This Week's New Album Releases (2/1/11)

Unlike last week, there were only a handful of new releases this week that caught our attention. Still, the short list includes two Best of What’s Next artists and one of the most brutally funny lyricists of our day.

The Civil Wars – Barton Hollow
“Their name may indicate otherwise, but internal discord has never been a problem for The Civil Wars. When they’re not cracking jokes or singing each other’s praises, Joy Williams and John Paul White are crafting striking harmonies that even Abe Lincoln and Jefferson Davis would have to agree upon.” Read Bonnie Stiernberg’s Best of What’s Next story or Nathan Spicer’s review.

The Go! Team – Rolling Blackouts
“After a four year interim, The Go! Team signals their much-awaited return to the long player format with, appropriately, a hilarious block of tape hiss—storming out of the gate with their joyously cacophonous lead single “T.O.R.N.A.D.O.” (If there has ever been a perfect marriage between track and track title, this would be it).” Read Ryan Reed’s review.

North Mississippi Allstars – Keys to the Kingdom
In case the progeny of Memphis legend Jim Dickinson are all-star enough for you, guests on the bands latest includ Mavis Staples, Ry Cooder and Spooner Oldham. Dickinson passed in 2009, but had told his sons Luther and Cody “You need to be playing music together. You are better together than you will ever be apart.” The boys took that advice to heart, recording at the family’s Zebra Ranch Studio in Coldwater, Miss. Read Jeff Leven’s review later this week.

Todd Snider – The Storyteller
“Wise-cracking folkie Todd Snider is back on the road again in 2011, this time in support of his forthcoming live album on Aimless. The humorous storyteller will launch his tour Feb. 2-3 in New York City before making his way across the country.” Read Steve LaBate’s review later this week.

Tristen – Charlatans at the Garden Gate
Tristen Gaspadarek first began recording music at age 14, and it was around the same time that she decided to drop her Polish last name professionally. "I was probably a little, at that point, afraid that people wouldn’t understand my last name,” the singer told Ani Vrabel in this Best of What’s Next story. “… When you’re 14, you’re like, ‘OK, I like Jewel and Madonna and I’m just going to cut my un-show-business-like last name out of the picture.” Read China Reevers’ review later this week.