Office Of Future Plans

Office Of Future Plans is the new project from the estimable J. Robbins. Word had been that Robbins was out of the touring rock band game, shelving the Channels project to focus on his Magpie Cage Studio and tending to his family but the interwebs came alive last year with word his linking with Vic Bondi (ex-Articles Of Faith) in Report Suspicious Activity. Soon after Robbins announced that he and Channels/RSA drummer Darren Zentek had started Office Of Future Plans with cellist/guitarist Gordon Withers and bassist Brooks Harlan. A 7" followed and now their self-titled debut has dropped, courtesy of the good folk of Dischord records. Without oversimplifying the whole thing, the record sounds like a J. Robbins rock band with cello sometimes. It's good and I'd very much like to see them live, but I continue to wrestle with my inability to fall for recent Robbins projects like I did the mighty Jawbox. Get the record here from Dischord and keep track of all things Office Of Future Plans via this handy link.

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Craig Finn - Clear Heart, Full Eyes

Word came down the pike last Summer that Craig was in Austin recording a solo record and a subsequent Tumblr documenting the process confirmed the same. I'm mildly surprised that it came out on Vagrant, but that notwithstanding, said solo record has dropped and its called Clear Heart, Full Eyes. Finn has never made his faith a secret and it's definitely ramped up a notch here. See: tracks like New Friend Jesus and Western Pier. The music is rooted more in American Music Club Americana than THS records, with a Telecaster and a volume pedal rather than a Les Paul and a wah kind of mood. Lyrics are cut from the same cloth as Finn fare previously, with arguably more Sunday morning rather than Saturday night content. After a month or so with the record, I'd say Clear Heart, Full Eyes sounds exactly like what you'd expect a Craig Finn solo record to sound like. It certainly will not win anyone over who isn't a fan previously, but should be well received by the average Hold Steady fan. A solo tour rolls through town in the next couple weeks. Buy Clear Heart, Full Eyes and keep track of all things solo and Craig Finn here.

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The Jealous Sound - A Gentle Reminder

It's been a bit since we've heard from The Jealous Sound. The Got Friends EP dropped over three years ago and was rumored to be the last we would hear from the band, but the return of head JS-er Blair Shehan from his own emotional wilderness a couple years ago found long-time pal Nate Mendel stepping into the breach to lend the rebooted Jealous Sound his bass skills. In an even more fortuitous turn of events, Mendel afforded them access to the Foo Fighters recording complex for the better part of last year. The result is A Gentle Reminder, a release that continues the late-period amalgamation of last century's pop-driven guitar punk with a soupcon of today's electronic stylings. I can't say I see the appeal of most of the electronic stuff, but it doesn't really ruin the proceedings. It's a big sounding record, definitely what I'd call radio-friendly. I'd say Change You and Promise Of The West are the two best tracks on A Gentle Reminder, but nothing here is even close to being bad. The tour rolls through Brooklyn mid-month. Catch them at Knitting Factory in Brooklyn if you are of a mind and pick up A Gentle Reminder here.

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Patrice O'Neal - Mr. P

The death of Patrice O'Neal was without question one of the worst eventualities of 2011 and nothing drives that point home stronger than the release of the new Mr. P. Patrice was really hitting a mainstream stride, having destroyed at the Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen and garnering an ever-increasing group of fans through his Opie and Anthony spots and his Elephant In The Room special. Mr. P was to be his next release, but sadly will serve as a way to provide for his mother, wife and step-daughter in the wake of his untimely passing.

Recorded in front of a rabid Washington, DC audience, Mr. P shows O'Neal as a comedian who not only wrote great material, but also possessed a mastery of extemporaneous crowd work. The passing of O'Neal and Greg Giraldo leaves gaping holes in the fabric of contemporary stand-up comedy. Get Mr. P here and celebrate the life of one of comedy's best ever.

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Wussy - Strawberry

So like I said earlier, I've been out of the loop on Wussy as of late. I missed out on the acoustic version of Funeral Dress initially, then doubled down on the brain farting with my overlooking of the release of full-length number three from Ohio's finest. That rectified, know that it's called Strawberry and continues the Wussy trend of their kicking your ass in a pronounced fashion. Coming as per usual from the good folk of Shake It! the one-two punch of gentle giant Chuck Cleaver and his lady Lisa Walker fires on all cylinders here. Everything is almost uniformly good here, but tracks like Magnolia have a Bettie Serveert-y swagger that dissipates the hate that most things evoke in my old age nicely. The uninitiated should think a Columbus version of X, while the converted should make haste (if they haven't already) to the Wussy web presence and snap Strawberry up with the quickness.

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Glossary at PopMatters

All:

Those interested in my short take on the absolutely stellar new record from Glossary would do well to avail themselves of this link.

Thanks to Last Chance Records and Sarah at PopMatters.

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Raekwon - Unexpected Victory

Your boy Raekwon has lurked on the periphery of success for almost two decades now. Sure The Purple Tape and Wu have served him well, but with lyrical skills as sharp as he maintains, you would have figured some big time cross-over was in order. The most recent rumblings concerned some work with Dr. Dre and last year's Shaolin -vs- WuTang, neither of which diminished your Uncle Rae's worldwide presence. I'm most stoked for the upcoming Wu-Block project, but in the interim the god has blessed us with the new mixtape Unexpected Victory. It's pretty ok, packed to the gills with guest spots ranging from the likes of Mobb Deep and CL Smooth to a gang of up-and-comers. The M.O.B.B. track is kind of a banger, as is This Shit Hard. Not going to get a ton of spins, methinks, but a solid release that will no doubt make Chef obsessives happy.

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