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Albums for the summer

The spring semester is winding down, and while for me it means the end of my college experience, I personally don’t plan on going out without a bang. So many great relases are coming out or have come out recently that are to put simply, fantastic. Here’s a bit of stuff to catch your music fix before we tail off for the semester.

Coming in first is Bluesamericana by Keb’Mo. A blues veteran who is known for being a prominent figure in the Mississippi-Delta revival, Keb’Mo’s new album is a sonic revelation, full of life, energy and passion. My personal favorite is the track “The Old Me Better”, which reexamines the transition that people go through in relationships, questioning if becoming someone else for someone is being true to yourself. Oh, and the bass player takes a cello and plays it sideways sitting down. Keb’Mo’s album is now available.

Next up is The Distiller’s frontwoman Brody Dalle’s solo debut, Diploid Love. Dalle’s love of that sludgy grunge sound hiding powerful melodic hooks and a punk attitude. Lead single, “Meet the Foetus/Oh The Joy” is infectious and comes at the right time as the lingering memories of the recent Alice in Chains and Soundgarden albums fade and the demand is quite high. The album is now available as of this printing.

One of my favorite artists to come out of Europe in the last few years has been Lykke Li. Ever since her debut, I have been captivated by her sweet melodies and great ear for timbres and texture. On her most recent album, Li sounds more confident and powerful than ever, especially on her lead single, “No Rest for the wicked” where she manages to sound both huge despite having such a sparse sound. Her album, “I Never Learn” comes out May 2.

With a saxophone tone so cool it’s criminal, Eric Alexander has carved out a niche in Jazz for himself among a sort of traditionalist crowd, showcasing tone and style that sounds equally at home on his originals as they do on the covers he plays. His lead single “Save your love for me” finds him exploring Cool further and opening up his artistic repertoire even further. This album is available now.

Finally, on the day of Convocation comes the new Black Keys album, Turn Blue. Following up on one of my favorite 2011 albums, El Camino, the Black Keys continues the fine tradition of hook laden garage rock with pop melody sensibilities. Simplistic, the Black Keys takes their ground and pound approach from El Camino and refines it further on the first track, “Fever” and the title track. The result is an incredible album that at the end of the day is my favorite way to cap out the semester.