Goldfrapp Feit Mountain

Though her collaborations with Tricky, Orbital, and Add N To X focused on the sheer beauty and power of her singing, on her debut album Felt Mountain Allison Goldfrapp also explores more straightforward styles. Together with composer/multi-instrumentalist Will Gregory, Goldfrapp wraps her unearthly voice around songs that borrow from '60s pop, cabaret, folk, and electronica without sounding derivative or unfocused…

One song about preparing to exact bloody revenge begets another song about the act of exacting bloody revenge and then more songs about the causes and the aftermath of being driven to exact bloody revenge, each delivered with the urgency and desperation deserving of their narrators and circumstances. John Darnielle & the Mountain Goats present Bleed Out, a brand new collection arriving on August 19th.

Coming on the heels of their live Twin Peaks, this release features more of a guitar-oriented sound than previous efforts. Highlights include their cover of Jerry Lee Lewis' "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" and "You Better Believe It," the latter sounding like a return to the Climbing days. The rest, however, sounds like it could have been left buried under the Avalanche. Everything was downhill after this.

Mountain was the combined forces of Leslie West, a gigantic guitarist/vocalist who had played with New York garage-psych rockers the Vagrants, and Felix Pappalardi. Pappalardi had a slightly more impressive track record, coming from the modern East Coast folk-rock movement (the Youngbloods), before he applied his production skills to Cream. Through this, Felix never really stopped playing and eventually formed Mountain. Often billed as a junior-league version of Cream, Climbing!, Mountain's debut, had a lot of things going for it as well. Indeed, West was a changed man from the moment he saw Clapton play, and Pappalardi was able to help him achieve the exact same tone Clapton employed on Disraeli Gears…

Following the success of their self-titled debut, the Ozark Mountain Daredevils' sophomore release, It'll Shine When It Shines, continues on their already established path of California-style country-rock. This release contained what would ultimately prove to be their greatest hit, "Jackie Blue," which ended up peaking at number three on the pop chart. Although "Jackie Blue" is by far the least countrified track on the album, it embodies the casual, understated groove of the band that could be found on any of the Daredevils' releases. Although when examined closely the album is really three neatly separate albums by three maturing songwriters (John Dillon, Steve Cash, and the underrated Larry Lee), the thread of their relaxed atmosphere and light harmonies runs throughout the album, binding it together as a cohesive whole.

Following the success of Climbing! and appearances at Woodstock and other outdoor festivals of the day, Mountain recorded more of the same for Nantucket Sleighride. The title track is a nice mixture of classical-leaning intertwined with moderate rock; both "Don't Look Around" and "The Animal Trainer and the Toad" continue on the hard rock path so well-worn by this band. Not groundbreaking, but it is well worth listening to.