob, drop their Field Mob Light Poles and Pine Trees album on May 23rd (pushed back quite a bit from it's original November slot). Y'all better do something big, after talking all that anti-NY smack!

Albany, Georgia Hip-Hop duo Field Mob has inked a deal with Ludacris' Disturbing Tha Peace label to release their third album Light Poles and Pine Trees.

“As Disturbing Tha Peace continues to grow, we are proud to have them as an addition to our brand,” Ludacris told AllHipHop.com. “We [Disturbing Tha Peace] are here to broaden their appeal as being two of the leading lyricists from the south. I expect just as much from them as they do from us.”

Group members Shawn Jay and Smoke explained the meaning behind the album’s title.

"The name of the album is Light Poles and Pine Trees because there ain't no skyline where we're from," Shawn Jay said. "There's no arch like in St. Louis or palm trees like California," continued Smoke aka Chevy Pendagrass. "You look up and that's what you see in Albany..."

The 4th album from Tool, "10,000" Days, is out May 2nd. Well, I guess it's already leaked online, but, you know. Here's more info plus tracklisting:

After 5 years of waiting the truly unique and inspirational Tool return with their new album '10,000 Days'. A 77-minute, 11-song genius prog-metal odyssey, '10,000 Days' is packed with plenty of eight minute-plus twisted riff-a-thons, odd-tempo Polyrhythms and Tool's trademark eerie interludes.

Tracklist:
* 1. Vicarious
* 2. Jambi
* 3. Wings For Marie (Part 1)
* 4. 10, 000 Days (Wings Part 2)
* 5. The Pot
* 6. Lipan Conjuring
* 7. Lost Keys (Blame Hofman)
* 8. Rosetta Stoned
* 9. Intension
* 10. Right In Two
* 11. Viginti Tres

If you're guessing from the title that R Kelly's fingerprints are on this project, you are correct. I wish the bros nothing but success, but I wish they'd find some new people to hang out with.. and I don't have Jermaine Dupri in mind when I say that.

The legendary Isley Brothers have been luring couples between the sheets with their velvet tender vibes for five decades now.

So, it’s only right that their new album be titled, Baby Makin’ Music.

With their single, “Just Came Here To Chill,” picking up steam, the Isley Brothers’ newest album has been scheduled for a May 9 release.

Baby Making Music will reunite Ron Isley with R. Kelly in "Blast Off," a song that’s bound to add another dimension in the ongoing saga between Mr. Biggs and the Pied Piper. Blast Off is also scheduled to be their second single.

As much as Kelly has been a steady dependable collaborator for the Isley Brothers, they also wanted to go out the box with Baby Makin’ Music.

The Isley Brothers, known for hits such as “It’s Your Thing” and “For The Love Of You,” worked with Jermaine Dupri for the first time in their careers. Dupri produced three songs on their new album including “Gotta Be With You,” “Beautiful” and “Forever Mackin.'.."

It's already the UK's album of the year, and I'm betting this'll do better here than most Brit musical darlings.. we shall see come May 9th.

reposting my words elsewhere:

"Could this album's buzz be any buzzier? I've listened to 7 or 8 tracks, and I'd say it's the best project Danger has done so far. I thought the Grey joint was nicely crafted but missing a certain oomph, and felt the same about Dangerdoom.. Doom is in my top 5 but he's far from the loudest or most energetic on the mic, so Madlib's filthy dirtyness was a better complement to that low-key flow.. Danger's beats didn't serve that role quite as well.

But that "cleaner" sound that falls a bit short under Doom is the perfect backdrop for Cee-Lo's monsteriffic vocal presence, leaving just enough space for his guttural gospel growl to add the grit and soul. I hope it does as well on this side of the proverbial pond.."

Snoop Dogg says he'll be working with Dr. Dre again on a new album entitled "The Blue Carpet Treatment," which I'm sure has nothing to do the Crips since he learned from Tookie Williams that gangbanging is wrong.

Snoop also reports he'll be branching out in new directions on The Blue Carpet Treatment, teaming up with Stephin Merritt of Magnetic Fields on some softer, more melodic and pop-rock oriented tracks. "I've been rocking a lot of show tunes lately, Gilbert and Sullivan type shit, and a gang of old Beach Boys records.. sometimes a pimp needs to expand his territory. Me and Stephin bout to get that songcraft on for real." Reportedly Mr. Merritt has declined Snoop's suggestion to adopt a new moniker, "Stephin Fetchit," for the project.

