Sufjan Stevens, 'Songs for Christmas' (Asthmatic Kitty)
The holiday gift that keeps on giving and giving and giving.
By Barry Walters 12.04.06 4:00 AM
Collecting four privately distributed EPs, plus a new one, this two-hour, five-disc retrospective of the Brooklyn songwriter's Christmas-themed output documents Stevens' transformation from unremarkable folkie Jesus freak to unorthodox Christian mega-talent.
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Mixel Pixel, 'Music for Plants' (Kanine)
Cautionary tales about partying fall flat.
By Michaelangelo Matos 12.04.06 4:00 AM
Nellie McKay, 'Pretty Little Head' (Hungry Mouse)
Art-pop ingenue resurrects disputed major-label album.
By Barry Walters 12.01.06 4:00 AM
Late last year Columbia sent this New York alternative cabaret singer's 16-track second album to some magazines (including this one) for review (read more), despite her intention to release it as a more sprawling 23-track disc.
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The Low Frequency in Stereo, 'The Last Temptation Of...' (Gigantic Music)
Peppy Scandinavians raid their record collection.
By Jon Young 12.01.06 4:00 AM
Creating good trash rock is tricky -- come on too silly or too smart and you kill the buzz. This Norwegian quartet get it just right on their breezy third album, flinging punk aggression, surf-guitar twang, new-wave angst, and psychedelic weirdness into the same tangy, overheated stew.
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Music As Torture: War Is Loud
UPDATED: At Guantanamo Bay, the military is attempting to break down Muslim prisoners by bombarding them with ear-splitting rap and metal, leading human rights activists to ask: When does an interrogation tactic become pure torture?
By David Peisner 11.30.06 5:07 PM
[Writer's note: When I was researching this story on the U.S. military and intelligence agencies' use of music as an interrogation tool back in 2006, I spoke to A. John Radsan, who had been assistant general counsel at the CIA from 2002 to 2004. I was specifically interested in trying to nail down exactly who had authorized the use of music in this manner.
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Favourite Sons, 'Down Beside Your Beauty' (Vice)
Desolate drama courtesy of swaggering, swooning rockers.
By Alyssa Rashbaum 11.30.06 4:00 AM
Mixing despair with hesitant optimism on their visceral debut, Favourite Sons maintain the shoegazer vibe of frontman Ken Griffin's previous band, Rollerskate Skinny, but combine it with the uplifting psych pop of the other four Sons' now-defunct Aspera.
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