The tragic death of drummer, John Pike, makes Ra Ra Riot's The Rhumb Line debut album "The Rhumb Line" newsworthy in itself. There is obvious irony in the single "Dying is Fine," which was written before Pike's death, but the album as a piece of art makes a solid and important statement by itself.
I think Kyle Anderson of Rolling Stone said it best when describing their sound: "Ra Ra Riot combine Arcade Fire's orchestral reveries with Vampire Weekend's pop sensibility." Violinist, Rebecca Zeller, and Cellist, Alexandra Lawn are the foundation of the pop-iest orchestra this side of Win Butler's. Vampire Weekend's Rostam Batmanglij even tweaked Ra Ra Riot's "Can You Tell."
All in all "Rhumb Line" is a fantastic debut album from a band who has been popular in the blog-o-sphere for quite some time. A very captivating summer pop album, after each listen you'll have trouble pinpointing your favorite track.
Here is my current favorite track:
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Ben Folds third solo album "Way To Normal" hits stores September 30th. The quirky Folds offers some unique ways to pre-order "Way To Normal" on his website, most notably the Super-Deluxe Edition, which includes the the album on double-vinyl and physical CD, a 9-track bonus CD, a 60-minute DVD, and 36-page booklet (plus who could do without a foiled-stamp box?). I pre-ordered the [cheaper pre-order option of the] album last week and was able to download two tracks--"You Don't Know Me" and "Hiroshima (B B B Benny Hit His Head)."
After countless touring, the current king of piano rock, returned to the studio and, if these two tracks are any indication, his sound is fuller and funkier once again. "Hiroshima," full of heavy chords and resounding heavy anthem "ooohs", would fit in better on a Ben Folds Five album than among the many soft ballads on his most recent 2005 solo effort "Songs for Silverman". Folds teams up with Regina Specktor on the beat-heavy "You Don't Know Me," a song about a couple with communication problems. Regina aside, this track is definitely an exciting shift for Ben...just take a listen.
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