Jack White's Lazaretto

Jack White recently premiered a few songs from his new album, "Lazaretto" on the late night talk show, The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. Jack White played the songs, "Just One Drink" and "Lazaretto" along with his band.

Vevo uploaded a music video for the title track off "Lazaretto" last week. The video now has over one million views, suggesting a rise in White's popularity.
Jack White began his solo career in 2012 with the release of "Blunderbuss", after his band, The White Stripes broke up. Although The White Stripes no longer perform together, White incorporates many White Stripes songs into his solo sets, most notably the hit song, "Seven Nation Army".

Watch the "Lazaretto" music video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qI-95cTMeLM

Palladia is a great alternative to MTV

Since MTV no longer plays music and music videos, it is hard to find new music while watching television. However, the channel, Palladia is here to do something about that. The channel is only available for free on certain television networks (Verizon FiOS included). The other televisions networks can get Palladia, however it requires a paid subscription.

The television channel plays many shows like "Later... with Jools Holland", "Live from Daryl's House" and "Storytellers". Many festivals such as Isle of Wright, the Global Citizens Festival, and Glastonbury are also broadcasted on the television channel.

Firefly Music Festival

The Firefly Festival in Dover, Delaware will take place on the from the 19-22 of June. The schedule for the festival was recently released. While there is no real headliner for the first night of the festival (Thursday, June 19), the headliners for the rest of the nights were released. Foo Fighters will be headlining the Friday (June 20), Outkast will be headlining the Saturday (June 21) and Jack Johnson will be headlining the Sunday (June 22). Other notable performers include the Arctic Monkeys, Imagine Dragons, Weezer, Washed Out, and Beck.

For the full schedule for the 2014 Firefly Festival, look here:
https://fireflyfestival.com/lineup/schedule/

Record Room in Arizona

During my recent trip to Arizona, I decided to go to a record store in Scottsdale called Record Room. The place was very small, but full of good records.

My finds:

The White Stripes: White Blood Cells (vinyl)

The White Stripes: De Stijl (vinyl)

Devo: Hardcore Devo-Volume 2 (vinyl)

Nine Inch Nails: Pretty Hate Machine (cassette)

K Records

K Records is an independent record label in Olympia, Washington. The label has a varied group of bands, ranging from punk rock to comedy. On the label's website, you can order vinyl, CDs, cassettes and digital downloads, as well as merchandise from the label such as pins and t-shirts. The label has very friendly employee who write nice messages on the cardboard boxes that the items get delivered in to your house.

K Records also offers bands to record in their studio for a few days. You can choose who you want to be your engineer, and after payment, you can record in the Dub Narcotic studio.

The Black Keys' new album, Turn Blue

"Turn Blue", the new album by blues rock band, The Black Keys has sparked divided opinions among fans of the band. Many fans appreciate the band's new musical direction, while other fans think the band are straying too far away from its old sound. 

The new album is still recognizable as a Black Keys album, however it contains a lot of psychedelic sounds infused into the tracks. Most notably, the opening track of the album, "Weight of Love" contains a lengthy guitar solo during the bridge of the song. The album's cover art also hints of psychedelic influences on the album, for the album cover and inserts contain optical illusions.

Listen to the single, "Fever" here:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZZUY32iCzU

Sonic Youth reissues

Sonic Youth announced today via its Twitter page that every album release pre-Geffen will be reissued. First up is the iconic album, "Daydream Nation". The albums will be reissued on both vinyl and CD. Other soon-to-be reissues by Sonic Youth and Sonic Youth's side projects include The Whitey Album, Bad Moon Rising, EVOL, Sister, and Confusion is Sex. All of the albums are expected to be issued in the original packaging. 

Ever since the band went on hiatus in 2011 due to frontman and woman, Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon's divorce, the members have been keeping busy while doing solo work. Guitarist, Lee Ranaldo has been working on his solo project, Lee Ranaldo and the Dust, Moore has been keeping his busy on his solo work, and Gordon has been working with her new band, Body/Head.

The Pixies' Doolittle

I am the type of person who really loves going to record stores. There is something about the feeling of holding a record that you have never heard of before. Once you purchase the record, you find out that you either love it or hate it. I picked up the Pixies' album, "Doolittle" without ever hearing a Pixies song before. It turns out that I now love the Pixies, especially the third track off "Doolittle", "Wave of Mutilation".

