Shane Adams Is Writing.

I’ll be honest: before buying this album, I wasn’t exactly sure who Modest Mouse. Of course I knew they were an indie band, and they played a type of alternative rock, but other then that, I only knew their name.

So, figuring that I knew absloutly nothing about the artists, I decided to look online:

“Modest Mouse is an American indie rock band formed in 1993 in the Seattle suburb of Issaquah, Washington by singer/lyricist/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, and bassist Eric Judy.

The band has attained significant mainstream success since being signed to Sony’s Epic Records in 2001 and have been one of the leading bands in the commercialization of indie rock, beginning with The Moon & Antarctica and Good News for People Who Love Bad News, which have been certified gold and platinum by the RIAA respectively. They have gone on to sell over three million records since.” (via Wikipedia)

Reading over this, with many mentions of the band’s success, you’d have to wonder how this lone eight track album would hold up to their others. After all, No One’s First and You’re Next consists of tracks that were to be released with Modest Mouse’s best-selling albums, The Moon & Antarctica and Good News for People Who Love Bad News, but didn’t make the cut. Why were they held back? Would this album be trash, and not worth listening to? Nonetheless, I deciede to listen, and, to my enjoyment, Modest Mouse did not disappoint.

Within No One’s First and You’re Next, memories feel to be reawakened, memories of enjoyment, pain, sorrow, loss, and love. These emotions can be found, expressed to the fullest, in tracks such as Autumn Beds and King Rat, two of the strongest songs on the EP. And with catchy, cryptic lyrics, intriguing melodies, and mystical beats in every track, the album easily can relate to anyone.

Easily a EP, Modest Mouse’s choice to release these forgotten tracks was a plus for them. If you’re interested in listening to No One’s First and You’re Next, you can purchase the album on Amazon, and on iTunes. And, though this EP is great, Modest Mouse has many other great, full-length albums available online, which you should also check out.

So, the final verdict? No One’s First and You’re Next is strong, and very enjoyable new release from Modest Mouse. It’s not the best that the band could produce, but it’s a great album to introduce and interest new listeners. I can’t help but wonder what’s next, but there’s no doubt in my mind that whatever it is, it’ll be a great for Modest Mouse.

Ah, Hank Green. Not only has he proven himself to be one of the coolest nerds on the Internet, but he’s also one of the best musicians out there. With his past two amazing albums out (So Jokes and I’m So Bad At This: Live!), I had high expectations for his new album, This Machine Pwns n00bs. And I’m very happy to say it doesn’t just meet them; it greatly exceeds them.

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Readers of the blog may remember I talked about Taking Leave last week, more specifically about the fact that the whole album was on YouTube in it’s entirety, for free. However, since then, I’ve gotten my hands on a physical copy of the album, and here’s my verdict: Taking Leave is one of the best albums I’ve listened to in a long time (and it’s not even a full-length album.) Tom Milsom’s awing vocal abilities, along with Alan Lastufka’s beautiful poetic lyrics are a match made in musical heaven.

The most intriguing part of this album is that neither Milsom or Lastufka had metbefore earlier this month. For seven months, Taking Leave was produced by two men with miles in between their locations. Milsom recorded all the tracks in London, England, while Lastufka worked in rural Chicago. All communication and work was received over the Internet, which is also how Milsom and Lastufka met. And for those who thought the distance would make the album feel somewhat empty, Taking Leave says otherwise.

Throughout Taking Leave, you get an idea of romance, and relationship. Whether it be in the feelings of true love, or the heartbreak of loss, you’ll understand what’s trying to be expressed through the lyrics and vocals. The songs go in a somewhat chronological order of relationship, and show the feelings of both a man and a woman, and how their love slowly breaks apart, and how, after they leave each other, they rethink what could have been. This romantic timeline shows, especially in tracks like Can’t and The Wind.

Both Milsom and Lastufka have made a masterpiece, there’s no questioning that. If you don’t believe it yourself, you can listen to the album for free on YouTube, as I said above. Check it out and see if you enjoy it. And if you end up falling in love with the poetic lyrics, and wonderful vocals, you can buy Taking Leave here for six dollars.

The only question that’s left is, what’s next? Milsom is already working on his next album, set to be released through DFTBA Records in early 2010, and Lastufka is working on his next album, with vocals from Raven Zoe, and collaborating with many other musicians known on the Internet, also to be released with DFTBA Records. So, rest assured, this talent won’t be going to waste, and this won’t be the last of Lastufka or Milsom.