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Hooverdusts Top 6 Albums Right Now 

It’s all new music and damn fine listening to boot:

1. Bright Eyes - I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning
Yeah I know I’ve raved about Bright Eyes (aka Conor Oberst) on this site before but this particular album has been rotating so heavily lately that a constant recommendation will hopefully drive home the point - get it now! The very first track At the Bottom of Everything has Conor singing about a group of people about to crash their plane into the ocean and seeing some sort of depressing beauty in it. Things don’t really get much happier along the way. In fact, it’s all pretty gloomy stuff. Yet there is something raw and brutally honest about his lyrics while you can sense a degree of optimism here and there. For example in the drug-fuelled Lua he confesses “So I know you have a heavy heart. I can feel it when we kiss. So many men stronger than me have thrown their backs out trying to life it. But me I’m not a gamble. You can count on me to split”. Don’t look for this album to be a pick-me-up but like all great albums, it’s an experience you won’t forget any time soon.

Standout tracks: At the Bottom of Everything, We Are Nowhere And It’s Now, Road to Joy

2. Stars - Set Yourself on Fire
More fantastic music from Canada (see also Arcade Fire) this third album from Stars was recorded in one of the coldest winters Montreal has ever recorded. It shows too. Thirteen tracks about the highs and lows of love, sex, death, etc… Having both male and female lead vocalists help the lyrical banter work beautifully with the rich orchestral musical arrangements. Essentially Set Yourself on Fire (I love that album title) makes you want to go out, grab the ones you love and never let them go. Yup - it’s one of those albums and one that will be a popular pick amongst the happy pixies out there.

Standout tracks: Your Ex-Lover is Dead, Ageless Beauty

3. Scissor Sisters - Scissor Sisters
This album has been out for a while now and no doubt you’ve already formed your opinion on it. Probably a positive one, guessing from album sales. When I first heard the single Take Your Mamma Out I actually thought it was the new Robbie Williams track because it sounded like something Robbie would sing. But no shit, I was wrong. There’s more Elton John in the Scissor Sisters than Robbie Williams actually and that’s probably a good thing. That’s particularly notable on the slower tracks. What surprised me with the Scissor Sisters is their versatility. They can do some fucking great dance tracks such as Tits on the Radio and Filthy/Gorgeous while still retaining creditability with the slower, piano heavies Mary and Return to Oz. Tits on the Radio is one song that I can’t get enough of. I just wish I came up with that title!

Standout tracks: Tits on the Radio, Filthy/Gorgeous, Mary

4. Mercury Rev - The Secret Migration
Can you believe this is Mercury Rev’s 7th album? Deserter’s Song is probably their most known album. I remember hearing Holes on RAGE years ago and thinking “Why are they singing about moles in holes?”. And the lead singer sounds like he scored singing lessons from the Muppets. But The Secret Migration is a magical album and the bands finest release to date. I found some of their previous releases a little annoying and repetitive at times. Sometimes they’d strike gold but more often than not, they didn’t do it for me. With this release, the band have gone for a richer, more layered sound and it seems they’ve upped the ante musically. They’ve sort of ditched the majority of the guitars for the piano and it works. This is their ‘journey’ record and for the most part, they’ve succeeded.

Standout tracks: My Love, Vermillion

5. Stereophonics - Language, Sex, Violence, Other?
This is more like it. These UK muso’s have been around for quite a while but this is their first balls-to-the-wall rock album and it rocks hard! Okay maybe not to the point of say AC/DC but then again, that’s kinda impossible to do nowadays. Snap the volume needle off with this album and you’ll get the most out of it. Their first single Dakota is catchy enough and the album has many tracks to gain them a new following. A new drummer, a new sound, Stereophonics will be around for a while yet!

Standout tracks: Superman, Dakota, Girl

6. The Bravery - The Bravery
Sort of a cross between The Strokes, Duran Duran, and The Killers. The Bravery have opted for an electronic/rock album using analog keyboards and recording the majority of it on an iMac. Shows that you don’t need a fancy setup to record a bloody good debut. Expect to hear more about these New Yorkers in the near future since it’s all early days. If you enjoyed The Killers Hot Fuss but wanted something less commercial sounding, then The Bravery are right up your alley. An Honest Mistake should be a big hit for them on the indie circuit and live they’re apparently the shit! You have been warned.

Standout tracks: An Honest Mistake, Give In, Unconditional