(Sub Pop)

Check out the new single, “Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings,” by Father John Misty, whose upcoming record, Fear Fun, will be released May 1 on Sub Pop.

(Figure 8 Publicity)

Brooklyn band Xylos are going to be perform at Hiro Ballroom Thursday Jan.26 as the co-headliner of the 2012 NYC Arctic Ball. Meanwhile, the band is also working on a new project and will also be performing at this year’s SXSW. For info, check out their Web site.

(credit: Kickstarter.com)

The Best Music Writing has been an annual series published by Da Capo Press for over a decade, spotlighting the best in music journalism; past installments have been guest edited by such esteemed writers as Ann Powers, Nick Hornby, Alex Ross, Greil Marcus and Nelson George. This time around, the 2012 edition and future installments of the series will be independently published, and series editor Daphne Carr is trying to raise funds through Kickstarter to make that happen. As of Jan. 18, 2012, she has raised $3,208 to reach a goal of $15,000 by Jan. 31. Help keep the series going by making a contribution to its Kickstarter page; some cool incentives are being offered for donations. For more information, visit this Web site; and to make a donation, please check out the Kickstarter page.

(Force Field PR)

Listen to “Know Me,” a new song from Frankie Rose’s (Dum Dum Girls, Crystal Stilts, Vivian Girls) second album, “Interstellar,” due out Feb. 21. She’ll be doing a show at the Knitting Factory in Brooklyn on the same day. Check out her Web site for more information.

(amazon.com)

Although Queen’s momentum in the United States declined during the’80s, the band was still popular in Europe and the rest of the world. It was a period that saw Queen still at the top of the their game until tragedy struck that would change everything and mark the end of one chapter of the group’s storied history.

After the mixed reception to Hot Space, Queen released The Works (1984), a return to their hard-rock form. The album’s sound was certainly of the period with the emphasis on synths such as on the New Wave-ish hit “Radio Ga Ga “and “Machines (or Back to Humans)”; the rest of the album is marked by the distinctive and eclectic Queen styles of heavy rock (“Tear It Up,” “Hammer to Fall), ballads (“Is This the World We Created,” a typical Mercury composition in “It’s a Hard Life”) and pop (John Deacon’s “I Want to Break Free”). The Works saw a revitalized band come back. The bonus EP contains a few noteworthy rarities: live performances of “Is This the World…” and “It’s a Hard Life” from Rio, and a Headbanger’s remix of “Hammer to Fall.”

(amazon.com)

Queen delivered a memorable performance at Live Aid in 1985 and the energy from that day carried over into the next record, A Kind of Magic (1986) — whose music was also featured in the movie Highlander, their second soundtrack outing. An overall satisfying record, Magic delivered two key tracks that became staples of Queen’s live set list during the Magic Tour: the title song and the adrenaline-fueled “One Vision.” Again, like The Works, Magic also showcases a range of styles, whether it is the smooth jazzy pop of “One Year of Love,” the Motown homage “Pain is So Close to Pleasure” or the bombastic rockers “Gimme the Prize” and “Princes of the Universe”; Brian May’s power ballad “Who Wants to Live Forever” provides the album’s emotional high point. From the bonus EP, only the rare tracks such as “A Kind of Magic” (Highlander Version), “A Kind of Vision” and “Friends Will Be Friends Will Be Friends” will be of interest to die- hard fans.

(amazon.com)

Three years later, Queen returned with The Miracle (1989), a somewhat underrated that successfully closed the ‘80s for the band: it ranges from funk rockers (Party, The Invisible Man, “Rain Must Fall”) to pop (the chugging “Breakthru,” the semi-autobiographical “Scandal”) The best songs on the record are the anthemic rocker “I want it All” and the socially-conscious title song; the closing “Was It All Worth It” is a musical and semi-autobiographical tribute to Queen’s past triumphs, a fitting hint of what was to come on the next record. The material was credited to all four members, which is why the music sounded a bit stronger than it has in the past. The additonal disc to this reissue contains a plethora of bonus tracks, most notably the Roger Taylor B-side “Hijack My Heart,” the loose-sounding rocker “Stealin’” and “The Invisible Man” with a guide vocal.

