For her brisk and confident sophomore album A Curious Thing, arriving March 9 in Europe (U.S. TBD), 22-year-old Scottish singer/songwriter Amy MacDonald has managed to harness the blustery folk thrust of her 2007 3-million selling This Is the Life debut and make an album that's even richer, bolder and more dramatic than her first. "That’s because I’ve just toured constantly," MacDonald explains, "and just spent all that time with my band, who are all amazing musicians...Those experiences made me think we could get in a lot of instruments and make this really big-sounding album."

That expansive, generally upbeat production of her Curious project is best exemplified in lead single "Don't Tell Me That It's Over", a shimmering, simmering rocker that sounds akin to a lost U2 or Big Country track, all the propulsive wall-of sound energy of a breezy folk busker cranked to eleven and driven at 90 miles an hour. MacDonald's voice, a combination of throaty assertiveness and tender vulnerability, is a wonder throughout, whether leading the charge on the album's preponderance of stomping folk/rock anthems or the occasional ballad, most notably on the lovely piano-accompanied album closer "What Happiness Means To Me". "I love that it’s quiet and raw," she says, "that there are no effects on my vocal. It felt like the right way to end to the album." Highly recommended. Note: a Deluxe version of A Curious Thing contains a second disc featuring a live concert recorded in Glasgow.

Myspace  Artist Site

Amy MacDonald - "Don't Tell Me That It's Over" (from the album A Curious Thing)

Amy MacDonald - A Curious Thing Sampler

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There's really nothing quite like Toronto based musical collective Broken Social Scene, an ever-evolving and enterprising group of indie Canadian musicians who periodically get together to record (a new album is planned for May) and tour. Centered around the local label and management company Arts and Crafts, BSS boasts co-founders Keven Drew and Brendan Canning as well as an expansive roster of contributors including Leslie Feist, Amy Milan and Emily Haines. Jason Collett, whose superb fifth album Rat A Tat Tat streets March 9 on A+C, is yet another integral BSS member -- and one who may find (along with Feist) the greatest chance for success in the States.

For the successor to the critically well received 2008 album Here's To Being Here, Collett again summons the intonations of his influences -- Dylan, Kristofferson, Robertson, Springsteen, Petty, Waits -- while further finding his own distinctive voice. Rat A Tat Tat's organic and slightly dog-eared Americana (Canadiana?) sound is the perfect foundation for Collett's raspy, slightly nasal drawl (think a Dixie-fied Lou Reed), as songs such as the waltzing, wonderfully nuanced "Rave On Sad Songs" and "Winnipeg Winds" ebb and flow gracefully and naturally alongside the loose and swinging "Love Is A Dirty Word" and Love Is A Chain". Part storyteller, part indie/alt-country crooner, Collett has delivered one of the year's first essential listens. Highly recommended.

Myspace  Arts and Crafts Page

Jason Collett - "Rave On Sad Songs" (from the album Rat A Tat Tat)

Jason Collett - "Love Is A Dirty Word" (from the album Rat A Tat Tat)

Please respect and support the artist by listening -- and then buying the music! You'll sleep better!

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At first blush, the pairing of James Mercer (of alt-pop masters The Shins) and brilliant producer/mix-master Danger Mouse (AKA Brian Burton of Gnarls "Crazy" Barkley fame) might seem incongruous at best. But while the duo's debut collaborative effort Broken Bells, arriving March 9, may be also "totally different", as Mercer has described it, the odd matchup of styles has produced a surprisingly supple, tantalizingly eclectic album that succeeds by melding the best qualities of each creative source into a seamless whole. Observes Burton: "Is this rock? Is it soul? Is it something else? I don't know, but I do know we did something great." We agree.

New track "Vaporize" exemplifies the Broken Bells approach: an acoustic folk melody that wouldn't seem out of place on a Shins album switches gears quickly with a rich organ bed and jazz/funk rhythm kicking in. Psychedelic harmony flourishes, a remarkably potent sing-along chorus hook and muted horn solo add further embellishments to a song that, like the album, never gets in its own way. Mercer and Burton aren't really out to "prove" anything here by going over the top with a dramatic impact of opposing styles. Adventurous? Sure. But Broken Bells may actually be more "radical" by tempering a dichotomy of styles into a highly listenable, even mainstream (!) album. Recommended.

Myspace  Artist Site

Broken Bells - "Vaporize" (from the album Broken Bells)

Broken Bells - "The High Road" (from the album Broken Bells)

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As labors of love go, they don't get much more ambitious than Hadestown (March 9, Righteous Babe), a modern "folk opera" based on an ancient Greek myth composed and performed by Vermont singer-songwriter Anais Mitchell -- along with some notable guests. Written and reworked since debuting in 2006, Hadestown tells the tale of the poet Orpheus and his doomed quest to rescue his wife Eurydice from the underworld with the story set in a timeless small American town ravaged by economic hardship. The roles in the song cycle are played by Mitchell (Eurydice), folk legend Greg Brown (Hades), Justin Vernon of Bon Iver (Orpheus) and anti-folk goddess Ani DiFranco (Hades' wife Persephone).