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

I attended the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony last night, and the experience was amazing. Although the event was filmed for the television audience (not many people acknowledged that there were about 15,000 rock music fans in attendance), the event was still really cool to experience.

I was there mainly for Nirvana (who put on an excellent performance), however the other acts were really great too. Nirvana performed "Smells Like Teen Spirit" with Joan Jett, "Aneurysm" with Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth, "Lithium" with Annie Clark of St. Vincent, and "All Apologies" with Lorde.

All of the songs contained women on vocals, probably because Kurt Cobain was a huge feminist. My favorite performance of the night was "Lithium". It surprised me because St. Vincent makes alternative pop songs, so I did not think that Clark would do a great job perform
ing Lithium, which is a hard rock song. However, she did a really great job with the performance.

The most bizarre guest vocalist was Lorde. Although her performance during "All Apologies" was fine (I am not a huge fan of Lorde's music) and it was done in "typical Lorde style" (dreary and sleep inducing), she was an odd choice because she did not influence Nirvana's music. However, neither Annie Clark did not influence Nirvana's music either.

It was really cool to be apart of this once in a lifetime opportunity, for the surviving members of Nirvana will probably never perform Nirvana songs together again. My only regret is that I was not able to attend the after party, because it was invitation only. The after party set included other fan favorites, like "School", which the band performed with J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr.

Watch J Mascis perform a great version of "School" with the surviving members of Nirvana here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=092bFcVqT5s

Concerts to see this year

Nine Inch Nails:
The industrial rock band are going on a co-headlining tour with grunge band, Soundgarden this summer. The bands are going all around North America to many amphitheaters, including Susquehanna Bank in Camden.

Queens of the Stone Age:
The band just announced a show in Philadelphia at the Mann Center. It is quite surprising considering the band's last experience in Philadelphia was negative. Queens of the Stone Age performed in Jay Z's Made in America Festival. The band was not happy with the security at the festival. Maybe this time around, the band will enjoy being in the City of Brotherly Love.

Arcade Fire:
The indie rock band have embarked on a massive world tour to promote their album, Reflektor. Although the band already came to The Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on March 17 of this year, they are coming back to the Northeast to perform in New York City for two nights at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Kurt Cobain remembered on the anniversary of his death

Today, 20 years ago, Kurt Cobain committed suicide through a self-inflicted bullet wound to the head (or as conspiracy theorists think: he was murdered). No matter how Cobain died, there is no doubt that he was a very talented musician.

Cobain grew up in a small town in Washington: Aberdeen. There, he met Krist Novoselic, another Aberdeen native. Novoselic and Cobain soon formed a band, which would later become known as Nirvana.

Cobain and Novoselic worked well together, however they could not find the right drummer. After going through many drummers, the members of the band finally settled on a scrawny man from the Washington D.C. punk band, Scream. This drummer's name? Dave Grohl.

Cobain, Novoselic and Grohl formed a band that many people know to be the core of Nirvana. The band would simply not sound like Nirvana without any of the members.

After the very popular album, Nevermind came out, the band became a household name. At their live shows, the band started to see the types of people who beat them up in high school: the jocks. This was unusual for a grunge band. Usually the band would see people with Black Flag or Melvins t-shirts creating mosh pits at their shows, not jocks.

Soon, the fame became too much for Cobain to handle. By the time the band's third studio album, In Utero was released, Cobain did not enjoy being famous at all. A few months after the album was released, Cobain was found dead in his home.

Wasting Light

The third anniversary of the Foo Fighters' seventh studio album is coming up on April 12. The album was released along with a documentary entitled, Back and Forth showcases the history of the band and the making of the record.

The documentary shows how the album was recorded uses tape, instead of digital. In other words, when recording to tape, there is no room for mistakes. The producer can not put an okay guitar track into Pro Tools to make the guitar sound perfect. Mistakes are what makes an album great and unique when recording to tape.

The album starts off with "Bridge Burning". A fun track which starts off "introducing" every instrument. First comes Dave Grohl's rhythm guitar, then Nate Mendel's bass, Chris Shiflett's lead guitar, Taylor Hawkins' drums, and then Pat Smear's rhythm guitar. This sounds like a lot of musicians and instrumentation, and it is. One of the final tracks on the album, "I Should Have Known", is a slow song, which includes a string section. Wasting Light has a lot more instruments than the band's previous six efforts.