(amazon.com)

With no tour for The Miracle and Freddie Mercury’s declining health, the group returned shortly with Innuendo (1991), an absolutely triumphant album that recalled Queen’s best work from the ‘70s. The title song recalls “Bohemian Rhapsody” in terms of the length (over six minutes) and its progressive/art rock sensibilities along with “I’m Going Slightly Mad” and “All God’s People”; “Headlong” is a classic straight-ahead rocker; “The Hitman” was the group’s heaviest offering in years that harkens News of the World; and “These Are the Days of Our Lives” is a sublime and gorgeous ballad. Most telling are the album’s lyrics that read like meditations on life and death which in retrospect seems appropriate given Mercury’s personal situation. Sadly, Innuendo would be the last record recorded with Mercury before he died on Nov. 24, 1991. Some of the additional tracks of interest to fans on this Innuendo reissue are the bluesy ballad “Lost Opportunity,” which would have been a perfect fit for Brian May’s Back to the Light solo record; an alternate mix of “I’m Going Slightly Mad”; and an early version of “Headlong,” with May’s guide vocal.

(amazon.com)

In 1995, the surviving members of Queen released Made in Heaven (1995), a collection of songs that were finished or revisited following Mercury’s death. The fact that it was patched together and released after the fact probably accounts on why it sounds uneven compared to Innuendo. But given the circumstances, it still remains a loving and heartfelt tribute to Mercury, particularly in the reworking of two previously released Mercury solo songs: the title track and “I Was Born to Love You”; the gospel-inspired, “Let Me Live” is notable for featuring Mercury, May and Taylor taking turns on lead vocals; and “It’s a Beautiful Day” bookends the record, first as a soulful piano and vocal number and later as an uplifting rock song. If not cohesive or brilliant, “Made in Heaven” is certainly the most poignant record Queen has ever made. Several bonus songs on this reissue include a B-side version of “It’s a Beautiful Day,” the original version of “My Life’s Been Saved,” and “Rock in Rio Blues.”

(Good Cop PR)

Listen to “Ramona,” a gorgeous new track by Nashville’s Night Beds from their upcoming album, Country Sleep, due out Jan. 31. For more information on Night Beds, visit their site.

(amazon.com)

Queen
Queen 40, Vol. 2: News of the World, Jazz, The Game, Flash Gordon, Hot Space
Hollywood Records
By David Chiu

From 1977 to 1982, Queen were at the peak of their popularity and power through hit albums, singles and concerts. It was a period during which they gradually veered away from the elaborate productions of the earlier records but without compromising the distinctive hard rock sound.

That was certainly true of 1977’s News of the World, perhaps arguably the group’s answer to the punk revolution. It is a very straight-ahead rock and roll record represented by two of the group’s iconic anthems: the hard-stomping “We Will Rock You” and the unifying ballad “We Are the Champions.” Clearly the band was not rattled by punk but rather embraced the challenge as evidenced on the blistering rockers “Sheer Heart Attack” and “Get Down Make Love”; the lean and nasty “Fight from the Inside”; and the climactic jam on “It’s Late.” As usual, Queen’s willingness to embrace new sounds is also shown on the tropical stylings of “Who NeedsYou” and the blues of “Sleeping on the Sidewalk.” After the sonic assault of the previous 10 songs comes a very torchy closing ballad “My Melancholy Blues,” one of Freddie Mercury’s best compositions and performances. News of the World ranks as one of the group’s top five albums of all time. The highlight of this reissue is the previously unreleased track, “Feelings, Feelings,” a very loose-sounding rocker that finally makes its proper release; other noteworthy songs on the bonus EP include BBC performances of “Melancholy” and “Spread Your Wings,” and a fast live version of “We Will Rock You” from Tokyo in 1982.

(amazon.com)

Jazz (1978) really captures Queen at the height of their invincibility and bombast. A song like the raunchy “Fat Bottomed Girls” may seem now politically incorrect in 2011, but it’s funny and tongue-in-cheek–certainly it’s one of the three memorable tracks along with the whimsical “Bicycle Race” and the dazzling piano-dominated rocker “Don’t Stop Me Now.” “Let Me Entertain You” seems like autobiographical account of the group’s fame at that point. And while causal listeners may think Queen’s foray into disco began with “Another Ones Bites the Dust,” it really started on the Jazz album with Roger Taylor’s upbeat funk rocker “Fun It.” The bonus songs on this reissue don’t offer many surprises (among them the “Fat Bottomed Girls” single and a live performance of “Let Me Entertain You” that can be found on Queen Rock Montreal) other than a version of “Don’t Stop Me Now” featuring a alternate guitar solo by Brian May.