Despite the dramatic weight, however, Hadestown is a surprisingly lithe collection of resplendent contemporary Americana folk songs, aided in no small measure by the exquisite orchestrated arrangements by Mitchell collaborator Michael Chorney. In the end, however, it's the compelling story at the heart of the songs that makes Hadestown such a special work. "I recognized in the Orpheus character something a lot of artists feel: his heartbreaking optimism," observes Mitchell. "In the underworld, the rules are the rules, you don’t get a dead person back— but Orpheus believes if he can just sing/play/write something beautiful enough, maybe he can do the impossible, move the heart of stone, get through to someone. I've felt that feeling…" So have we. Highly recommended.

Myspace   Righteous Babe Hadestown Site

Anais Mitchell - "Flowers (Eurydice's Song) (from Hadestown)

Anais Mitchell - "Wedding Song" (with Justin Vernon) (from Hadestown)

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Montreal's The Besnard Lakes made some waves with their 2007 sophomore release, The Besnard Lakes Are The Dark Horse, a dense, dynamic album that cast them as the black sheep - err, dark horse - of Montreal's poptacular indie scene. The references to The Beach Boys and Phil Spector that crop up frequently in the band's press are a little misleading, insinuating ideas of sixties sunshine that don't mesh with the Besnards' brooding aesthetic. However, the comparison is apt in regards to The Lakes' use of the studio as an instrument, and the band's meticulous attention to production detail yields engaging, finely-crafted music that only reveals its true depth upon repeat listenings.

...Are The Roaring Night takes full advantage of the group's pension for grandeur and pacing, setting the songs around the post-modern tale of "Loyalty, dishonor, love, hatred all seen through the eyes of two spies, fighting a war that may not be real." Thick clouds of drone and feedback are pierced by soaring guitar lines, dreamy vocals, and blasts of pounding drums, creating an musical topography of peaks and valleys that rarely presents a plain. Uncut nails it: "The dark heart of Canada has landed, burning within the psychedelic dirge-pop of this husband and wife-led Montreal Collective." Recommended.

Artist Site   MySpace   Jagjaguwar

The Besnard Lakes - Albatross (From The Besnard Lakes Are The Roaring Night)

Patty Larkin never does things quite as one might expect. Over the course of a dozen acclaimed albums, the Boston-based self-described "guitar driven songwriter" has put her own unique stamp on modern folk pop, fuzzying the genre borders with jazz, ambient improvisation and international music. There's always a distinctive new perspective to her songs as melodies twist and turn, lyrics stagger and strut with a poet's ear for wordplay and notes from her guitar blur and bend into impressionistic works of breathtaking virtuosity. All, of course, simultaneously. To label Larkin's music as "singer/songwriter" is to simply scratch the surface.

 Celebrating a quarter of a century of recording, Larkin's new retrospective 25 (March 9, Signature Sounds) naturally does things a little differently. An intimate and collaborative collection of some of her finest "love songs", these new versions are stripped down to their naked, mostly acoustic essence and then coupled with supporting guest vocals from a stellar assortment of "friends along the way". Most, like Larkin, have helped redefine contemporary, folk-based songwriting: Shawn Colvin, Mary Chapin Carpenter, David Wilcox, Suzanne Vega, Martin Sexton, John Gorka, Rosanne Cash, Dar Williams, Jonatha Brooke, Bruce Cockburn and many more. The result is a terrific songbook of extraordinary depth, a revealing primer on innovative guitar mastery and the perfect bookend for both Larkin's longtime enthusiasts or newcomers. Highly recommended.

Myspace Artist Site

Patty Larkin - "Only One" (with Jonatha Brooke) (from the album 25)

Patty Larkin - "Pablo Neruda" (with Suzanne Vega) (from the album 25)

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Portland OR trio Mimicking Birds' self-titled debut album began primarily as a solo project for singer/songwriter Nate Lacy, bedroom recordings that have been fleshed out live and in the studio with the addition of childhood friends Tim Skellinger (guitar) and Aaron Hanson (drums). Produced by Modest Mouse frontman Isaac Brock and Clay Jones, recorded at Brock's home studio and releasing March 9 on his Glacial Pace label, Mimicking Birds' gentle, mostly stripped production allows the atmospheric elements of the compositions to breathe with plenty of space.