The album is still being sold online and at local record stores.

The Black Keys' new single, Fever

After a short break, blues rock band, The Black Keys are back with a new single from its upcoming album, Turn Blue. The first single released on Turn Blue is called "Fever". The track features front man, Dan Auerbach's raspy vocals and dirty guitar sound. The track is instantly recognizable as a Black Keys song, although there will obviously be more synths on this album than the band's 2011 Grammy Award winning album, El Camino.

The band premiered the video via YouTube. The only graphic on the video is a blue and pink spinning spiral. The song immediately got praise from old fans and new fans, alike.

If "Fever" is any indication of the direction that The Black Keys are heading in with, Turn Blue, then new and old fans will surely not be disappointed with the new album.

You can listen to the song here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZZUY32iCzU

Lullabies to Paralyze

Rock band, Queens of the Stone Age is no stranger to "weirdness". Things got weird on its fourth studio album Lullabies to Paralyze. The ninth anniversary of that album is today, and why not celebrate this anniversary with buying the album on vinyl?

After the critically acclaimed album, Songs For The Deaf, the band wanted to change things up again. They knew that they could not make another Songs For The Deaf, so instead they made up a dark, mysterious fairytale inspired by The Brothers Grimm. This fairytale was given the name, Lullabies to Paralyze.

The album is much more varied than its predecessor. It contains the slow opening track, "This Lullaby" and then soon reaches a poppy sound with "In My Head". The album of course still contains classic Queens of the Stone Age rock anthems, such as "Little Sister" and "Burn The Witch".

The album closes with the slow ballad, "Long Slow Goodbye". The track even has a hidden strings section at the end after about 50 seconds of silence. Quite a Beatles-type way to end an album.

Gibson Guitar 2014 lineup

Les Paul Melody Maker:
This guitar looks like a Les Paul (it is single cut, not double cut), but has the classic Melody Maker sound that many musicians love.

2014 Les Paul Junior:
This guitar has the same classic sound of the Les Paul, but modified and more affordable!

2014 Les Paul Studio, Les Paul Futura, Les Paul Studio Pro, Les Paul Classic, Les Paul Signature, Les Paul Traditional, Les Paul Peace, Les Paul Standard, Les Paul Standard Plus and Les Paul Standard Premium:
Very similar to the older models of the Les Paul, but Gibson has released new finishes!

2014 SG Junior:
This guitar, just like the Les Paul Junior, looks exactly like its sister guitar, just modified and more affordable for the rookie guitar player.

2014 SG Special, SG Futura, SG Standard and Derek Trucks SG:
Updated models of the classic SG with new finishes!

2014 Firebird:
Updated version of the classic Firebird. This guitar is available in Classic White, Heritage Cherry and Vintage Sunburst.

Best place to buy records online

Discogs is a well-known website among all vinyl collectors. Discogs is a website where people can validate the genuineness of their records. The site contains matrix codes and different clues for when a record is genuine or counterfeit. Discogs is run a bit like Wikipedia because it is updated by the public.

The original goal of the website was to create a database for information on electronic music. The website soon grew into something much larger. Discogs started allowing all genres of music to be included in its database. By 2003, the website included most genres of music, including hip hop, funk, jazz, rock, soul, blues and reggae. Nowadays, the database even includes non-musical albums.

Discogs also has a marketplace component on its website. The marketplace works like eBay-- someone sells their item for a requested price and then people can buy it. However, Discogs is a safer website to buy records on than eBay. Discogs has a very strict policy: if a buyer is unreliable, they can not sell an item on Discogs again.

Although I still prefer record stores, Discogs is a good alternative for that one rare album I can not seem to find in a store.

Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage

Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage
This documentary takes the viewer through the history of the band and the current status of the band. The audience gets to see an in depth view of the progressive rock band. W
ho they are and how the band became such a huge influence on many other bands. The film includes interviews with the band, as well as famous fans of the band.

The film was well received by fans. It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video back in 2011, but lost to a documentary on The Doors, entitled When You're Strange.

