Friday Five!

The Walkmen - In the New Year

A wailing good time with organ-drenched choruses and all sorts of jangly goodness. One of, if not the best song from their latest, You and Me, which is terrific.

Jadakiss feat. Jay-Z - Who Run This

Jada, or Al Qaeda, his less than clever gangstaish tag (but why not, it rhymes) gets some help from Jiggaman on this track from Jada's new LP. Jay adlibs in place of any real hook, no verse from him either, but the beat makes up for that, rumbling with a murky east coast vibe.

Ra Ra Riot - Dying is Fine

Well written pop rock, bounces along, string backing, etc. Sounds like it could be many other bands but it's secretly a few notches above mediocre.

Thee More Shallows - Fly Paper

This album (Book of Bad Breaks) came out last year on Anticon and really didn't/doesn't seem to be on anybody's radar, at least where I'm at. A shame really, as it shares a lot of what makes Why? so compelling, with headphone-worthy production and tense and scatterbrained sing-speak lyrics.

The National - Santa Clara

This Virginia E.P. track continues to be a favorite from my favorite band of a while now. They can do no wrong with beautifully melancholic and tongue in cheek songs like this, and end it with some horns why don't you. This is the B-material from a band making so much A stuff they have to curve the grade somewhere.

Orchestral Riot

Ra Ra Riot was not one of the band's I checked out when I first saw their name across the blogosphere this past summer. But then I read about their recent debut disc, The Rhumb Line, in Rolling Stone on the plane to Vancouver and was intrigued. They described them as a mix between Arcade Fire and Vampire Weekend, and I guess that's an alright basis for description. Their music gains depth from the classically trained orchestral section yet can still be playful through their vocals even if they are singing that 'dying is fine'. Regardless of any artistic comparisons, I think I've found one of my fall's first gems and one of this year's best new albums.

Ra Ra Riot - Dying is Fine
Ra Ra Riot - Too Too Too Fast

And a bonus mix these guys and Andrew Murray of the RAC did of Tokyo Police Club...

Tokyo Police Club - Juno (Ra Ra Riot/Andrew Murray remix)