New Music Tuesday: 12-13-2011

Happy Tuesday everybody! The winter has set in and the "Best of 2011" lists have started popping up everywhere. For the safety of everyone around me when I can't sleep at night and start going crazy, I'll refrain from posting my own.

Charlotte Gainsbourg — Stage Whisper (Elektra)

I am unfamiliar with Gainsbourg's first two albums but her last release, IRM, made me an instant fan. This new release isn't exactly new at all - it's made up from leftover songs from a collection of live performances from the Beck-produced album. Stage Whisper not only stands on its own, but I'm inclined to say I like it even more than her previous release. It starts out with a bang in the Industrial sounding single, "Terrible Angels," and moves into the electro-funk of "Paradisco." What follows is a mixture of more subtle tunes that flow into one another so smoothly that you barely notice until all of a sudden the live portion of the album starts. I am really loving this and think it's a fantastic idea to give listeners an automatic concert experience and show them what they might be missing out on when Gainsbourg comes to town.

Charlotte Gainsbourg - Terrible Angels by Because Music

Various artists — Please, Please, Please: A Tribute to The Smiths(American Laundromat Records)

I need this in my life and I need it badly. I was a late bloomer when it came to even finding out about the greatness of mope-rockers, The Smiths, but I've made up for lost time and this tribute is packed with incredible covers by Girl in a Coma (whose name comes from a song of the same name by The Smiths), Kitten (note: not to be confused with Kittie), Tanya Donelly and others. Much like live albums, I'm not usually into a compilation of covers, but this one is unusually great.
Panic (Smiths Cover) by Kitten by americanlaundromatrecords

Since there aren't a whole lot of new releases at the end of the year, please accept this birthday gift I made for Trish last week in place of more mini reviews. Also, make sure you come back tomorrow for Your Weekly Women to Listen to!