***image1***
Soak in summertime jams.
GNARLS BARKLEY
St. Elsewhere
Downtown Records
Named after one of the funniest, and fiercest, basketball players in modern history,
St. Elsewhere
is both those things too: Think
Speakerboxx
crossed with
Demon Days
, a cerebral poolside mix that serves for both the dancefloor and for introspective moments, all courtesy of Cee-Lo (who channels a cracked-out Stevie Wonder) and quasi-underground überproducer Danger Mouse (who channels a cracked-out Andre 3000). It's been called an instant classic, swinging as it does from soul to hip-hop to skeletal, odd beats, even sporting an unexpected turn: a cover of the Violent Femme's "Gone, Daddy, Gone."
BEIRUT
Gulag Orkestar
Ba Da Bing! Records
Former CSF student Zach Condon, who is the driving force behind Beirut, has hit the big time. Though he recorded
Gulag
in Albuquerque (writing the songs and playing most of the instruments himself, which is quite a feat considering he incorporates violins, accordions, trumpets, ukuleles, drums, keys of all kinds and much more), Condon moved to Brooklyn and his work has since become a critical success. Beirut has been noted in Entertainment Weekly and on such influential Web sites as
and
. The latter points out so far
Gulag
is the 18th best-reviewed album of the year, right next to Rosanne Cash, Bruce Springsteen and Art Brut. And with good reason: Condon has crafted a deep, intricate, soulful old-world universe, where 3⁄4 time and mournful Eastern European melodies somehow rock.
BE YOUR OWN PET
Be Your Own Pet
Universal Records
Ecstatic, spastic, frenetic, Be Your Own Pet's self-titled disc is what the Yeah Yeah Yeah's second album
should
have been. No-nonsense guitars, weird lyrics ordering you to "Put your snow boots on!" and Jemina Pearl's updated punk voice make
BYOP
a sleeper dance-punk hit, perfect for a queer tea party or solo bedroom dancing.