The fan interviews come from musicians from well known bands, such as Taylor Hawkins of Foo Fighters, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails and Jack Black of Tenacious D.

Nine Inch Nails: The Downward Spiral

My favorite album, The Downward Spiral was released 20 years ago today. This album not only redefined the industrial rock sound, but it made Nine Inch Nails a well known band. After the infamous Woodstock performance, front man Trent Reznor soon discovered the nasty side of fame. He did not like it at all.

Now in interviews, Reznor reflects on "The Downward Spiral Era" of his life. He feels bad for the man he used to be, but he does not miss him. Who was Reznor back in 1994? Tracks like "Heresy" and "March of the Pigs" describe the old Reznor. "March of the Pigs" describes Reznor's frustration with the press, and in "Heresy" Reznor yells out his frustrations about God.

When one listens to the album in full (as it is meant to be listened to), the listener is taken on a journey as a man's (speculated by fans to be Reznor himself) downward spiral. The album starts out with "Mr. Self Destruct", which is the introduction of the character's frustrations with his life, and then ends with "Hurt". "Hurt" has been covered by Johnny Cash and is mistakenly referred to as a Cash song. Many fans believe that in the title track, (the track before "Hurt") "The Downward Spiral" the character kills himself to relieve his pain. Then "Hurt" is the character's suicide note.

Reznor still performs "Hurt" at Nine Inch Nails' live shows. He usually ends the encore with the song, but gives it a whole new meaning instead of being a suicide note. Nowadays, with Reznor's positive outlook on life, "Hurt" can be looked at as hope for anybody struggling with suicidal thoughts and pain.

Neon Bible

Today, seven years ago, indie rock band, Arcade released its second studio album entitled, Neon Bible. The album is centered around themes of war and the state of the United States during that time.

Songs like the gloomy (in a good way) "Windowsill" and the short title track,"Neon Bible" perfectly showcase this theme. However, a song like "My Body Is A Cage" focuses on a completely different theme. The track discusses social anxiety and uncertainty. "My body is a cage that keeps me from dancing with the one I loved but my mind holds the key," sings Butler throughout the song.

Just like all Arcade Fire albums, the theme of youthfulness is present. During the band's live show, the song "No Cars Go" is a fun anthem for any type of audience. In the song, Butler refers to himself and his band as kids. "Us kids know/ No cars go/ Where we know," sings Butler during the bridge of the song.

This album can also be credited with bringing indie rock music into the mainstream, and for that the band should be recognized for.

A trip to Creep Records in Philadelphia

Creep Records is always my favorite place to get rare and limited edition vinyl. On my most recent trip there, I did just that.

My purchases:
Sunny Day Real Estate- LP 2:

Emo band, Sunny Day Real Estate only released two albums back in the '90s. Both albums defined emo music and gained the band a loyal fan base. LP 2 actually has no title; its cover art is simply just pink with the words "Sunny Day Real Estate" typed in small font in the middle. Fans did not know what to call the album, so they just called it LP 2. The best song on LP 2 is "Bucket of Chicken". This bucket of chicken has nothing to do with the song lyrics, just like any of the band's other song titles. The song is moody and slow, but starts to pick up and become upbeat and loud by the chorus. This album is pressed on opaque light pink vinyl.

Nirvana- Come As You Are

Promo copies of any band's singles are always hard and rare to find. Promo copies of Nirvana's singles are nearly impossible to find, that is why I was so surprised to find this promo copy of Nirvana's 1992 single, Come As You Are. The song is moody and my least favorite song of the band's Nevermind album, but a promo copy is a promo and copy. If I did not buy it, someone else would have in the next ten minutes.

Mudhoney- Since We've Become Translucent

Mudhoney have been releasing albums since 1989 are still making them. Their 2002 release, Since We've Become Translucent is pressed on clear vinyl, playing off the album's title.

A trip to Tunes in Marlton

My most recent trip to the record store, Tunes in Marlton was successful. I walked out with a lot of limited edition vinyl to add to my record collection.

Nine Inch Nails- Hesitation Marks

After going on a hiatus, Nine Inch Nails is back with a new album. In the studio Nine Inch Nails is not a band, it is just frontman Trent Reznor with his guitars, drums, basses, synthesizers and a computer. Reznor claims that he enjoys making records alone, but has lately let other musicians contribute to his albums. For example, on the track, "Copy of A", Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac contributed guitar.

