Music Under Fire

Magnetic Morning are stunning in their indie rock mood music, just as The Album Leaf perfected their synth drums and keyboard. Their sound floats on the edge of rock and ambience just like that of Neverending White Lights. The band is a sideproject, yet a full-time project of sorts intertwining artists from Interpol (Blasco Frederic & Sam Fogarino), The Album Leaf (Jimmy LaValle), Swervedriver (Adam Franklin) and The Still Out (Josh Stoddard).

Their album is completed recording and is set to be released on 10/21/08. For more info on the band and some samples, check them out on their MySpace page.

MP3: Magnetic Morning - Cold War Kids (buy)
MP3: The Album Leaf - Thule (buy)

Magnetic Morning will start their first ever tour this upcoming week, landing in Philly next Sat. Tour dates are below:

10/15/08 Wed Athens, GA - Caledonia Lounge
10/16/08 Thu Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506
10/17/08 Fri Washington, DC - Rock And Roll Hotel
10/18/08 Sat Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's
10/20/08 Mon Allston, MA - Great Scott
10/21/08 Tue Brooklyn, NY - Southpaw
10/23/08 Thu Toronto, ON, CANADA - Horseshoe Tavern
10/24/08 Fri Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop
10/25/08 Sat Milwaukee, WI - The Cactus Club
10/26/08 Sun Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
10/27/08 Mon Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry
10/30/08 Thu Seattle, WA - Chop Suey
10/31/08 Fri Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
11/02/08 Sun San Francisco, CA - The Independent
11/03/08 Mon West Hollywood, CA - Roxy Theatre
11/04/08 Tue San Diego, CA - Casbah
11/05/08 Wed Phoenix, AZ - Rhythm Room
11/07/08 Fri Dallas, TX - House of Blues Dallas
11/08/08 Sat Austin, TX - Waterloo Park
11/10/08 Mon Atlanta, GA - THE EARL

So in case the news hasn't hit you yet, Snow Patrol's A Hundred Million Suns will hit the streets on October 28. With a tantalizing taste of what is in store, the group's single just released earlier this week - "Take Back The City".

The video has been out for a few days on MTV and since this is the clip from MTV, we think the quality is just peachy. Of course, if you want it from the horse's mouth, head here. We'll have more on the album as we find it out, so stay tuned to MUF.

MP3: Snow Patrol - Take Back The City (buy)

Our scrawny fashion-driven music makers, The Rakes are heading back into the studio. With producer Chris Zane at the helm, The Rakes are thrilled to be working with a mastermind, whose prior work with The Walkmen should raise some interest. The Rakes are feeling confident, and according to NME and lead vocalist Alan Donohoe this album will have their "strongest songs yet".

In a search for instant inspiration, the band packed up from London and moved to Berlin to record. Says vocalist Alan Donohoe :

The London music scene is so dull right now – it's like wading through a swamp of shit. We just wanted to be somewhere more inspiring. Someone suggested Berlin. It didn't take long for everyone to agree. We packed our bags and moved here just like that. We love it.

"The album is raw, playful, exciting, complex and schizophrenic – much like the personality of Berlin itself. It couldn't be more of a fitting place to record it. Chris has found this raw but massive sound, it's sharp like razors; like pouring boiling bleach on our peers."

Expect more production on this album and every bit of Berlin marinated into it. Their new album is expected to arrive in Spring 2009.

MP3: The Rakes - Retreat (buy)

Official - http://www.therakes.co.uk/
MySpace - http://www.myspace.com/therakes

Typically, power pop doesn't brandish much of a need for press. With The Maine we will beg to differ. Now with an extensive tour of the U.S. and All Time Low as their accomplice in these undertakings, we feel if you haven't already, check them out.

The Maine hone a sound somewhat reminiscent of The Starting Line with a taste of Third Eye Blind. They have a contest going on right now, too, that should interest some high schoolers out there. If you aren't a high schooler, you could care less, but perhaps you can get a kick out of their 'boy band' names for their individual MySpace pages - John O'Callaghan (johnohhh), Garrett Nickelsen (babynicko), Kennedy Brock (-same-), Jared Monaco (nOObstomper) and Pat Kirch (hellaboss). Hilarious, even if they weren't intended to be such chuckles.

