This week, The Guide took a look at a standout classic and a recent standout. Turns out, however, the standout classic — Matchbox Twenty — was underwhelming, while the recent standout — Grizzly Bear — maintained all that had made them a hit in the first place. This week was also an outstanding week for new releases. So instead of picking one great new release, I chose three to serenade your Tuesday evening.
Sleeping Ute — Grizzly Bear Though we highlighted a one of the tracks on this album last week that had been released as a single in August, we had no way of knowing how awesome this album would be yet. Turns out, Grizzly Bear didn’t disappoint following the success of their last album.
Speaking In Rounds — Grizzly Bear This song is a great testament Grizzly Bear’s willingness to experiment with new rhythms and sounds. Surprise! It works beautifully.
Our Song — Matchbox Twenty Unlike our wonderful Guide editor, I have never been a Matchbox fan. This song is both mind-numbingly repetitive and totally gets stuck in your head. A Matchbox song stuck in my head makes me mildly unhappy.
She’s So Mean — Matchbox Twenty Okay, this song is catchy and not horrible. But The Guide also called this the only non-bland song on the album, so the standards for this song weren’t necessarily all that high to begin with.
Default — Atoms for Peace This song is great. It’s got an all-star cast of artists behind it and it features some awesome beats. It’s pretty entrancing and is now the headline of my “Studying at 3 a.m.” playlist.
Every Chance We Get We Run — David Guetta (feat. Tegan & Sara and Alesso) I see what David Guetta is getting at here, with the success of his “Titanium” and Flo Rida’s “Wild Ones” — both featuring strong female indie vocalist Sia — over the summer. I’ve loved everything that Tegan & Sara have dropped since high school, but I have to agree with The Guide that the vocals don’t necessarily jibe with the song. Nonetheless, don’t be surprised if you find yourself DFMOing to this song at Thirds or Mason soon.
I Will Wait — Mumford & Sons Oh, Mumford, you’ve done it again. You’re beautiful raspy folky songs are making me have an emotional experience.
The Way It Was — The Killers The Killers released a new album today! If everything is like this track, it won’t disappoint.
Time of My Life — MS MR I instantly fell in love with this duo when they came to D.C. in August. They’re shrouded in mystery and we only know the first name of the lead singer — Lizzie — but her vocals are exhilarating to listen to. She somehow manages to combine the power singing of Adele, the smoothness of Florence Welch and the airiness of Ellie Goulding. It’s one of the most beautiful voices I’ve ever heard. The male half of the duo is in charge of of MS MR’s incredible beats. This track has been on repeat since it was released as part of an EP on Friday.
