June Music Preview

We’re just about at the halfway point of the year and the month of June looks, in a word, craptacular. Judge for yourself. Or better yet – listen to me. Giddyup:

6/5
Chris Cornell/ Carry On – Is it possible that Chris Cornell is completely used up? Every Audioslave record was a limp exercise in pieces that don’t fit well together; Cornell’s last solo effort, Euphoria Morning, was atrocious; and the early returns on Carry On say that the James Bond theme, “You Know My Name,” is the strongest track on the record. That’s. Not. Good.

Chris Cornell On MySpace Music

New Tracks:
Entire Album Streaming As Of This Writing

Paul McCartney/ Memory Almost Full – Ugh. At least Terry Bradshaw doesn’t duet on this album. Why did all of the talented Beatles have to die? To say that Macca’s solo career has been spotty at best would be downright charitable of me. And I’m nothing if not charitable… when I’m not being an asshole, that is.

Paul McCartney doesn’t have a MySpace. Probably too busy still trying to figure out how to fuck over John Lennon.

Dizzee Rascal/ Maths + English – Dizzee Rascal’s records definitely aren’t for everyone, but if you’re feeling adventurous you could definitely do worse. Here’s to hoping that Dizzee doesn’t fall off as sharply as fellow UK rapper Mike Skinner (better known as The Streets) has. [Available for (legal) download only in the US, but don’t let that stop you.]

Dizzee Rascal On MySpace Music

New Tracks:
“Sirens”
“Hard Back Industry”
“Excuse Me Please (Live)”

6/12
Queens Of The Stone Age/ Era Vulgaris – Shit yeah... now it’s on. The Queens are back and sounding more like themselves following the disappointing Lullabies To Paralyze. Early tracks bring to mind a darker version of Rated R and if the title track (which was left off of the album) is indicative of the outtakes, how fucking insane must the tracks that made the cut be? If you don’t believe me, listen to head Queen Josh Homme – “It’s dark, hard, and electrical, sort of like a construction worker…” Tell me you’re not down with that.

Queens Of The Stone Age On MySpace Music

New Tracks:
“Sick Sick Sick”

6/19
Art Brut/ It’s A Bit Complicated – Yeah, no… it’s not complicated. You suck balls and you’re overrated and unlistenable. Next.

Art Brut On MySpace Music

New Tracks:
“Direct Hit”
“Late Sunday Evening”

The Chemical Brothers/ We Are The Night – After a few lackluster records, the Chems returned with a force in 2005 with Push The Button, largely due to guest appearances including Q-Tip (A Tribe Called Quest), Tim Burgess (Charlatans UK), Kele Okereke (Bloc Party), and The Magic Numbers. They’ve toned down the reliance on friends with their new offering, preferring to see if the music can stand on its own. The jury’s out on this one.

The Chemical Brothers On MySpace Music

New Tracks:
“Do It Again”

The Mooney Suzuki/ Have Mercy – These douchebags rate an appearance on the all-time biggest sellout bands list. They gained some indie rock cred with their first few albums but pissed it all away after signing up to The Matrix to produce tracks on their last album then having one of their shitty-ass songs show up in a car commercial. Fuck them with a splintered plunger handle.

The Mooney Suzuki On MySpace Music

New Tracks (Listen At Your Own Peril):
“99 Percent”

The White Stripes/ Icky Thump – After spending the past year with side project The Raconteurs, Jack White has reunited with ex-wife/sister/college roommate Meg White to record what he describes as the “heaviest” Stripes album yet. The duo took longer to record this album than any of their previous five. Took ‘em a whole three weeks. The line for this one forms behind me, suckers.

The White Stripes On MySpace Music

New Tracks:
“Icky Thump”

6/25
Editors/ An End Has A Start – This one’s a bit of a surprise as one of 2006’s best new bands returns a scant year later with their follow up. If it's anything like its forbear, An End Has A Start has a chance to be something spectacular. Unfortunately, this date is for the UK release only but there are other ways to get hold of this one. What? I meant Amazon.UK, of course. Really – I did [cough].

Editors On MySpace Music

New Tracks:
“Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors”

6/26
Ryan Adams/ Easy Tiger – If you’re keeping track, this is Ryan Adams’s 146th release in the past three years. The disgustingly prolific Adams has (thankfully) returned to the classic rock sound of his masterpiece, Gold, at least on the basis of early tracks. If you don’t get a chance to check this one out, never fear – the year’s still young and Adams probably already recorded two albums in the time it took you to read this.

Ryan Adams On MySpace Music

New Tracks:
“Two”

Beastie Boys/ The Mix-Up – If you buy or download this album, then the terrorists win. I’m not even joking.

Sorry – I refuse to provide you with a MySpace. You’re on your own if you want to hear this rubbish.