First Impressions: Stephen Malkmus, Flogging Molly, Jim White

Since my last First Impressions post was so popular (0 comments!), I decided to do it again. These are three albums I've been looking forward to, and they all came out today (3/4). I started with:

Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks - Real Emotional Trash
Malkmus's first album after Pavement, which was self-titled, was and remains my favorite since he teamed up with the Jicks. Every song on that album was a gem as far as I'm concerned. and Pig Lib and Face the Truth came next, and both were OK. He started throwing some long-ass songs on these albums, guitaring out. I can appreciate that, but I have to be in the mood for it. I just gave RET a first listen and I'd say it's about on par with the last two albums--good, but not plusgood. The title track is the long one here, coming in at just under 10 minutes. It's actually one of my favorite songs, though I'll obviously need a few more listens to really appreciate it. "Hopscotch Willie", "Gardenia", and "We Can't Help You" also stood out as some decent tracks. I usually hear something new every time I listen to a Malkmus song, whether it's a Pavement tune or post-pavement. He's definitely not a one listen guy, so I'm looking forward to giving this one several more spins.

Flogging Molly - Float
OK, I'll make a confession. The primary reason I bought this album is that Newbury Comics (where I get 90% of my CDs) was giving away a free Flogging Molly pint glass with purchase of the CD, which was only $10 to begin with. I am helpless in the face of free pint glasses. I say it was the primary reason because my problem with groups like Flogging Molly is that sometimes I really can't distinguish between one song and the next, never mind one album to the next. Yes, the music is fast and fun, but do you really need more than one of their albums? That said, I was pleasantly surprised by Float. Yes, the first two songs are the fast and fun type, but the title track is excellent and a bit of a departure from the tried and true formula, as is the next track, "You Won't Make a Fool Out of Me." I'm not going to say every song on this disc is a winner by any means, but I liked it enough on this first listen to give it a tentative plusgood.


Jim White - Transnormal Skiperoo
Whew...I don't even know where to start with this one. It's hard for me to say in early March--after one single listen, no less--that I've just heard my favorite album of the year. But man...for something to top this would be a challenge. Maybe it's the fact that I listened to it on my headphones in the middle of the night. Maybe it's just because it's exactly kind of music I needed to hear right now. Or maybe it's solely because it's a fan-friggin-tastic album. I've raved about Jim White before, and I honestly didn't think he'd top or even equal his last album, Drill a Hole in That Substrate and Tell Me What You See. Though I'll obviously have to give it a few more listens, this album may do just that. Lyrically, when I listen to these songs, I want to hang on to every word, like I used to listen to the stories my grandpa used to tell me. White's songs are saturated in the American South--the beauty, the ugliness, the sadness, and the humor of the South are all captured here. His words can make me smile with an amusing ditty like "Turquoise House", or nearly cry, as was the case with "Plywood Superman." Musically, these songs are such a bizarre mixture of old style country with splashes of different instruments and production, that there's no way to pin them down. One song may just be a banjo and guitar, but the next will throw in some horns or even the occasional recorder. Combine Harry Chapin, Beck, and Johnny Cash, and you might get something that comes close, but still not quite. "Fruit of the Vine" is the song that got me into Jim White in the first place--I liked the first version I heard a little better, but that was recorded live on Flannery O'Connor's porch, and it would have been difficult to improve upon that. All the songs here are good or great, however, as far as I'm concerned.

Anyway, it's 3:17AM as I write this, so maybe I'll come to my senses after a few more hours of sleep. Nevertheless, even after one listen, I will give this album a doubleplusgood without hesitation. Please give it a shot.