Kasabian's entire sophomore record, out September 12, can be heard at their myspace page. They must be huge in the UK--they have over 22,000 friends. This album isn't as blatant about ripping off the original Madchester bands, though you can certainly here some Happy Mondays in there as well as some Chemical Brothers meets Oasis.
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Jeff Hanson wowed me with his first record, while his second record, as good as he is, was missing some sparks. His next one on Kill Rock Stars, due in early 2007, will have more people comparing him to an angelic Elliott Smith while I will be looking for that initial wowness. He's on tour in September, which includes September 11 in New York.
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As if Stereolab doesn't have enough releases already, Rhino is putting out a Stereolab anthology, Serene Velocity, August 29. although it seems skimpy with only 16 tracks. includes songs released as seven-inch singles and songs recorded between 1993 and 2004 that were on Stereolab's seven (!) Elektra studio albums. Stereolab ring tones! because i don't even have a cell phone! Text Stereo to 74466*