Part of the reason I've been fairly inactive hereabouts lately is that I've simply not picked up much from the record store that's inspiring me to shoot a little shit. I haven't bought a new album—i.e., an album released in 2007—since some time in June. (I have, however, acquired a shit-ton of blindspots, which I'll be going on about in a future post). I just returned to my post from six weeks ago looking forward to the summer releases, to see if I'd missed something.
I do still intend to pick up the new Spoon album. It's been streaming at Merge's site and I definitely think it's terrific—a step up from Gimme Fiction, which I liked but I don't return to the way I do Kill the Moonlight. I'm also supremely stoked for the upcoming New Pornographers album. But my anticipation for the rest from my list have all cooled, based on a single mp3 from each. The new Okkervil River seems to be getting rave reviews but based on the one mp3 I've heard it's not going to shatter my world.
So, has anything come out this summer that has turned out to be essential listening? What've you been digging for the last few months?