Atlas Genius- So Electric: When It Was Now (The Remixes)

Atlas Genius recently released their debut album, When It Was Now. The album was a critical and commercial success-- pretty impressive for a debut album from an indie rock band. Just like any successful album, a remix album soon followed. So Electric: When It Was Now (The Remixes) was released on Black Friday Record Store Day 2013 and pressed on 12'' black vinyl. The record is limited to 3,000 copies.

Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!

New wave band, Devo may be described by some as bizarre, but it is no secret that they helped to define American new wave music. Devo was, at the time that this album came out, comprised of Bob Casale on rhythm guitar, Gerald Casale on bass and vocals, Bob Mothersbaugh on lead guitar, Mark Mothersbaugh on keyboards and vocals, and Alan Myers on drums. 

The record starts off with "Uncontrollable Urge", the fast upbeat track that every new wave band strived to make, but could not. The song starts with guitar and quickly layers the guitar and bass with the vocals following soon after. The verses are upbeat and all over the place, while the choruses are slowed down and melodic. This formula of loud verse, soft chorus, loud verse would be the formula used on many Devo sounds throughout the years. 

Another standout track on the record is the second track, (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction. The song is a Rolling Stones cover, but has hardly sounds like it with Devo's odd but brilliant spin on it. The song includes synthesizers, which makes it drastically different from The Rolling Stones' original version.

This record seemed bizarre and perplexed many people, but proved to be as influential as it is brilliant.

New Vinyl Purchases

My recent trip to Mainstreet Jukebox in East Stroudsburg, PA proved to be a success. I walked out with a lot of vinyl--new and old.
The purchases:
Mark Lanegan and Duke Garwood- Black Pudding

Mark Lanegan, best known for contributing vocals to Queens of the Stone Age and The Screaming Trees, recently teamed up with English multi-instrumentalist, Duke Garwood to record Black Pudding. The record, like Lanegan's previous solo albums showcases his borderline creepy baritone vocals with Garwood on the instruments.

The Melvins- Live at Third Man

Punk rock band, The Melvins have been around since the 80's are still producing records. Live at Third Man is a live record, recorded at The White Stripes frontman, Jack White's venue, Third Man Records. Just like any performance by The Melvins, this performance contains screaming and fast guitar playing.

The Shins- No Way Down/ Fall of '82 (Swift Sessions)

This single by The Shins was pressed on 7'' vinyl back in 2012, and is surprisingly still in stores. The record was released for Record Store Day 2012 and limited to 2,500 copies on black 7'' vinyl. Both songs on the single are on the band's newest LP, but the single has different recordings of the songs.

Lovers Without Borders- Detective EP

Indie band, Lovers Without Borders transports listeners to the beach on the first listen. The band brings their sunny sound to the Olympia underground scene. The Detective EP was released on 7'' vinyl through indie record label, K Records. Just like any "K band", the recordings must be raw, and Lovers Without Borders does just that.

Track 1- Detective:
The title track opens up the EP in a sunny and fun way. The lead singer's vocals can be described as a "non-grungy Eddie Vedder". His vocals are softer than Eddie Vedder's, but are still reminiscent of the Pearl Jam frontman's signature voice. The song includes the lead singer's harmonies with the female drummer. The acoustic song also has a trumpet throughout it. This catchy song is short, but a great opener to the band's debut EP.

Track 2- Eddy:
The second track on the EP is more electric than the previous track, however it is just as catchy. The chorus is very melodic and includes the sound of someone cutting paper at the end of it (it probably is not actually someone cutting paper, it just sounds like it). The song ends with the guitarist playing power chords.

Track 3- The Second Most Beautiful Girl in the World:
The third track on the EP is a Courtney Love cover (the band Courtney Love, not the lead singer of Hole). Lovers Without Borders puts its
own twist on the song. The band's cover of the song is more folk-like and less moody sounding than the original.

Track 4- My Harem Shall All Have Hashbrowns-
The final track on the EP is an instrumental track (what is a good band without a good instrumental track, right?) The acoustic guitar drives the song with the drums serving as the backbone, while the trumpet is back for a final appearance.

