Friday Five

2009 is shaping up to be a banner year musically. Some selections from noteworthy recent releases:

Fever Ray - Seven
Sure, Sweden's The Knife may currently be "on hiatus", but for me Karin Dreijer Andersson's debut solo album as Fever Ray is The Knife's new album.

Metric - Waves
Although I really enjoyed Emily Haines' 2006 solo effort Knives Don't Have Your Back I've had high hopes for a new Metric LP for almost 4 years now. Released this Tuesday, Fantasies was worth the wait. 'Waves' is not actually on the album itself but was made available as a bonus when ordering from www.ilovemetric.com.

Cymbals Eat Guitars - Cold Spring
Yet another NYC indie rock band, Cymbals Eat Guitars released their debut album Why There Are Mountains independently in January and have since received praise from just about every indie music media outlet and countless comparisons to Modest Mouse and Pavement. They deserve the praise (if not the comparisons) - the album is fantastic.

Junior Boys - Work
Album number three from Hamilton-based electro duo Junior Boys was released on March 24th and after a few cursory listens is standing up pretty well in comparison to 2006's excellent (and Polaris Prize nominated) So This Is Goodbye. 'Work' is easily my favourite track.

Camera Obscura - Honey in the Sun
My Maudlin Career, the fourth album from Glasgow's Camera Obscura, will officially be available on April 20th but unsurprising leaked a few weeks ago. The single (and first track) 'French Navy' has already been getting decent exposure here in the UK and is set for release on Monday. It's stellar, but then the album is filled with highlights including the title track, 'You Told A Lie', and closer 'Honey in the Sun'.