<*>Weezer</*>, Weezer (The Red Album)
Release Date: June 3
Long time rockers Weezer are back this summer with their seventh record and third self-titled release. The record, dubbed The Red Album, will hit shelves early this summer.
Fans can expect a wide variety of musical styles and longer songs on a partially experimental record for the group. Songs such as Everybody Get Dangerous"" and ""Cold Dark World"" may leave diehard fans yearning for more of the goofy classic sound but showcase the band's talent in a whole new light.
In retro-Weezer fashion, the video for the first single ""Pork and Beans"" is a trip down YouTube memory lane, featuring viral video stars such as Star Wars Kid and the Dramatic Chipmunk.
Destined to be yet another hit record for Weezer, The Red Album will be flying off record store shelves and out of speakers world wide when it hits stores on June 3.
- Danny Marchewka
<*>My Morning Jacket</*>, Evil Urges
Release Date: June 10
It's going to be hard for My Morning Jacket to follow up their critically acclaimed studio album Z and live album Okonokos, but if anyone can do it, these Kentucky rockers can.
According to an interview with MTV, the band tinkered with sounds for nearly two months in Colorado for their fifth studio album, Evil Urges, before eventually recording the whole album in New York City, far from their home in Louisville, Ken.
The album will contain the same heavy reverb and jam-band style - judging by their two singles played on ""Saturday Night Live,"" ""Evil Urges"" and ""I'm Amazed"" - and vocals not only from lead singer Jim James, but the rest of the band as well.
Combined with their 24-city tour throughout the United States and a stop at Bonnaroo, My Morning Jacket will be one of the hottest bands of the summer.
- Gabe Ubatuba
<*>Immortal Technique</*>, The 3rd World
Release Date: June 24
It has been almost five years since Immortal Technique last graced and shocked us with his fierce presence, and the anticipation is thick. The 3rd World, his third album, is scheduled for release on June 24, and Technique is primed to take the hip-hop world by storm.
Tech brings the bravado of a Lil Wayne while displaying the intelligence of a professor, resulting in a rapper who's a master of talking both trash and philosophy. That combination has made Tech coveted by major labels, but he refuses to be anything other than self-made. His lethal way with words (""I'll leave you fulla clips like the moon blocking the sun"") and painfully insightful political commentary always make for interesting material. The 3rd World's first revealed track, titled the same, is a piercing tale of capitalism's worldwide repercussions that Americans, as the ones who benefit, don't witness. Check it out.
- Mario Puig
<*>Common</*>, Invincible Summer
Release Date: Sometime in July
Not much is known about Common's latest release, other than its title, but a May 30 Entertainment Weekly article said Invincible Summer was ""packed with flashy synths and catchy hooks."" Flashy synths and catchy hooks? Common?
While the Chicago native has produced nothing but smart, quality hip-hop in his 16-year career, one has to be skeptical about this next attempt. The first single, ""Universal Mind Control (U.M.C),"" which has not been released to the public as of press time, apparently has roots similar to Afrika Bambaataa's famous ""Planet Rock,"" a song with good corny shrills and choppy electro-beats that make for a humorously entertaining track.
Also, Kanye West - Common's main producer of his 2007 release Finding Forever - is reportedly absent from every facet of production on this next album. You can bet Invincible Summer is going to be very different from anything heard from Common before, but knowing his talent and his already amazing catalogue, definitely keep on eye on this one.
- Andrew Dambeck
<*>Conor Oberst</*>, Conor Oberst
Release Date: Aug. 5
Conor Oberst has recorded under a plethora of names and bands - most notably, Bright Eyes - but he has not released an album under his own name since the cassette-only release The Soundtrack to My Movie in 1996. This summer, Oberst has decided to break from tradition and issue a new, self-titled CD and vinyl, due out Aug. 5.
There has been surprisingly little talk about what the new album will sound like. Oberst finished recording it earlier this year in Mexico and tapped into a little-heard-of group called the Mystic Valley Band to back him, though it may or may not include members of Bright Eyes. There have been a few festival dates in England and Austin already scheduled for August and the track listing has been made public, including titles like ""Cape Caà averal"" and ""Souled Out!!!""
- Christopher Guess
<*>Tilly and the Wall</*>, O
Release Date: June 17
If Tilly and the Wall were art supplies, they would be crayons, thanks to their sound's uncanny childlike innocence. Yet, their lyrics ache of angst and experience, and their songwriting is so profound and resonant that their songs are like anthems. The Tillies packed these anthems into their 2004 debut album, Wild Like Children, and returned in full force on 2006's Bottoms of Barrels. Now fans are eagerly awaiting O, set to release on June 17.
The Tillies' recently released single, ""Beat Control,"" and B-side track, ""Cacophoney,"" have given listeners a feel for what the band has been up to. Although ""Beat Control"" sounds slightly more produced and the lyrics are more superficial than those typical of the band, it is undeniably catchy and fun. ""Cacophoney"" is old-school Tilly: both sunny and dark with plenty of tap-dancing percussion.
Given these two sample tracks, it's unlikely O will disappoint.
- Megan Dwyer