Lacy's hushed vocals have a tender, near whisper quality that serves to further heighten the up-close intimacy of the recordings. Lead tracks "The Loop" and "Burning Stars" have a low-key, lo-fi approach with a mesmerizing, often reverbed feel, particularly on the aptly titled "Loop" where chiming guitar runs repeat to create a pattern of circulating aural textures. Throughout the album there's a sense of large, ambient space brought down to a small, personal proximity, subdued and ethereal but with enough energy -- as on the lithe and limber "Burning Stars" --  to keep the lights of Lacy's thoughtful, cosmic lyrical imagery aglow. Highly recommended. Watch a live, in-studio session here.

Myspace 

Mimicking Birds - "Burning Stars" (from the album Mimicking Birds)

Mimicking Birds - "The Loop" (from the album Mimicking Birds)

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Described by one critic as sounding like "the Kings of Leon with a shot of valium", scruffy Anglo-Swede neo-roots rockers Alberta Cross follow up their acclaimed 2007 EP debut with new album Broken Side of Time out digitally this fall is finally set to arrive on CD March 9 via ATO. The strong critical buzz that emerged upon the release of the seven-track The Thief and the Heartbreaker eventually led to a Leon-like U.K. base of adoring fans and press and their inclusion on the fall '08 Oasis tour at the personal request of Noel Gallagher. Once again, more ecstatic reviews.

Brit music bible NME declared "each tune comes like a fragile gesture - rich with euphoric choruses, layered guitars and raw harmonies. And when a quietly appreciative crowd allows the band to transport them down an abandoned highway to the spiritual home of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young - honestly you could hear a heartbeat." Another critic declared that the band "pulls of Fleet Foxes' trick of simultaneously sounding like lost treasure and something fresh and new."  AC founder and guitarist/vocalist Petter Ericson Stakee says of the new project, "It's kind of a desperation album, a darker album; it's definitely angrier. We've been in a crazy place during the whole album and you can hear that." Lead tracks "ATX" and "Taking Control" back him up with a vengeance. Recommended.

Myspace ATO Page

Alberta Cross - "Taking Control" (from the album Broken Side of Time)

Alberta Cross - "ATX" (from the album Broken Side of Time)

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Alberta Cross - Broken Side of Time (Rock/Alt)*

Aloha - Home Acres (Pop/Indie)

Amy MacDonald - Curious Thing (Pop/Folk) (U.K. Release)*

Anais Mitchell - Hadestown (Folk)*

Ben Harper and the Relentless 7 - Live at the Montreal International Jazz Festival (Rock/Pop)*

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Beat the Devil's Tattoo (Rock/Alt)

Broken Bells - Broken Bells (Pop/Rock/Alt)*

Emanuel and the Fear - Listen (Pop/Experimental/Classical)

Frightened Rabbits - The Winter of Mixed Drinks (Rock/Pop/Alt)

Gary Allen - Get Off the Plan (Country)

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach (CD or CD/DVD) (Pop/Rock/Hip Hop)*

Jason Collett - Rat a Tat (Pop/Folk/Indie)*

Jimi Hendrix - Valleys of Neptune / Are You Experienced (CD/DVD) / Axis: Bold As Love (CD/DVD)/ Electric Ladyland (CD/DVD) / First Rays of the New Rising Sun (CD/DVD) (Rock/Classic)*

Josh Rouse - Turista (Pop/Rock/Latin)*

Julie Fowlis - Uam (Folk/Scottish Gaelic)*

Lawrence Arabia - Chant Darling (Pop/Indie)

Liars - Sisterworld (Alt/Rock)

Lisa Bouchelle - Blue Room With A View (Rock/Pop)

Love Never Dies - Original Cast Recording (Andrew Lloyd Webber)

Ludacris - Battle of the Sexes (Hip Hop)

Milles Kurosky - The Desert of Shallow Effects (Pop/Rock/Indie)

Mimicking Birds - Mimicking Birds (Pop/Folk/Alt)*

Ortolan - Time On A String (Pop/Alt/Indie)

Patty Larkin - 25 (Folk/Pop)*

Peter Paul and Mary - With Symphony Orchestra: Prague (Folk)

Redman - Reggie (Hip Hop)

Serj Tankian - Elect the Dead Symphony (Rock/Alt/Progressive/Orchestral)

The Besnard Lakes - The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night (Rock/Alt/Pop)*

The Chieftains + Ry Cooder - San Patricio (CD or CD/DVD) (Celtic/Spanish)*

The Knife - Tomorrow In A Year (Rock/Opera/Experimental)

Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - The Brutalist Bricks (Pop/Rock/Indie)

The Morning Benders - Big Echo (Pop/Rock/Indie)

Thrushes - Night Falls (Rock/Pop/Shoegaze)

Titus Andronicus - Monitor (Pop/Rock/Indie/Alt)

Via Audio - Animalore (Pop/Rock/Indie)

White Hinterland - Kairos (Pop/Experimental/Electronica/Dub)