Recent Releases

I originally intended this blog to exist only for reviews of recent albums, assuming I'd have the time to write one at least every week or so. However, recently this has simply not been the case at all. There are a *lot* of albums I'd love to write about (I have about 8 unfinished reviews in progress right now) but simply don't have the time to. So, for this week, I decided to do something different and leave you with a list of recent releases I enjoyed that I might have missed, or may not have the time to review. So, without and further adieu, I unleash upon you Jesse's Recommended Listening List #1:

• The Great Misdirect - Between the Buried and Me (October 27th, 2009)
• The Whirlwind - Transatlantic (October 23rd, 2009)
  
• Where the Wild Things Are - Steve Vai (September 29th, 2009)
• Xenophanes - Omar Rodríguez-López (September 28th, 2009)
• Meet the Meatbats - Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats (September 15th, 2009)
  
• The Incident - Porcupine Tree (September 14th, 2009)
• Live from Madison Square Garden - Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood (May 19th 2009)

I also decided, mostly for my own amusement, to tack a Degrees to Zappa section onto every review I write from now on. For example; my last published review was on a Mars Volta album that featured a significant number of guitar parts from the Red Hot Chili Pepper's guitarist John Frusciante, who's original ambition in music was to join the Frank Zappa's band, and who wrote the linear notes to a recent Zappa album. Frank's influence on much of the music I enjoy is very strong, and its incredible how his impact is still felt on releases today.

I won't lie, I mostly began posting here again exclusively to vent about how pop-oriented the latest Pearl Jam release was, but the overwhelmingly positive response I've gotten back has encouraged me to keep writing. If you're reading this, thank you! I have quite a few reviews in the works, so check back soon!