With a year off and nothing to do, 2021 unleashed a torrent of new music as many bands used the forced lockdown of 2020 to write new music. Veteran bands were especially prominent this year as aging rockers rolled back … Continue reading Top 10 Best Albums of 2021
The reviews of all the albums reviewed this year continue to pile up. The Top 10 Best Albums of 2021 has been finalized, I think, with the final album added this week but some shuffling around of those picked has started the second-guessing. Oh! I also got a new Rush album. Don’t get too excited, see below. Merry Axemas – (album) I told you Merry Axemas would remain on The Weekly Playlist for a few weeks. Mammoth WVH – Self-titled (album) Wolfgang Van Halen’s debut album. Read the review. Duran Duran – Future Past (album) Still going after 40 years, Duran … Continue reading The Weekly Playlist – Dec. 5 to Dec. 11
A busy week as December rolled in with lots of listens for the forthcoming Top 10 Best Albums of 2021. The new releases have slowed down for the year as nothing has peaked my interest in recent weeks but just to mix it up I listened to a remixed album. But tis the season… 1. Merry Axemas (album) Expect this one to appear on this list for a few weeks. A fun guitar oriented approach to classic Christmas songs. “The Little Drummer Boy” my favorite for some obvious reasons. You can check out the artists and what they contribute here. … Continue reading The Weekly Playlist – Nov. 28 to Dec. 4
Just finished one of the busiest weeks in listening yet! I continued the process of getting reacquainted with those albums I reviewed this year to determine the Top 10 Best of 2021 but the big push came with the long Thanksgiving road trip that began today. My wife chose 80s music for the drive thus the reason for the two of bands with similar members. Usually, she doesn’t like what I bring but this time she asks, after we’re already underway, where is Metallica? Motley Crue? Styx? REO Speedwagon? I didn’t bring any of those because she only likes a … Continue reading The Weekly Playlist – Nov. 14 to Nov. 20
All albums this week no individual songs. It doesn’t seem like much, just the four entries, but I listened to Duran Duran’s latest multiple times as well as No Doubt’s first album. Takes a lot of work sometimes to write something fair and accurate, at least from my point of view, and even then, some doubts (not no doubts) can creep in. Thus, the debut album series I started earlier this year returned after a few months off and an anniversary brought out the vinyl, a far better experience than streaming. Rush – Counterparts (album) The highest-ranking ever Rush album … Continue reading The Weekly Playlist – Oct. 17 to Oct. 23
Outside Simon Le Bon’s vocals you might not initially recognize Duran Duran on Future Past, the band’s 15th album (out Oct. 22) that embraces a somewhat pensive sound bridging some of the band’s recent work with a current musical approach … Continue reading Album Review: Duran Duran – Future Past
Already five of these Weekly Playlists! So far, the idea behind posting what I listened to the previous week works because I am not only listening to more music but also bands and artists I likely would have filed away and never got around to listening. Case in point… BTS – Butter, Permission to Dance, My Universe (songs) OK, listen. In a strange coinkydink, I did not know who BTS was but at the same time I did. Last week’s Weekly Playlist brought them to light so I decided to jump in. Turns out I’m not too out of touch … Continue reading The Weekly Playlist – Sept. 26 to Oct. 2
A road trip to Mount Rainier National Park (link is to my review not spam) helped boost this week’s listening playlist and some fellow bloggers’ recent call-outs offered some added incentive to check out previously untapped bands. The ranking has no bearing on favorability. I like lists and most people do too, gotta start somewhere! Chris Isaak – Live at the Fillmore (album) Brought this signed copy on the road trip to listen for the first time. No, it was purchased at his concert in Bend, OR a couple of years ago, not signed in person. Sad face. But the … Continue reading The Weekly Playlist – Sept. 5 to Sept. 11
My internal deliberations to put this website to bed tends to come undone with a new idea. Ironically, I don’t listen to music all that much just those albums I review, whether old or new releases, and when concerts were a thing, I’d dive into albums of the coming feature. Yesterday, after listening to several albums I thought, why not a weekly music round-up or some type of list of those bands I listened to and the individual songs and/or albums. Thus, Weekly Playlist was born. Then I thought it was stupid. Then I thought, maybe it would be cool. … Continue reading The Weekly Playlist: Aug. 29 – Sept. 4
Based on the title, you’d think Duran Duran’s new single “More Joy,” off their forthcoming album Future Past coming October 22, might toe the line of an upbeat, catchy pop song expressing a desired reprieve from the last year and … Continue reading Single Review: Duran Duran – More Joy
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