Various Artists – Pimps, Players, & Private Eyes (soul): This is a 10 song collection of songs from 70’s blacksploitation films such as Shaft, Superfly, Cleopatra Jones, Foxy Brown, and more. When I’m in the mood for this, it makes me wish that I still had the Superfly soundtrack. When I’m not in the mood, the tracks are so inherently 70’s sounding that I can’t keep my finger off the skip button. B

Nat King Cole – the Best of (easy listening): I don’t care what kind of hard ass you are, there’s no way to judge against the vocals of Nat “King” Cole. There are only 10 tracks on the disc, so there’s no room for filler, leaving only smooth, cool vocals to help you lower your aim and put the safety back on during those cruddy commutes. And for $3, I couldn’t really pass it up. A

The Andrews Sisters – the Best of (swing): The Andrew sisters had their biggest hits before World War II was over, and their career was essentially over by the time 1950 rolled around. If know them from swing standards like “The Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” or “Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree (with anyone else but me),” you know that their sound is just so simple and harmonious that it alludes to a time that we can only imagine. When I accidentally think something corny “Gee, those gals sure do sing swell,” it’s really difficult to see the world in a dark light. Like Nat King Cole, I find the Andrews Sisters very relaxing, and that is worth a lot to me. A-

New Bomb Turks – Scared Straight (punk): I occasionally look for the New Bomb Turks when out record shopping, and on this run, I actually found one of their albums. I have a hard time calling these guys punk, but I guess they’re as punk as Social Distortion or All, both of which I wouldn’t reclassify for all the safety pins in your nose. I might be more comfortable calling them “pop-punk” or maybe “melodic punk”, because it’s a little more accessible to the average person than The Dead Kennedys or GG Allin. This album is high-energy pop-punk straight through, with songs filled with overdriven guitars and rockabilly/punk vocals that are over before you know it. I think if I was making some sort of “foot on the floor” driving compilation, I might have a tough time picking only one song off this album. I can guarantee that I’ll be picking up more of their albums in the future. B+

Beastie Boys – To the 5 Boroughs (rap): Ever since the Beastie Boys put out Paul’s Boutique back in 1989, they’ve been a guilty pleasure of mine: Not because I consider them to be particularly clever or even good rappers, but because they’ve steadily incorporated some ground-breaking production on their albums. They used Kerry King on “No Sleep ’til Brooklyn,” they explored stereo action and some of the first real rap production on “Paul’s Boutique”, and even played their own instruments on Check Your Head. All this from some kids who got into the rap business because they were a miserable failures when they put out a hardcore album. On To the 5 Boroughs, the rap is the same mediocrity that it has always been, but I think it’s another step forward in terms of production. I have zero tolerance for Mix Master Mike or the Beasties on their own, but put them together and my head won’t stop bopping along. And it’s really difficult to argue against an album that not only mentions Trekkies and Klingons in the first two lines, but actually has editor’s footnotes in the lyrics. A to the minus.

Pixies – Surfer Rosa (pop): If you randomly ask me what my favorite song is, you have an excellent chance of facing the same reaction as if you asked me to solve an advanced chemistry problem: I’d sigh and run my hand through my hair enough times to make me look like as confused as I felt. You would have an equal chance that I would shrug and simply say, “Pixies, Surfer Rosa, track 7: Where is my mind?” Because it was my birthday and I was feeling like I somehow deserved something, I bought this album for myself when I came across it in the used bin. The rest of the album is a little messy, but it’s pure pixies and sends me back to a time when we all had no fucking clue what we we were doing with our lives, but thought that there was still an infinite amount of time to figure it out after we sobered up. B

Guns N’ Roses – The Spaghetti Incident? (rock): When I found this for $3, and the back listed Nazareth’s “Hair of the Dog”, it was impossible not to take to the counter. It was worth the $3 just to hear the rendition. Little did I know that this was a full album of covers. They cover the UK Subs, the Misfits, the Stooges, the Dead Boys, the sex pistols, and even Fear. By all rights, this should be complete crap, but it’s actually turns out to be ok. I will not say it’s a classic of any sort, but hearing Axl Rose faking an English accent on “Down on the Farm” was worth the price of admission. C

Face to Face – Self Titled (pop-punk): This is the fourth Face to Face album that I’ve bought blind since picking up “Don’t Turn Away” a few years back. It may be my unhealthy love of the SF pop-punk sound or the elation of finding this for $5 in the used bin talking, but I really enjoy this album. Face to Face just drives from start to finish with solid melody, punchy bass, and a fair amount old school pick slides. If you like Rise Against, think of these guys as their grandfather. If I had to describe it to folks with more mainstream tastes, it’s sort of like Blink 182 if you cut half the production and all of the goofiness. B+