(At least one sentence in this post is not true)

Lupe Fiasco's debut album "Food & Liquor" has been all over the news lately with a presumably unfinished version of the CD getting leaked, and Lupe Fiasco (understandably) freaking out and suggesting he may not give this material an official release now that's it's getting scooped up for free. It was due out on June 27th, and I have to assume Lupe is just letting off steam and will be wise enough not to abort the project. And I hope he won't be offended by folks like me posting a review of the leaked version, if the review is resoundingly positive and sure to increase interest in his work:

Lupe Fiasco Food & Liquor

...this leaked version of the album is just about perfect (or at least really really good; I can get too caught up on my first couple of listens).

...In this unmixed forms, the beats are mixed low enough that they don't overwhelm Lupe's vocals, and there aren't any distracting rapper cameos or big-name R&B singers cluttering the thing up, so I can focus pretty much exclusively on what Lupe brings to the table, and that turns out to be a whole hell of a lot. As a rapper, he's nimble and thoughtful and gentle and big-hearted; he's got a great ear for hooks and internal rhymes and a wicked eye for detail...

...His throwaway lines are beautifully crafted ("There's no honor amongst fellows / It's harder than sitting with a blind man and trying to describe yellow," "I am Atlas at this, manage to balance massive masses"), and it's going to take a while to untangle all of them, but he always delivers them with this totally cool, conversational ease...

...So yeah, anyway, this thing is pretty fucking great as is; it can easily hang with the Ghostface and T.I. albums as one of the best of the year. If Lupe keeps tinkering with it, he's only going to f**k it up.

The Dixie Chicks "Taking The Long Way" album rides on in May 23, their first release since they met that rather stupid backlash for their comments about President Bush. Hopefully everyone who has since realized they shouldn't have voted for him will buy this album as penance.

Here go the basics from Rolling Stone:

Dixie Chicks "Taking The Long Way"

Nine-time Grammy-winners the Dixie Chicks will release their long-awaited new album, appropriately titled Taking the Long Way, on May 23rd. "It's more of a rock record with country leanings than a country record with rock leanings," says Rick Rubin, who produced the Dixie Chicks' fourth studio album. "The Byrds, Tom Petty: Those are the points of reference."

Rubin met with the Chicks in the summer of 2004; he had seen them perform a concert that he describes as "punk-rock country." When he first met the band, it was moving beyond the fallout over singer Natalie Maines' criticism of President Bush, which resulted in a tide of hatred from country fans. "They had a platform to talk about important stuff," Rubin says. "We talked about personalizing the songs."

Rubin introduced the Dixie Chicks to a team of co-writers that included the Heartbreakers' Mike Campbell. Among the new songs is the likely first single and most provocative, "Not Ready to Make Nice," a plaintive, slow-burning track in which Maines asks, "How in the world can the words that I said/Send somebody over the edge?" Other standouts include "Baby Hold On," an acoustic rocker with John Mayer on guitar, and the roadhouse-style "Lubbock or Leave it..."

One of the godfathers of Afrobeat, Fela's longtime drummer Tony Allen returns to reclaim his territory on June 13th, with a new album "Lagos No Shaking."

here's amazon's synopsis:

Many people have attempted to reinvent Afrobeat - chief among them Fela's sons Femi and Seun - but Allen's take on the genre is streets ahead of either of them. Recorded in the Nigerian city over 10 hot, heavy nights, Lagos No Shaking presents a calmer, less manic Afrobeat, delicately balanced between laid-back insouciance and urgency, loose-limbed polyrhythms and ferocious grooves. Features 11 total tracks. Honest Jon's. 2006.

and the BBC review

...This set was recorded in Lagos, and manages to harness the rugged grit of that difficult city, whilst simultaneously presenting Allen's signature sound with a slick production sheen. Intense horn riffs, choppy guitar, call-and-response vocals: all of these elements are interwoven with Allen's detailed, cyclic beats, his taut tripping lending an elastic tension to the dancefloor.

The tunes tend to insinuate themselves after several airings. Young, soulful Yinka Davies powers abrasively through "Morose" and "Losun", two songs that boast almost annoyingly catchy choruses, then elderly groaner Fatai Rolling Dollar imparts a completely traditional juju feel to "Awa Na Re", prompting Allen to layer up some heavy hardcore percussion patterns.