October New Releases

October is a very promising month of new releases--perhaps the best of the year. Lots of albums coming out that I'm excited about.

October 6
Oasis - Dig Out Your Soul. Oasis's career has been a bit rollercoaster. Lately its been on the up though, so I'm hopeful this, their seventh album, will be really great. Last album, Don't Believe the Truth, gave us the great singles "Lyla," "The Importance of Being Idle," and "Let There Be Love," and this new album has already produced an upbeat first single, "The Shock of the Lightning" and the dark album cut currently offered by iTunes "Falling Down."








Peter Bjorn & John - Seaside Rock. Swedish Indie band that had a hit last year with "Young Folks" offers their fourth album.

Sarah McLachlan – Closer: The Best Of. Sarah McLachlan isn't a major star, but she did have her moment with her 1997 album Surfacing, which included "Adia" and "Angel," both of which are here in a sequentially sequenced album.

Of Montreal - Skeletal Lamping.


October 13/14
Keane - Perfect Symmetry. They've been around since just 2004 and already Keane are poised to release their third album. They fell prey a bit to the dreaded sophomore slump for Under the Iron Sea--great album, but not as successful as the band's debut Hopes and Fears, the UK's second best-selling album of 2004. Known for their piano-backed guitarless pop/rock, the first singles from this album, "Spiralling" and "The Lovers Are Losing," already point to a new and exciting direction, heavy with synths and even featuring electric guitar.






Chris Cornell - Scream. Timbaland produced--no joke. First single "Long Gone" is, as expected, a bit reminiscent of OneRepublic's "Apologize" from last year. From Nelly Furtado, to Justin Timberlake, to Madonna, Timbaland is positively the hottest producer in popular music right now, if not this whole decade. Struggling has-beens everywhere are selling their souls to have him produce their next hit, although he doesn't seem to be as good at launching new artists (see Nicole Scherzinger).







Boyzone – Back Again... No Matter What: The Greatest Hits. Boyzone haven't had a hit in years, but since Backstreet Boys, Take That, and New Kids on the Block have reformed, it seems they didn't want to be left out. Sure, this includes new single "Love Me Anyway," but it excludes "So Good" and "Key to My Life." 1999's By Request did the job, and without more new material, this seems unnecessary.


October 20

Kaiser Chiefs - Off with Their Heads. Another band that had a bit of a sophomore slump (although they did hit #1 with "Ruby") is back for album number three. This time they've enlisted hot retro soul producer Mark Ronson (Amy Winehouse) to steer their sound in a new direction. First single "Never Miss a Beat" is a great start. This just got pushed back a week.









Sugababes - Catfights and Spotlights. The 'babes stumbled a bit with their fifth album Change, which scored only one major hit (the #1 "About You Now") and became their first album not to have a fourth single. First single "Girls" is currently #2 on the UK airplay chart, and looks set to enter the top 10 on downloads this week. Buzz is that they turned things around after the disappointment of Change.


High School Musical 3 Soundtrack (10/20) With the Disney gang hitting the big screen for outing #3, this is sure to be one of the best-sellers of the year, considering that HSM1 was the best-selling album in the US for 2006 and HSM2 was #2 for 2007.













October 27/28

Snow Patrol - A Hundred Million Suns. Until 2004, Snow Patrol were a little-known band. Then their third album Final Straw produced a major UK hit, "Run," and then their fourth album Eyes Open, which was the best-selling album in the UK in 2006, produced an even bigger international smash, "Chasing Cars." The album's first single, "Take Back the City," gets its UK radio premiere next week.









Pink - Funhouse. Pink is back with her fifth album. It's first single "So What" finds the singer in her usual punkish pop/rock vein, and already it's a massive hit, debuting in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 and the Australian ARIA chart this week. Max Martin, who helmed her last album's two major hits "U + UR Hand" and "Who Knew" produces the track.










John Legend - Evolver. Soulful R&B singer John Legend puts out his third album. Excellent first single "Green Light" finds him teamed with Outkast's Andre 3000, exploring a more modern sound than we've heard from him before. John Legend has been a critics' favorite, but not a mainstream success. "Green Light" could turn that around.










Bloc Party - Intimacy. The British indie band offers their third album. Already available as a download, the CD gets its release in late October with a few bonus tracks. First track "Mercury" sounds a lot like their previous stuff. Reviews are good, but not great.












Celine Dion - My Love: Essential Collection. Celine Dion releases her greatest hits collection, featuring first single "My Love," a slight reworking of the Taking Chances track. North America and Europe get different tracklists--The North American version is mostly chronologically sequenced, which is nice and includes "Where Does My Heart Beat Now," which wasn't on her 1999 hits release. 2 CD versions appear to be pretty comprehensive.

Anastacia - Heavy Rotation. Anastacia had great singles "Left Outside Alone" and "Sick and Tired" in 2004, so it's a bit puzzling why she's waited so long to release a follow-up. First single is "I Can Feel You," which I haven't heard yet.