523. Cousteau - cousteau

523.Ccousteau,
originally uploaded by jrd550.

My very good friend Ellen once used a song by Costeau on a mix - an office mix to be exact if I'm not mistaken and not an official mix (as in the official mix that's taking place tomorrow!). Anyway, I'm a sucker for soul. Real soul music. Therefore I also have a soft spot for quasi soul, or neo soul - whether it be Greg Dulli or Antony and the Johnsons, whatever, I dig it. So I picked this up based on that on track I heard from EJ and the album is decent. It could have been very bad, but for the most part the band manages to not go beyond that line I was talking about earlier. Side note, this thing is in the wrong category.

6.6 out of 10

How Will I Know
Last Good Day of the Year

522. Spain - i believe

522.Sibelieve,
originally uploaded by jrd550.

So Spain pretty much pick up from where they left off - literally. The opening track is titled 'She haunts my dreams' which as you know, was the title of their previous album. As the cover suggests, the record is filled with moments that tread that ever so fine line of cheese and almost cheese... all in all a solid but uninspiring effort.

6.4 out of 10

521. Spain - she haunts my dreams

521.Sshehauntsmydreams,
originally uploaded by jrd550.

So I heard "Nobody has to know" on a sampler cd that came with an issue of CMJ ages ago. I liked it, mentioned it to my then girlfriend that I liked it and she, out of the blue, bought the cd for me, which was a very sweet gesture. Girls who buy you cds are keepers, especially this one. Anyway, the album is a tad better than their debut - the songs are a little tighter, but looser if that makes any sort of sense - i guess what I am trying to say is that they feel a bit more thought through - I like how the track below doesn't really seem to end, as if the situation is unresolved.

6.5 out of 10

Nobody Has to Know

520. Spain - the blue moods of spain

520.Sthebluemoodsofspain,
originally uploaded by jrd550.

This was Spain's first release but the third and last cd of their's that I got. Spain basically make solid background jazzy pop, however on this release, just as the cover implies, the songs are forced, generic and packaged. A shame.

4.6 out of 10

519. Tristeza - dream signals in full circles

519.Tdreamsignalsinfullcircles,
originally uploaded by jrd550.

I first heard Tristeza on KCRW's 'morning becomes eclectic' - I liked what I heard, wrote the band's name down then found the disc in the used bin at Other Music. A rather safe bet, but not safe enough. The album is completely insrumental which is fine, I love instrumentals, but the sonds are just too 'dreamscapey' for me - at times they almost sound like songs from Eric Serra the composer who scores all of Luc Besson's movies - long story short, the songs are mood evoking but can unfortunately be cheesey.

5 out of 10