Weekend Music Roundup

It's a holiday weekend...perhaps the last birthday of America, or maybe the first birthday of a new America. Either way, there will always be music. When the rest of the world goes nuts, there's always music and it will always be my first means of escape. This week I'm looking at some new releases I've been checking out as well as some old discoveries. Some nice surprises, and also features one of my favorite albums of the year so far. Enjoy.

Man Man - Dream Hunting in the Valley of the In-Between: This is the Philly experimental indie band's first album in seven years. I pre-ordered the color vinyl, which was delayed but finally arrived. I've been a big fan of these guys since their debut 16 years ago. They have Tom Wait's feel them, but still contemporary. I was a little worried about the long layoff, but this is a triumphant return. Probably their most complete and mature work to date. I can't stop listening to it. Fantastic.

Pink Floyd - Live '67-'69: Released in 1987, this bootleg features many BBC recordings of early Floyd singles as well as their there late '60s experimental pieces. I'd been looking for a copy of "The Man" and "The Journey", a short-lived set they were doing in '69, and this bootleg features some of those songs, and also great lesser known gems like "Julia Dream" and "Point Me at the Sky". I found it in a shop during a recent visit to Cape Cod, a store that is grossly overpriced, but has a solid selections of fine bootlegs. These songs were the soundtrack of my creative life at the age of 16 and 17, and still move me to create.

Open Hand - Honey: The third and last album from the Hollywood rock band was released ten years ago, and recently was re-issued. This is a band that was born out of the ashes of the L.A. hardcore scene and falls into that post-hardcore category which blends fuzzy shoegaze vocals with heavy edge rhythm and guitar of hardcore. This is a decent album, though it can get a little bland for my taste at times. "The Hand" and "So Far" are standouts for me.

Pearl Jam - Gigaton: The 11th album from one of the current elder statesman of rock was released this past spring. Though never my favorite band of the early 90s rock revolution, they have proven themselves to be one of the most sustainable and consistent rock bands of the last 30 years. This band has not really evolved over time, but instead has chosen to stay what they've always been, a band steeply based in 70s hard rock. It opens with the classic PJ formula track, "Who Ever Said" and from there continues to follow their proven formula. "Superblood Wolfmoon," "Retrograde," and "River Cross" are my personal favorites on this decent album.

Jesse Malin - The Fine Art of Self Destruction: In the mid-90's, Jesse led the NYC punk band D*Generation. And while the band never made mainstream success, for a brief time they were kings of the underground NYC punk scene. It was a crash-and-burn outfit and in 2002, this solo album emerged. He sort of channels Elliot Smith meets Thurston Moore in these honest singer songwriter tracks, and this new deluxe edition includes a bonus album of demos and rarities. "Queen of the Underworld," "Brooklyn," "Riding on the Subway," "Bad Friday," "Sorrow," and the cover of "Hungry Heart," are standouts. His solo career continues, having released his eighth solo album last year.

Lester Young - Pres is Blue: Recorded in 1950, but not released until '62, two years after his death, this live recording captures the cool jazz sound of Lester (known as Pres). A disciple of Colman Hawkins and Count Basie, his sound is well steeped in the cool jazz tradition. Aaron Bell on bass is amazing on this recording, and Lester plays blue jazz perfectly. Some nice ambient background noises really let you experience the feel of a jazz club back in the hey-day.