Missy Elliott – The Cookbook (rap): I like Missy Elliot, but this album is hit or miss. When it’s off, it’s pretty bad, and during the 50% of the time when I’m enjoying a really bumpin’ track, it gets fucked up with a skit. Fuuuuuck, I can’t tell you how sick I am of skits on rap albums. Dear rappers, you’re posse might be laughing at all your jokes when you’re all sitting around, but you’re not comedians. If you think I’m wrong, then save up all of your skits and put out on a comedy album. When it’s just about as successful as Eddie Murphy’s foray into music, send me a dollar for being dead-on balls accurate. An album broken up with dumb skits is a waste of everyone’s time. The only time I hate skits worse is when the artist tags them on to the beginning or the end of a track to create two minute nuisance transitions from one track to the next. It’s fucking annoying to listen to, and you can’t easily skip it. You have either put up with half shit track, spend time fast forwarding through the skit, or just skip the track altogether. I usually take the third option to save myself the headache, and that really kills the track if I’m actually enjoying it. That said, guess what my problem is with this album? Go ahead. Yea. The annoyance of the skits kills my enjoyment of some of the music. C+

DJ Shadow – Entroducing… (dj): This was Shadow’s first full album from 1996, which someone boosted from my collection a few years back. It’s not a particularly technical, nor does it really make me want to get up and move. While writing this, I find it difficult to find a reason why I like it. It may be nostalgia, familiarity, or the fact that it’s just so mellow that I don’t have to pay attention to it to relax. I do like it quite a bit, though. B+

Lamb of God – New American Gospel (thrash/death): All I can say is, “Holy Fuck.” On those days when Slayer and Pantera just aren’t enough and you need a little bump, this is the album to pick up. It’s fast, it’s unbelievably tight, and it rips the roof off of metal. If I were ever to become a professional demolition derby driver, I would use this CD to get psyched up with. And I would smash everything in sight and become the intercontinental demolition champion of the world. If you’re into the whole Haunted/Shadows Fall brand of ultra-heaviness, this should be right up your alley. Take it from the next world champ. A

Corrosion of Conformity – In the Arms of god (stoner rock): I don’t know why I keep buying COC albums because despite really wanting to like them, I usually end up liking only one or two tracks off of each one. This one is no different, except that it seems like someone gave the band a handful of ‘ludes and turned the bass knob to 11. I won’t go so far as to say that the tracks are bad, but they’re not especially notable, either. Because they’re all so slow, I might like listening to them if they came up in a single serving on a random shuffle, but trying to listen to them all in a row is boring enough that I just find myself avoiding the disc. C

Tool – Aenima (metal): I picked this up for $9.99 to replace a copy that mysteriously vanished from my collection a few years back. There is really no way that I’m going to spend any more time reviewing it than to say that it is an essential Tool album. A

Tool – 10,000 Days (metal): I found out that Tool had a new album two days after it came out and ran down to pick it up on my lunch break based on about twenty seconds of samples and a rock solid reputation. Even after being pretty disappointed by Lateralus, I expected this album to be a return to an earlier, heavier Tool. Instead, this is merely an extension of the Tool-lite sound of “A Perfect Circle” rather than the mathematical riff wizardry that Tool is typically known for. It also seems like Tool has paid more attention to their packaging than their music, as this album is packaged with stereoscopic lenses (think ViewMaster) and a series of pictures to look at in 3D. If you’re looking for an album to listen to while “tending garden” (ahem), or are into the feminine side of the Tool musical mindset, this album might be right up your alley. If you expect something that kicks your ass like earlier Tool, you’re probably going to be disappointed and might have to just let the album grow on you. It is Tool, after all. B

Wolfmother – self-titled (rock/stoner): Even though we are polar on our opinions of the merits of the likes of Morningwood, I bought this Australian rock trio based purely on reading Tankboy’s excitement about it. While I don’t share his vital level excitement about the disc, I will certainly agree that it is worth a listen. While I’ve seen the band labeled as “stoner rock,” I don’t think that it’s quite greasy enough for the category, although I would certainly call them a gateway drug to the stoner genre for pop/rock fans. For pop fans, or those of you who are skimming, the disc could possibly be described as the White Stripes meets Oasis, but with a more 70’s feel. Even though the disc jams right along, in the back of my mind I find that I’m a little bothered that it seems like such a concerted effort to sound 70’s. The vocals are high like Geddy Lee of Rush, the keyboards were lifted straight out of Deep Purple, the drums are simplistically ‘Sabbath, and the guitar is is repetitive and fuzz-laden like countless bands of the 70’s. They even include a flute solo on “Witchcraft” that nods directly toward Jethro Tull. Even the album’s cover seems to be lifted right out of Molly Hatchet (Yes, that is a a naked Viking wizard lady commanding a giant lizard). When something seems a little too intentional, I question the intent. In the case of music, I think corporate produced one-trick pony. With all that in mind, I think the disc is fun, but lacks enough depth that I’d be very surprised if Wolfmother put out a follow up that got any attention. B

Various Artists – Friday (OST) Based on the bands listed, this should be semi-interesting excursion into 90’s rap. Unfortunately, even at $3, it’s a rip-off. I didn’t even care if there was a picture for this one. F