Tommy Emmanuel – Center Stage / 2008 Favored Nations / 24 Tracks / http://www.tommyemmanuel.com / Tommy is from Australia. Furthermore, ey is a two-time Grammy nominee. “Center Stage†is a live album, and was recorded at the Sierra Nevada Brewery (Chico, CA). While individuals may not be familiar with the solo recordings of an Emmanuel, ey cut eir teeth in the John Farnham band. If one can remember back to…
Hilary McRae – Through These Walls / 2008 Concord / 12 Tracks / http://www.hilarymcrae.com / “Through These Walls†starts off with “Every Day (When Will You Be Mine)â€, a track that has a timeless nature to it. That means that the brass that backs up the vocals and the rest of the normal instrumentation (drums) provides hints of the seventies, while McRae’s vocals on this track are very current and…
Tift Merritt – Another Country / 2008 Fantasy / 11 Tracks / http://www.tiftmerritt.com / Tift Merritt is rapidly closing in on eir second decade in the country music business. 1999 saw the first EP release for Merritt, which featured two original songs and five re-tooled versions of eir favorite country tracks. After three releases beyond this first one, Merritt has settled in quite nicely to a mature style. “Another Country 
Water Fai – Girls In The White Dream / 2007 White Shoe / 8 Tracks / http://www.waterfai.fem.jp / http://www.whiteshoerecords.com / I always wondered why it was so hard to get CDs from Japan. It seemed that the prices were exorbitant or the quantity not to be had. The reason why I am musing about this is because Water Fai is from Japan (specifically, from Osaka) and they start out their…
Kingen – Ride With Me / 2007 Black Cat / 11 Tracks / http://www.fargfabiken.se / http://www.blackcatsongs.com / Kingen plays a very classy style of rock that will undoubtedly remind individuals of the early days of rock and roll. “Mary-Ann” could easily have been a hit in 1958 as it will undoubtedly be in 2008. The best thing about Kingen’s style on “Ride With Me” has to be the fact that…
Putumayo Presents – African Party / 2008 Putumayo / 10 Tracks / http://www.putumayo.com / First, I still love the fact that Putumayo comes out with these compilations, covering a number of different genres and geographies with each subsequent releases. However, I have a little bit of a problem when it comes to the name “African Party†for this album.  Africa is a huge and diverse continent, and a number of…
Asia – Phoenix / 2008 Frontiers / 12 Tracks / http://www.originalasia.com / Asia’s music is still some of the most played on classic rock radio, but that is not because the act has been particularly active in the last few years. Rather, “Phoenix†marks the first reunion for all of the original members of the band, and the first album released by this iteration of Asia since 1983’s “Alphaâ€. This…
The New Tragedies – Souvenirs / 2008 Self / 5 Tracks / http://www.thenewtragedies.com / One of the former writers for NeuFutur reviewed the last New Tragedies albums, so I will have to apologize in advance for being ignorant about the band. “Souvenirs†starts out with “New & Improvedâ€, a slow track that gradually opens to an atmospheric, breath-y type of track that matches well the back cover: two individuals, lounging…
Senior Discount – S/T / 2008 Self / 5 Tracks / http://www.seniordiscountmusic.com / I guess I forgot to review Senior Discount’s last CD when they sent it over. My apologies. Anyways, the style of music that Senior Discount play is a fast-forward, quick brand of punk music that does not let individuals have a moment to rest. “Ataxia†is a track that will get the pits started and will hammer…
Socratic – Spread The Rumors / 2008 Drive-Thru / 12 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/socratic / http://www.drivethrurecords.com / Socratic have finally came out with their sequel to “Lunch For The Skyâ€, three years after the album was released. “Boy In A Magazine†is the first single on the disc, and it starts off the album. The fact that Mark Hoppus produced this album comes forth strongly during this introductory track, as the…
The Ting Tings – Great DJ / 2008 Red Ink / 3 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/thetingtings / http://www.columbiarecords.com / The Ting Tings are an act that are still gaining prominence in their native United kingdom, and have not really reached American shores as of yet. “Great DJ†is their third single (after “That’s Not My Name†and “Fruit Machineâ€), and blends together electronic music with a pop singer. The track does…
Juniper Lane – Wake From Yourself / 2008 Self / 10 Tracks / http://www.juniperlane.com / http://www.myspace.com/juniperlandband / Juniper Lane has been raising themselves up pretty well on their own. The act has sold over 8,000 copies of their albums, and they have come forth in a very strong way with “Wake From Yourselfâ€, which marks their seventh year as a band. “Impact†is this opening track, and showcases a unique…
Whiskeytown – Strangers Almanac Deluxe Edition / 2008 Universal / 39 Tracks / http://www.universalchronicles.com / I must admit, I was too young to really get into Whiskeytown when they were first out. If I recall correctly, I was listening to Marilyn Manson, Deicide and Corrosion of Conformity. This would not have jived well with what Whiskeytown sounded like during this album, calling forth individuals like Uncle Tupelo, The Replacements, and…
Twin Tigers – Curious Faces / Violet Future / 2008 Self / 6 Tracks / http://www.thetwintigers.com / The dreamy type of pop music that issues forth from the Twin Tigers CD hits on Radiohead, The Pixies, and even the Jesus and Mary Chain. However, instead of merely being a derivate type of band, the act does a tremendous amount of creation of their own sound on this EP. Where the…
I know that I say this a lot when it comes to rap CDs, but thank you so much for not having ten different skits on your CD. Anyways, “The Set Up” starts off “with “Flawless”, a track that has a very funky backdrop for the current style of rap that issues forth. The stuttering steps that are present during this first track are a little odd, but when the…
Tobias Froberg – Turn Heads / 2008 Cheap Lullaby / 12 Tracks / http://www.tobiasfroberg.com / http://www.cheaplullaby.com / Tobias Froberg is an individual that does not care what genre eir ultimately ends up, but tat each and every track on “Turn Heads†is done to catch individual listeners in with hooky music and a compelling set of vocals. This means that a track like “Blissful†has hints of sixties pop, even…
Dave Patten – Pace of Change / 2008 Clark / 5 Tracks / http://www.davepatten.com In the last six months since the last time that we reviewed Dave Patten, he has really taken that first bold step forward. First, he released a cover of the current hit “Sweetest Girlâ€, which provided individuals with a version that is even more soulful and energetic, while still being very sad in message, than the…
Sing It Loud play a brand of emo that is a linkage between acts like Boys Like Girls and Amber Pacific. There is not quite as much in the way of synthesizers on a Sing It Loud track as there are during a Rocket Summer track, but the same infectious type of pop is similar in all three cases. “No One Can Touch Us” features Alex Gaskarth, of All Time…
36 Crazyfists – The Tide and Its Takers / 2008 Ferret / 11 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/36crazyfists / http://www.ferretstyle.com / The first track on “The Tide And Its Takers†is “The All Night Lightsâ€, a track that shows that the very angular hardcore that 36 Crazyfists play can be modified by the inclusion of a more classic metal type of tint. This means that, while the track is definitely ready for…
Pro|Click Mobile / 2008 Razer / http://www.razerzone.com / This is the first time that we’ve actually received computer peripherals for review in NeuFutur. Sure, we’ve received CDs, DVDs, video games, and the like in the past, but Razer (through Rogers and Cowan) was gracious enough to provide us with a review copy of the mouse. A first glance at the mouse shows that Razer actually cares about the left-handed user…