Smoke Ring For My Halo by Kurt Vile

1. Baby’s Arms

2. Jesus Fever

3. Puppet To the Man

4. On Tour

5. Society Is My Friend

6. Runner Ups

7. In My Time

8. Peeping Tom

9. Smoke Ring For My Halo

10. Ghost Town

Kurt Vile is an guitarist and singer/songwriter from Philadelphia, He was the previous guitarist of the band The War On Drugs. I don’t really remember how I discovered Kurt Vile’s music but I think I discovered him on one of itune’s free song days. I think “Jesus Fever” or “Baby’s Arms” might be the first song I heard by him. Kurt Vile became an instant favorite due to his mellow folk songs and his shoe gazing folk rock. “Baby’s Arms” became one of my top folk songs of the year, the song has a smooth and delicate acoustic guitar melody.

It has a odd “airy” sound to it, which is probably what makes the song have a mellow feel. Kurt’s singing voice also sounds very sweet, warm, and comforting. “Jesus Fever” is another favorite off the album, it reminds me a lot of the old folk rock songs from the 60s or 70s. “Puppet to the Man” sounds somewhat like a rock song that Neil Young would write. The song fits Kurt’s sometimes sarcastic tone in his singing voice. It sounds as if he is rebelling against the world with a guitar.

“On Tour” is a soft, warm, and intimate song driven mainly on acoustic guitar (most of the album is driven on acoustic guitar). You can imagine Kurt, sitting backstage on a wooden chair with his guitar writing the song. “Society Is My Friend” is my number one favorite off the album, the pedal effects on the guitar give it a shoegaze sound to it (if you don’t know what “shoegaze” is, listen to My Bloody Valentine and you will know what I mean). Especially the ending of the song where it drags on and on with the echoes of the guitar. What I love most  about the song are the lyrics, his sarcastic tone and rebellious lyrics can make society cringe. From my interpretation, he seems to be saying that society constantly tries to put others down but he won’t let them put him down.

“Runner Ups” sounds a little like “Baby’s Arms” , it has a similar sounding guitar chord progression. Other than the similar guitar progression, it also has a shaker. “In My Time” is another simple acoustic guitar song similar to “Runner Ups”, it has a nice sound but nothing really special to me. “Peeping Tom” is an beautiful acoustic guitar song with odd and slightly disturbing lyrics. The song has a lush acoustic sound with Kurt singing about a person who is bored and becomes a peeping tom when he sees this tomboy girl. “Smoke Ring For My Halo” and “Ghost Town” are folk rock songs with a shoe gazing sound with Kurt’s airy singing voice. Smoke Ring For My Halo is number one for my favorite albums of 2011, I don’t know what it is, but I just love this album a lot!

All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone by Explosions In the Sky

Before I get into the review,  I have to say that the artwork for this album is absolutely gorgeous. This is the 5th album by the American Post-rock band, Explosions in the Sky, and their latest album is “Take Care, Take Care, Take Care”. This is probably the first album I have heard from Explosions in the Sky and the cover art is what attracted me to the album. The title of the album is an allusion to the book, Catcher In the Rye by J.D. Salinger, and the mood of the album actually fits the book in some parts of it. The album has a depressing sound but it has a bit of hope.

The album makes me think of Holden, who is the main character/narrator of the book, and his journey through the book, battling his depression and trying to understand the pretentious people of the world. The album is full of explosive drums, distorted guitars, and a string orchestra. Sometimes the way these guys play guitar is enchanting, somehow they are able to make the guitars sound like a symphony (I don’t know, this is what I think). These guys have a trio of guitarists (one of them switches to bass though) that together, they are a symphony of guitar strings. The drummer is just awesome, he always drums at the right time of the songs and they just are literally the heart beats of the song. The pounding drums literally sounds like cannons. With emotions of fear, depression, melancholy, and apprehension, All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone is a beautiful album filled with explosions of emotions and a haunting guitar symphony.

Sea Change by Beck

1. The Golden Age

2. Paper Tiger

3. Guess I’m Doing Fine

4. Lonesome Tears

5. Lost Cause

6. End of the Day

7. It’s All In Your Mind

8. Round the Bend

9. Already Dead

10. Sunday Sun

11. Little One

12. Side of the Road

Bek David Campbell also known as Beck is an American Singer-Songwriter and guitarist. Sea Change is Beck’s 8th album out of the 11 albums that Beck has released. I really love this album, I actually did not think I would ever like it. But, today I decided to give it another chance and I completely fell in love with it. When I first heard this album, I didn’t really enjoy it, I found it boring and contained no color or flavor.

I found it bland and thought it was filled with sobbing and gray colors. Giving Sea Change a second chance was definitely a smart decision. Sea Change is the first album I have ever heard by Beck and it will probably be one of my favorite albums this year. It  is full of melancholy, some tears shedding here and there, and Beck sitting on a chair with a guitar and a string orchestra playing behind him. The thing that I love the most about this album is the strings.

The strings are absolutely beautiful they literally soar through the songs with such softness and melancholy. The orchestra haunts though your mind while you hear the songs. The acoustic guitar is also another beautiful element in this album, as you can see Beck is well-known for his guitar skills. Sometimes the guitar is soft (acoustic guitar) and then the guitar starts to go mad and make a load of chaos. The album is very intimate and despite the sad lyrics of  a broken up relationship, the music warms me.