Coldplay
Viva La Vida, or Death and All His Friends
Available Now
Coldplay's latest album is a return to formula for the London band. Producer Brian Eno seems to have held back some of the excesses of Colplay's previous effort, X&Y, and allowed the band to put together an album that has a sound much closer to its first two albums. At the same time, the band shows some growth in that lead singer Chris Martin has lowered his voice by at least an octave for this album - and it shows. The sound of the album is much cleaner overall compared to Coldplay's previous efforts, and without Martin straining for the high notes, the sound of the rest of the band is easier to make out without the distraction. Highlights of the album include "Lost!" and the titular "Viva La Vida." Also notable is "Lovers in Japan/Reign of Love." There isn't anything noticeably bad about the album - though it does meander stylistically - but it isn't quite their best effort. That title will probably continue to go to A Rush of Blood to the Head, as that album is much more unified. Coldplay should definitely stick with Eno, because once it get's past the transitional stage with him as producer, Coldplay's music is only going to get better and better.
If you like this music, you might also enjoy:
Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs
R.E.M. - Accelerate
My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges
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The Offspring
Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace
Available Now
With Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace, the Offspring has made a valiant attempt to redeem itself after its last few albums, which were abysmal. The band's about halfway there. Roughly half the album makes the Offspring sound like a bad knockoff of Blink 182. Fortunately, the other half sounds like the band might have rediscovered what made 1994's Smash a complete success. Even on the good half of the album, nothing stands out particularly well. The only memorable song seems to be "Hammerhead," but even that song seems unlikely to ever be radio-worthy. Overall, the album isn't bad, per se, but it isn't particularly good, either. It does at least have the feel of the band's earlier albums, and if you're a fan of the Offspring, it's worth a listen.
If you like this music, you might also enjoy:
Disturbed - Indestructible
Weezer - Weezer (The Red Album)
3 Doors Down - 3 Doors Down
Jakob Dylan
Seeing Things
Available Now
Jakob Dylan's first solo foray owes quite a bit to the elder Dylan, with one notable difference - the listener can actually understand what Jakob Dylan is singing. Surprisingly, this seems to take away from the folk rock sound that Bob Dylan plays. Thankfully, it doesn't take away much. Nothing on the album stands out, but all of the songs lend themselves to a constant and relaxing folk rock theme that spans the entire album. The sound is an interesting mix of mid-'90s Wallflowers and Bob Dylan's early career. Nothing on the album is very complex thematically, and the majority of the songs would be pretty easy for any budding musician to learn. In the final calculation, while it's a very good album in its own right, Jakob Dylan's fans are probably hoping for another Wallflowers album - no matter how unlikely that might be.
If you like this music, you might also enjoy:
Emmylou Harris - All I Intended to Be
Counting Crows - Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings
Steve Winwood - Nine Lives