The group most recently released Can't Stop Won't Stop off of Feearless Records while All Time Low just dropped So Wrong, It's Right. The tours dates are below along with a few mp3s.

MP3: The Maine - The Way We Talk (buy)
Mp3: All Time Low - Poppin' Champagne (buy)

10/10 2008 Gravity w/ All Time Low Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
10/11 2008 Croc Rock w/ All Time Low Allentown, Pennsylvania
10/12 2008 Roseland w/ All Time Low New York, New York
10/13 2008 9:30 Club w/ All Time Low Washington D.C., Maryland
10/15 2008 Tremont w/ All Time Low Charlotte, North Carolina
10/16 2008 Free Bird Live w/ All Time Low Jacksonville, Florida
10/17 2008 Revolution w/ All Time Low Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
10/18 2008 House of Blues w/ All Time Low Orlando, Florida
10/19 2008 Jannus Landing w/ All Time Low St. Petersburg, Florida
10/20 2008 Masquerade w/ All Time Low Atlanta, Georgia
10/21 2008 The Red Door Pensacola, Florida
10/22 2008 Wet Seal In-Store Houston, Texas
10/22 2008 House of Blues w/ All Time Low Houston, Texas
10/23 2008 Wet Seal In-Store Dallas, Texas
10/23 2008 House of Blues w/ All Time Low Dallas, Texas
10/24 2008 El Rey Theater w/ All Time Low McAllen, Texas
10/25 2008 La Zona Rosa w/ All Time Low Austin, Texas
10/27 2008 Sunshine Theater w/ All Time Low Albuquerque, New Mexico
10/28 2008 Marquee Theater w/ All Time Low Tempe, Arizona
10/29 2008 House of Blues w/ All Time Low Las Vegas, Nevada
10/30 2008 Ventura Theatre w/ All Time Low Ventura, California
10/31 2008 Wet Seal In-Store San Diego, California
10/31 2008 Soma w/ All Time Low San Diego
11/1 2008 House of Blues w/ All Time Low West Hollywood, California
11/2 2008 Wet Seal In-Store Anaheim, California
11/2 2008 House of Blues w/ All Time Low Anahiem, California
11/3 2008 Best Buy Lakewood Lakewood, California
11/4 2008 The Grand Ballroom w/ All Time Low San Francisco, California
11/5 2008 The Board w/ All Time Low Orangevale, California
11/6 2008 Roseland Theatre w/ All Time Low Portland, Oregon
11/7 2008 Wet Seal In-Store Seattle, Washington
11/7 2008 El Corazon w/ All Time Low Seattle, Washington
11/8 2008 The Venue w/ All Time Low Boise, Idaho
11/10 2008 Gothic Theatre w/ All Time Low Denver, Colorado
11/11 2008 Wet Seal In-Store Kansas City, Missouri
11/11 2008 Beaumont w/ All Time Low Kansas City, Missouri
11/12 2008 Peoples Court Des Moines, Iowa
11/13 2008 First Avenue w/ All Time Low Minneapolis, Minnesota
11/14 2008 The Rave w/ All Time Low Milwaukee, Wisconsin
11/15 2008 Wet Seal In-Store Chicago, Illinois
11/15 2008 House of Blue w/ All Time Low Chicago, Illinois
11/16 2008 Wet Seal In-Store Chicago, Illinois
11/16 2008 House of Blue w/ All Time Low Chicago, Illinois
11/17 2008 Pageant w/ All Time Low St. Louis, Missouri
11/19 2008 Bogart’s w/ All Time Low Cincinnati, OH
11/20 2008 Wet Seal In-Store Columbus, Ohio
11/20 2008 Newport Music Hall w/ All Time Low Columbus, Ohio
11/21 2008 Clutch Cargo w/ All Time Low Detroit, Michigan
11/22 2008 House of Blues w/ All Time Low Cleveland, Ohio
11/23 2008 Kool Haus w/ All Time Low Toronto, Ontario
11/24 2008 The Town Ballroom w/ All TIme Low Buffalo, New York
11/26 2008 The Palladium w/ All Time Low Worchester, Massachusetts
11/29 2008 Electric Factory w/ All Time Low Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Since these guys may make our top bands of the year, this is worth a mention despite being a few days past. The Carson Daly Show spotlighted our favorite Aussies (sorry guys!), Cut Copy on Oct 2nd. making their premiere on US television (imagine that) performing, "Lights and Music" from their In Ghost Colours album (also on the Fifa 09 soundtrack). You wouldn't want to miss lead vocalist, Dan Whitford's sweet stash wouldn't you? We wouldn't have it any other way. If you don't know anything about this album, you may want to listen to it.

