Like Part One, only with different albums this time.
The Black Keys, Thickfreakness – Basic, straightforward, and honest. Pat’s monster drumming and Dan’s guitar work and vocals can give you chills.
Death Cab for Cutie, Narrow Stairs – The first single, “I Will Possess Your Heart” has a great bass riff and makes “Every Breathe You Take” cry a little. Dense sounds and intimate lyrics make this a dark treat.
Dr. Dog, We All Belong – These Pennsylvanian boys brought the funk and blues to as low-fi as they could. Nothing complicated here and “Alaska” is a gem if you miss anybody.
Gnarls Barkley, St. Elsewhere – During a period where people were acting crazy, along came an unlikely duo to help us all realize that being a crazy is what makes us all normal.
Gorillaz, Demon Days – Damon Albarn’s baby polished up and came to dinner. This is a concept album that touches every music style possible and a lot of social commentary. I suggest finding the DVD of the London shows.
Herbie Hancock, River: The Joni Letters – A true master comes back around. True, the funky Herbie is great, but these 10 songs are timeless with guests like Norah Jones, Leonard Cohen and Joni Mitchell to help.
Kings of Leon, Aha Shake Heartbreak – A love letter to London, the Southern gents discuss touring in England and everything they saw. Plenty of riffs and slinky bass make this album easy to get into.
Kinky, Atlas – I discovered this in college and was pulled in by the electronica and world music mix. These fellows are kinky, and they do you know how to get you grooving.
My Morning Jacket, It Still Moves – Their third album and the one that would show the world they wanted to jam. The epic guitar work and reverberated vocals take you on a strange trip.
Nine Inch Nails, Year Zero – With a crazy marketing campaign and the most political lyrics Trent had ever written we have a huge collage of sound and voice. Trent was back ,and he wasn’t happy with anything. Thank goodness he wanted to share.
