Tuesday Stroll

The Elite Five

2. Kelly Clarkson: My December

The proof that American Idol CAN do something right! Everyone from teenie boppers to 40-year-old women to trendy hipsters are down with Kelly Clarkson. Without the ambiguity and rather wimpiness of Clay Aiken or the easily forgetability of every winner since Fantasia, it is easy to see why Clarkson was the only 'Idol' to really make it. It's hard to deny the quality of her voice and come on, her songs are damn catchy. Here's your guilty pleasure for the next few months.

3. Boys Night Out: Boys Night Out

These Burlington, ON boys really hit the mark with 2005's Trainwreck, putting new life into the screamo/post-harcore/whatever-you-want-to-call-it scene. Trainwreck's conceptual landscape and disturbing portrayal of a man's digression into grief-stricken insanity added some desperately-needed substance to the genre. They followed that up with an EP earlier this year that saw the largest shift from screaming to melodic vocals in their work yet. Expectations are all over the place for this album because no one really knows what it's going to sound like but surely enough it's going to sell.

4. Metric: Grow Up / Blow Away

No, this is NOT a "new" album, you're going to have to wait until October for that. This is in fact Metric's first album, from 1999, which features Emily Haines and guitarist James Shaw as a two-piece. It has been described as a 'raw' and 'primitive' version of the band, so don't expect the booming hooks and sweet croons that are commonplace.

5. Beastie Boys: The Mix-Up

To the 5 Burroughs wasn't that good of an album, but I mean, cut them some slack. You know you played Ill Communication on your cassette Walkman ALL the time in highschool. This is an instrumental album and if you have ever heard the instrumental tracks that they have snuck onto their other albums, then surely you know that is going to be sweet. It is also rumored that another version o the album is soon to come with collaborations and the whatnot.

Remember Me?

6. Bad Brains: Build a Nation

It's been a long time since Bad Brains were in their prime, but with all the attention geared towards Build a Nation, this album may actually work out well for the hardcore band. It was produced by Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys and is being seen as a sort of 'comeback' album. I don't see a Bad Brains comeback as much of a plausible outcome, their music and attitude is such a statement of their time that if they did gain a lot of popularity again, the sentiment would be ruined. It may not be an altogether bad album though.

7. Tupac Shakur: The Way He Wanted It

With all the rumours of Tupac faking his death, maybe this title has more merit than one would realize. Regardless, even the biggest fans are starting to realize that this is just one big cash grab and stopped buying these posthumous releases after Resurrection.

Not My Bag - Maybe Yours?

8. Nick Drake: Family Tree

Fans of Zach Braff and the OC soundtracks rejoice! Here are some more songs you can post on your Myspace page to impress your friends. Even though Nick Drake is a fantastic musician who had always been under-rated, his recent spur in popularity seems to be rather insincere, teens who model themselves after Conor Oberst and Seth Cohen love to drop Nick Drake's name as a sort of 'secret handshake' between themselves but in the end, can't even name one of his songs. This is a typical posthumous release of home recordings, which were probably never meant to be released. His sister, Molly, and mother, Gabrielle, are also featured on the album, lending meaning to the name.

9. The Click Five: Modern Mind and Past Times

Myspacers' pockets will be a little emptier this week. If the Nick Drake album wasn't enough, Arctic Monkeys-coattailers The Click Five have a new album coming out too. With a new singer added and tracks written by Clay Aiken's songwriter, young scenesters will probably eat this up, completely forgetting that the Click Five used to open for acts like Ashlee Simpson and the Backstreet Boys.