1980 was definitely Queen’s year as far as their dominance of the U.S was concerned. The Game was the band’s hit album in the States featuring two of their only No. 1 songs there: the rockabilly-styled “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” (written by Mercury) and the disco classic “Another One Bites the Dust” (composed by John Deacon). It was a period in which Queen really experimented with new styles and even incorporated a synthesizer for the first time. All in all, aside from those two legendary tracks, The Game is Queen’s most accessible album at that point.: from the majestic “Play the Game” and the funk rock of “Dragon Attack,” to the doo-wop greaser rock of “Don’t Try Suicide” and the heartbreaking ballad “Save Me.” Fans are probably delighted by the inclusion of two songs on the bonus EP: a B-side, Roger Taylor’s “A Human Body,” and the original version of “It’s a Beautiful Day,” featuring Freddie’s voice and piano– it would later be revisited for 1995’s Made in the Heaven album.

(amazon.com)

Flash Gordon (1980) was Queen’s first entry into soundtrack work which is somewhat fitting given the band’s music always sounded cinematic and grand. It’s mostly all instrumental pieces with the exception of two tracks written by Brian May– the dramatic and majestic “Flash” and the shamelessly-underrated rocker “The Hero”–so it probably will only appeal to die-hard fans Some of the bonus tracks on this reissue include “Football Fight” and “The Kiss,” which are interesting to listen to in their stripped-down early versions without the synths.; the live version of “The Hero,” again taken from the Queen Rock Montreal record, is magnificent

(amazon.com)

Queen’s momentum in the States slowed down with the release of Hot Space in 1982. It was only natural that the band would try to repeat the success of “Another One Bites the Dust” by featuring funky disco numbers on Hot Space—such as the horn-happy “Staying Power,” the slinky “Body Language” and the Euro-sounding Back Chat. The rest of the album consisted of the familiar Queen rockers and ballads like “Put Out the Fire” and “Las Palabras de Amor,” but the overall results were mixed. The only memorable track on Hot Space is one of Queen’s best songs—– a duet with David Bowie on “Under Pressure,” whose piano and bass lines was later sampled by Vanilla Ice’s 1990 hit “Ice Ice Baby.” In retrospect, while not the band’s finest effort, Hot Space does have its moments song-by-song. And like the reissue of The Game, this new release of Hot Space features another B-side track, the gospel-flavored “Soul Brother,” fearing Mercury cleverly name-checking past Queen songs; other highlights on the bonus EP include live performances of “Action This Day” and “Calling All Girls” from Tokyo in 1982.

(amazon.com)

NewBeats’ Noteworthy Reissues of 2011 (in no particular order)

The Dark Side of the Moon (Immersion Box): Pink Floyd
Nevermind (Deluxe Edition): Nirvana
Young Man with the Big Beat: Elvis Presley
Complete Albums Collection: Billy Joel
Queen 40 (Vol. 1): Queen
Winterland: Jimi Hendrix
Wish You Were Here (Immersionn Box): Pink Floyd
Faith (Special Edition): George Michael
McCartney: Paul McCartney

(nullco.com)

The soundtrack to the new film “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” scored by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, is due out Dec. 27. For those eager to hear what it sounds like, a free 6-track sampler– totaling close to 35 minutes–is available here. (You have to submit an email address for the download).

(amazon.com)

Neil Diamond
The Very Best of Neil Diamond
Columbia/Legacy
by David Chiu

There has to be something special about an artist whose popularity still remains high into his sixth decade of music. That certainly applies to Neil Diamond, whose body of work traces back to the era of ’60s Brill Building pop music. This new release is unique because it collects all of Diamond’s studio hits from the Bang, Uni and Columbia years in one single disc—no live versions of the Uni hits as was the case in past compilations, but the actual studio recordings. Diamond’s music has been the soundtrack of generations with the common thread being heartfelt lyrics, a catchy hook, and his soulful vocal style. His music has gone through an evolution, from the very country-rootsy rock of “Cherry Cherry” and “Girl You’ll Be a Woman” Soon; to the relaxed sing along tracks of “Song Sung Blue,” “Sweet Caroline” and “Cracklin’ Rosie”; to the lush pop balladry of his classic duet with Barbra Streisand on “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers,” the angstful and devastating “Love on the Rocks” and the tender “Hello Again.” More recently, Diamond has made some strong recordings particularly from the Rick Rubin-produced albums such as “Pretty Amazing Grace” and the uplifting “Hell Yeah,” showcasing the musician’s talent at its bare essence without the Vegas-like trappings. It’s amazing how many great and memorable songs fit into one disc–If you never buy another Neil Diamond studio album, this set delivers pretty much delivers the goods.