Another week, another Tuesday, another flurry of new music. As new albums drop, this column will do its best to track the notable releases so you don’t have to. Only new material is included in this list; compilations, re-releases, live albums and remixes will generally not be covered.

• The Raconteurs - Consolers of the Lonely

The Raconteurs made a bit of a splash announcing that they would be rushing this disc to market a scant 2 weeks after it finished production. No pre-release press, no marketing campaign, no advanced releases (though perhaps that won’t stop Maxim from reviewing it ahead of time…), just getting fans the music as quickly as possible with a simultaneous online and brick-and-mortar release. Things are getting a bit interesting as more and more bands are playing with the traditional models to find the method that suits them best.

• Gnarls Barkley - The Odd Couple

Judging by first single “Run”, the group has built upon their gospel-infused soul sound and kicked it up several notches. The retro Motown sound is getting pretty big again, and it looks like Gnarls Barkley is trying to leap to the front of the pack of bands on that wagon.

• The B-52s - Funplex

The band’s first album of new material in 16 years. They pick up pretty much where they left off, but unfortunately releases by The Sounds, Interpol, She Wants Revenge, and a hundred other bands in the ensuing years have pretty much rendered most of this album obsolete.

• Pennywise - Reason to Believe

Notable because a) my memories of Pennywise punk rock don’t fit with the post-hardcore that’s apparently on this record and b) the album is being released on the Myspace record label and is available for free download on the band’s Myspace page.

• Counting Crows - Saturday Nights and Sunday Mornings

A double disc, Saturday Nights are apparently for rockin’, and Sunday Mornings are for enjoying a little bit of country.

• Guilty Simpson - Ode to the Ghetto

Combining a poor man’s Brother Ali with a poor man’s Lupe Fiasco still ends up being worth more than 50 Cent.

With the constant attempts at reinventing the current music model, you’ll find more than just music these days when checking out What’s New.

© Eric Atienza 2008 for Listen In. Some rights reserved.

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