Cat Power

Chan Marshall is one of the most talented singer-songwritters you've never heard of. Maybe because her stage name is Cat Power. Not too many artists can get away with naming an album The Greatest, like she did on last year's wonderful and painful set of sultry and dreamy original songs. On this outing, she is literally a jukebox, singing the songs of others and treating them like they are hers alone. I'm not a big fan of covers, but on this album Cat Power is not afraid of the ghosts that exist when one songwritter records the work of others. Her version of the classic New York, New York is the most fearless version I've heard. Even the chairman is smiling.

New Magnetic Wonder.

I love KEXP-FM in Seattle. Operated by the University of Washington, its frequency at 90.3 is the same as my college radio station WKNJ-FM. As much as I long for my days in college radio, KEXP blows away anything we did at WKNJ. Actually, KEXP bests just about any radio station in the US. Finally, a radio station that lives by its tagline: Where the Music Matters. Check them out on-line.

I caught an interview with this charming pop band, Apples in Stereo, and fell in love. This is pop music in its most pure form-- before MTV and before American Idol. How did I not know about this CD that was released nearly one year ago?!? At first listen, songs like Energy and Same Old Drag get in your head and make you sing and clap your hands. Download them today and support independent music!

Juno.

It’s not often that you can include the words “charming” and "sweet" in the same sentence with the phrase “teen pregnancy.” Juno is a wonderfully engaging look into the unusually simple world of a pregnant teenager named Juno, played by Ellen Page. Great performances by the sublime Jason Bateman, ageless Michael Cera, sharp Allison Janney (from TV's The West Wing) and hard-soft JK Simons (Thank You for Smoking) and a rock-solid screenplay make this a must see. Ellen Page’s performance is one that most young actresses dream of—and she nails it. The great soundtrack, including a can’t-get-it-outta-your-head song by The Moldy Peaches, was mostly selected by Page herself. See this movie and see why great writing makes for great entertainment. But is is worth giving up a season of my favs The Office and Brothers and Sisters and missing out on The Daily Show with my Jon Stewart during such important times in Iowa and New Hampshire? OK, enough about unions and management and can't we all just get along...

In Rainbows.

First introduced only on-line, the album that was not "in" anywhere is now "in-stores." I'm pretty old school-- while I sampled most of Radiohead's excellent new album In Rainbows on the web, I did not purchase a download. Mostly because I could not decide how much to pay for it. This album gives Radiohead fans what they want: tons of layered and moody production, introspective and moody lyrics (especially on the standout tracks Videotape and Jigsaw Falling in Place) and music that gets better with every listen and with every change in your mood. Much has been written about the way the band released this album, but here it's all about the music-- and the music is quite good. It's fascinating to watch out the music industry responds to artists like Radiohead and Madonna as they seek new ways to make their art available to the world. If only the recording industry could rewind to 1998 and embrace the model from Napster and turn it into a way to sell. Instead, the industry went in with its dukes up ready for a fight. There's a lesson to be learned and one to be studied in many a marketing business case.