Unnecessary Album Releases Of The Week: 1/13/09

Posted at 9:00 AM Jan 14, 2009

By Kristopher Yodice

While this release week may be delivering notable efforts like Andrew W.K.'s greatest hits/covers collection and the re-release of The Lemonheads' It's A Shame About Ray on vinyl, we here at NCDSUV prefer to analyze more futile musical recordings. Welcome back to Unnecessary Album Releases, a feature in which we highlight the week's most egregiously bizarre, dull and often unpleasant albums from the music industry's "left"er side of the dial. 
Behold the obscure, the most fantastically superfluous musical curiosas for the week of January 13, 2009 


7. Saxon, Into The Labyrinth
These dinosaurs of British metal have been at for more than 30 years, ensconcing the headbanging world with well over 25 releases. But while their copious output illustrates a seemingly august career, Into The Labyrinth's first single, "Live to Rock," glaringly nods (and that's being nice) at AC/DC's anthem, "For Those About To Rock (We Salute You)."




6. Late Of The Pier, Fantasy Black Channel
While it may have seemed like a good idea, this genre-bending debut from the U.K.'s Late Of The Pier, brimming with a hybrid of power chord-driven electro-punk, painfully resembles last year's obnoxious, release by Does It Offend You, Yeah? Which of course renders Fantasy Black Channel's glaringly disconnected tracks perfect for the gyrating hipster pining for mindless, sweaty, cockney tunes.




5. El Goodo, Coyote
Phil Spector's celebrated "wall of sound," made famous for its lush textures, sunny harmonies and ringing Rickenbackers, paved the way for cult-fave power-pop bands like Big Star. Unfortunately, the Big Star reference in El Goodo's name is as close as these droning, stodgy sons of Resolven, Wales are going to get to "September Gurls." (In that respect, we figured you'd enjoy the below of Big Star performing "El Goodo" more than a track by the band themselves.)




4.  Stuck Mojo, The Great Revival
Stuck Mojo's newest release, The Great Revival, is a mash-up of post-Fear Of A Black Planet Public Enemy, really campy Southern rock and a touch of (bad) nu-metal. With seven albums under their logo-emblazoned belt buckles, these Atlanta veterans are a reminder that it's possible for marginally talented artists akin to Kid Rock to have any staying power in the music industry.