Jack Johnson En Concert (2 Lp's) 11/23/2009

Jack Johnson En Concert (2 Lp's) 11/23/2009Whether you love Jack Johnson, or find his amiable island charm a little too mild for your post modern comfort, props must be given for his confidently re creating a niche for acoustic singer songwriter fare that had its heyday in the '70s. Not since then has a young artist seemed so comfortable projecting a sunny, angst free persona, in service of a folk derived, heart centered musical agenda. His legions of multi generational fans suggest that the

pulsing synths and angelic

leaving behind a sleek album of theatrical angst

This Mirror Isn't Big Enough for the Two of Us") and "I think I'll love to die alone" (from "Cubicles") are typical of the New Jersey band's less than rosy outlook

have to end here

Papercut 5

the National's second full-length album for the venerable Beggars Banquet label

Dre (who literally phones his appearance in) put the listener in Lamar's era of Compton

Fall Out Boy cooks up an immediately digestible combination of crunching rock

Street Life

Laura Lee went on a hike with a family of strangers

" will be familiar to fans

a shift that has the ultimate effect of lightening the band's music considerably