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10A - Tuesday, April 15, 2008

The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com

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W E E ZE R ''
- WEEZER
RELEASE DATE:
JUNE 17
Unless you're be celebrating your middle school
graduation later this spring, you're probably among
the massive majority that thought that Weezer's 2005
album, Make Believe, was absolute trash. But unless
you have a heart of stone, then you probably still hang
on tightly to the fading glimmer of hope that Weezer
might some day return to the innocent, authentically
geeky pop rock that made their first two records so
endearing. Well, by naming their upcoming disc just
Weezer and sticking to a monotone red cover, perhaps
they're attempting to channel the success of the clas-
sic, similarly self-titled "blue album" that made them
stars in 1994. Don't forget, though, that they tried this
same trick with the "green album" in2001 and the best
thing that can be said for that effort is that it's better
than Make Believe.
ELVIS COSTELLO AND THE IMPOS-
TERS - MOMOFUKU
RELEASE DATE: APRIL 22
Along with fellow elder statesmen Bob Dylan and
Neil Young, Elvis Costello falls right behind the com-
pletely crazy Sly Stone on the list of rock'n'roll's most
enigmatic characters. Little is known about this
month's forthcoming Momofuku except the tracklist
and the fact that it shares its strange title with the
name of the dude who invented ramen noodles. For
a while it looked as though it'd only be available as a
'download or asa double vinyl set, but now it appears it
-will seea CD release two weeks after the other formats
-drop. Though he's made a habit of making collabora-
ion albums with whomeverhe cauget his hands on,
Costello has returned to recording with his trusted

Imposters - the Attractions with a differ-
ent bass player - for their third proper
album together.
ISLANDS - ARM'S WAY
RELEASE DATE: MAY
20
Islands will never be as good
as the Unicorns; it's that simple.
But that certainly isn't to say that
their second full-length album
isn'tgoingto channelsome of the
gritty, pop-based guitar rock of
defunct, mystically-named band
(look to title track "Arm's Way"
as proof of that). Return to Sea was
a slight preview of what's to come
from the group, but the album wasn't
anything miraculous from such a tal-
ented group of upstarts. Here's to hoping
that the playfulness makes a huge appear-
ance on the album this summer.
USHER - HERE I STAND
RELEASE DATE: MAY 29
In the last several months, Usher has been making a
concerted effort to be more ... artsy. Unbelievable as it
may seem, his last few singles have been testaments to
the selling power of Justin Timberlake's latest efforts.
As such, Here I Stand has the potential to be a dark-
horse masterpiece like FutureSex/LoveSounds. And if
Usher is to inherit the "King of Pop" title that's
been so liberally given to him, this disc bet-
ter be something more than Confessions
2.
WOLF PARADE - KISS-
ING THE BEEHIVE
RELEASE DATE:
JUNE17
Spencer Krug seems
unable to do any harm
lately, but Wolf Parade's
- the group that really?
put his name on the indie
map - second full-length y
album is make or break.
The first single, "Call it
a Ritual," gives a glimpse
into the murky, thumping
world that the album will
probably explore. But let's
just hope that the group doesn't
completely fall into dark territory.
Oddly, Apologies to the Queen Mary
was one of the best dance records that
wasn't made to be atdance record. If there
aren't any resurrections of "Shine a Light" or

"I'll Believe in Anything," then this album might not
be enough to continue Krug's burgeoning legacy.
SCARLETT JOHANSSON - ANY-
WHERE I LAYMY HEAD
RELEASE DATE: MAY 20
Yes, it's that Scarlett Johansson. Yes, she's
doing a tribute album to Tom Waits. Yes,
David Bowie appears on two of the tracks.
And no, it will not suck. For an album that
has taken so long to come to fruition,
there's no doubt that the woman we all
fell in love with in "Lost in Translation"
is not just trying to pump out a trashy
album to make a few bucks. This sucker
has been in the making for years and the
woman actually has the chops to pull it
off - at least we're pretty sure she does.
Expect the unexpected with this one.
SILVER JEWS - LOOKOUT
MOUNTAIN, LOOKOUT SEA
RELEASE DATE: JUNE 17
It seems crazy to be saying this, but has any act
from the mid-'90s halcyon days of indie rock proven
more sustainable than the Silver Jews? While they
once seemed perpetually on the brink of extinction,
David Berman's ragtag ensemble has come out like a
cockroach in a nuclear winter, surviving the volatil-
ity of an undefined lineup and Berman's own personal
demons and drug problems.
As Nietzsche said, "That
which does not kill us
makes us stronger,"
and Berman and
the Jews are
living proof.
Tangle-
wood
Numbers
(2005)
was
among
their
finest
work,
and the
follow-
ing year
they began
touring for
the first time.
Now with a few
^ healthy years of
sobriety under his
belt, Berman emerges
again with Lookout Mountain,

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Lookout Sea, which should find the bandleader, among
other things, wrestling with the death of his filmmak-
ing friend Jeremy Blake. Berman's wife Cassie will
again be spotlighted on vocals, and as expected, his old
pal Steve Malkmus will be nowhere to be found. But as
Berman has shown before and seems poised to show
again, that won't really matter.
PORTISHEAD - THIRD
RELEASE DATE: APRIL 29
They haven't released a studio album since 1997, but
Portishead's Third has all of the chilling cries and spac-
ey synths fans have come to expect from the English
troupe. Though the trip-hop scene is all but dead, Por-
tishead isn't afraid to let their roots show. An album
that just as easily could have come out of the late '90s,
Third is an absolutely incredible return to form.
JAMIE LIDELL - JIM
RELEASE
DATE: APRIL 29
Jamie Lidell - the beast of blue-eyed, British soul -
returns this summer with the follow up to his incred-
ible solo release Multiply. His second divergence from
the electronic work he did with Super Collider, JIM
looks to be a beautiful collection of soulful croons and
jazzy, funk instrumentation. If Multiply wasn't enough
to get you excited about this disc, then Lidell's voice
on the there's-no-way-that-dude-is-white first single
"Little Bit of Feel Good" should help you get your
groove on this summer.

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YOU CAN'T MAKE UP
VAlID INTEDUIHEW

Your
Pass
Get Ahead
While You're
Back in
New York Cit

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Enroll in one or both sessions and earn credits toward
your degree. Join other talented students and Baruch
College's renowned faculty in classes this summer.
Registration begins May 1st.
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www.baruch.cuny.edu/summer
summer@baruch.cuny.edu
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The City University of New York 1

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