Lobo Threesome

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Rodney Parker & Fifty Peso Reward

The Lonesome Dirge

Available Now

2/5

If there's a worse example of crappy progressive country out there, it'll take some pretty deep digging to find it. Imagine a singing voice a bit like James Blunt, but totally devoid of any real musical talent, and you'll have a pretty good idea of what Rodney Parker sounds like. It's not that it sounds bad - it's simply uninspired and over-baked. Trying to pick a good single for this album has got to be the leading cause of stress-related heart attacks among country music producers today. There just isn't anything there worth bothering with. Every song on the album sounds exactly the same, and none of them have anything worthy of the listener's attention. The only redeeming quality of Fifty Peso Reward is that the band members at least seem to be capable of playing their instruments. They just can't come up with anything worth playing on them.

If you like this music, you might also enjoy:

Feist - The Reminder

Arcade Fire - Neon Bible

LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver

Flogging Molly

Float

Available Now

5/5

With St. Paddy's day just around the corner, the average listener would be hard-pressed to find a better album for the inevitable drunken parties March 17.

Flogging Molly's fourth studio album keeps up the driving energy that has carried them through several hundred live performances over the last few years. The band didn't quite invent the Celtic punk genre, but it certainly has mastered it and has been pushing it ever closer to the mainstream since it was playing at namesake Los Angeles bar Molly Malone's in 1997. This album in particular has several good tracks - the upbeat opener, "Requiem For a Dying Song," and the mid-album "Punch Drunk Grinning Soul." The mournful

title track, "Float" can move one to tears if played at sufficient volume and a sufficient level of inebriation. The best part about the album is that there really aren't any bad songs. Any Irishman should be proud to belt any of these out on St. Paddy's day, drunk off his ass and looking for a fight. I know that's what I'll be doing.

If you like this music, you might also enjoy:

The Tossers - Agony

Dropkick Murphys - The Meanest of Times

Porters - Tribute to Arthur Guinness

Minmae

True Love/¿Ya Te Vas?

Available Now

3/5

Can there really be such a thing as angry indie rock? If so, Minmae seems to be as close to it as possible. There's a gravelly irritation in singer Sean Brooks' voice that doesn't usually show up in this genre. It's actually a little bit refreshing - the whining in the indie rock scene was starting to become a little much. The only problem with Brooks' voice is that when it's not angrily grating, it has a tendency to range into a droning lull. This isn't really music that one can rock out to. At some points in the album, particularly the song "This Means Everything," it has a sleep-inspiring quality that can only be described as tranquilizing. One track does instantly grab the listener's attention. "Kelly in Se" actually rocks fairly well, something that the rest of the album doesn't really do. If you like indie rock, you'll probably dig this. Everyone else can probably give it a miss, though.

If you like this music, you might also enjoy:

The National - Boxer

Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Interpol - Our Love to Admire