Most anticipated albums of 2014

Jack White:
Jack White's first solo album, Blunderbuss proved to be a success back in 2012. Fans of White's previous band, The White Stripes are sure to be pleased with this upcoming record. White has been keeping busy with his side projects, The Dead Weather, who are expected to have a new record out in 2015, and The Raconteurs.

Red Hot Chili Peppers:
Red Hot Chili Peppers, comprised of Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (bass), Chad Smith (drums) and Josh Klinghoffer (guitar) is back in the studio to record its eleventh studio album. The band is set to perform at the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show on February 2, alongside Bruno Mars.

Young the Giant:
Newly mainstream band, Young the Giant is back with a new studio album, Mind Over Matter. The band's first self-titled studio album was commercially successful, although it received mixed reviews from music critics. Fans of the band and critics, alike are anticipating the band's second studio album, due to be released January 21, to see if the band can return triumphant.

Top three albums of 2013

1.) Queens of The Stone Age- ...Like Clockwork:
After a near death experience, Queens of The Stone Age's frontman, Josh Homme was finally ready to create a new album with Queens after a six year hiatus. The album showcases, past members Dave Grohl, Mark Lanegan, Nick Oliveri and Joey Castillo. It also features big name talents, such as Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, Alex Turner of The Arctic Monkeys, Jake Shears of Scissor Sisters, and Elton John. The album is quite different from the band's critically acclaimed 2002 album, Songs for the Deaf, but still contains Queens' signature sound.

2.) Arcade Fire- Reflektor
After their Grammy winning album, The Suburbs, Arcade Fire have switched to a new sound. Reflektor is a combination of punk rock (Normal Person), Haitian "rara" (Here Comes The Night Time), and disco (Afterlife). The band took a risk by moving past their old sound, but this risk paid off and made this album one of the most acclaimed records of 2013.

3.) Nine Inch Nails- Hesitation Marks:
The industrial rock band, Nine Inch Nails released their first album in five year in September of 2013. The majority of the album features the band's signature sound--full of synths and loud bass. However, the track, "Everything", does not have frontman, Trent Reznor's trademark screams. Those screams are replaced by a "pop sound", proving that there is no genre that Reznor can not do well.

Worst albums of 2013- Part 3

Nickelback- The Best of Nickelback Volume 1

Greatest hits albums are always a sign that a band's career is coming to an end (or maybe they have to fulfill a record label contract). Nickelback for years have been making radio hits, and not all of those radio hits are very good. This greatest this compilation album contains basically every hit single from the band's discography. When frontman, Chad Kroeger said in a statement that The Best of Nickelback Volume 1 would contain new material and old material, fans were excited to hear new music from the band. However, when the compilation album came out, it contained on previously released material. 

The album starts off with the band's most famous single, "Photograph". The song contains loud guitars and drums. This track is essential for any Nickelback fan's iPod.

The fourth track, "Rockstar" is a loud rock song, basically explaining how Kroeger want to be a rockstar. "Cause we all just want to be big rockstars/ And live in hilltop houses driving fifteen cars," sings Kroeger. The lyrics in this song are very ironic, considering that Kroeger already has fifteen cars.

The main problem with this greatest hits album is that it contains a lot of music from the band's fifth studio album, All The Right Reasons, and very little to no material from the rest of the band's studio albums.

Whether this is Nickelback's final goodbye or not, it is clear that the band needs to come up with new material to maintain their fan base. 

Worst records of 2013- Part 2

Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Mosquito

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs' 2003 debut album, Fever to Tell, was a great debut album by an indie band. The album made The Yeah Yeah Yeahs famous and even scored them a Grammy nomination. The group's fourth album, Mosquito marked the band's first mediocre record.

The album is not the worst album ever, nor is it amazing. It is just simply, mediocre. It is not the worst album of 2013; It is the most disappointing album of 2013. For a band that has produced solid record after solid record, Mosquito comes off as just okay. It lacks the glow and spark of the group’s earlier albums.

The worst song off Mosquito is "Area 52", which has borderline embarrassing lyrics. "I want to be an alien/ Take me please, oh alien", sings lead singer, Karen O. The lyrics are much different than the lyrics off their debut album.

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs may now lack their old spark from 2003, but Fever to Tell will always be an album that shaped the indie rock genre.