MP3: CSS - Move (Cut Copy Remix) (buy)

Video: Cut Copy - Lights and Music (live on the Carson Daly show)

Photo courtesy of imseeingred.com

Rating: 6.5/10

There couldn't be any album more obvious for the UK public to look forward to given Travis' prior credentials. Ode to J. Smith entered the UK Album Chart at #20, which is uncharacteristic considering their towering #1 releases over the past 10+ years. As far as this album goes, I'm not going to bore you and speak of Travis' infectious pop sounds or melodies, which have made them quite a household name over in the UK. I won't even dive into Fran Healy's vocals, because really, they're virtually the same throughout every album. He has that Erlend Øye complex where he'll just never really escape his own vocals and expand to something different, which in the case of Ode To J. Smith is what is most apparent here.

Ode To J. Smith, released under their own Red Telephone Box label, is Travis' sixth studio album. This time around the band is shedding all of their old skin, going against everything they once did and breaking out of their shell from the other hugely successful albums they've made prior to making this album their "loudest and edgiest yet''

So how did it fare? How did the band, who took over the charts with the release of every album over the past eleven years, hold up to their new sound and to their enamered fans who have been waiting for more of the same year after year? You may have heard the comparisons already. There are Radiohead comparisons for a few songs, and rightly so. Tracks such as "Broken Mirror" has the murky rhythm and ambience similar to Radiohead's "Lucky" from their OK Computer days. The band's composition has certainly changed in terms of guitar pedals and riffs used as well. If you listen to "Long Way Down", you'll realize this is indeed the rockiest and loudest Travis you've heard.

But however far the band may have pushed themselves in terms of experimenting, part of the album is quite lamenting if you took interest into their 2007 A Boy With No Name (which was not well received). This is apparent in their song "Quite Free", which carries their traditional melodical layering. If you enjoy more of the old, same style Travis is so well known for, you will also take an interest in "Song To Self".

Overall, this album surprisingly does not run the same threads as their previous albums did, and as Fran and Co. were not lying when they said they were going to try something new. Incidentally, their two week recording stint with Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick did the trick. Their managed to break out with their single "Something Anything" and pushed their limits even bringing in a choir for the finishing touch on their title track "J. Smith".

Every song is not a pure gem, however. The album is riddled with a few bad apples, which includes "Long Way Down", "Get Up" and their over-the-top closer "Before You Were Young", but overall, the album is full of pleasant, upbeat songs making it placating to the average listener. The reason for many of the bad reviews you will find out there are hugely based on this variance away from Travis' traditional melodies and yearning for the old, captured by his first four albums and perhaps too much experimentation with this new sound. OTJS does not appear not flawless either; there are no clear-cut singles to be found other than "Something Anything". In fact, nothing on OTJS could be compared to 2007's winner "Closer", or come close to my favorite "Big Chair". Indeed the band has moved on and experimented and in my eyes it is well-accepted. However, Ode To J. Smith will not be on my greatest albums of this year.

Check out Travis' cover of Britney Spears' "Hit Me Baby One More Time" recorded live in the Radio 1 Lounge. We'll admit, its much better than the original...

MP3: Travis - Hit Me Baby One More Time (Britney Spears Cover)

Ode To J. Smith was released in the UK on 9/29/2008 and was released in the US on 11/4/08. OTJS is not currently available for digital download on US iTunes, but if you would like to purchase it through UK iTunes, go here.

Official - http://www.travisonline.com/
MySpace - http://www.myspace.com/travis