Album Reviews

My love affair with Jupiter One is continuing apace. Normally, when I discover a band I really really like, I’m so absorbed in them that I forget to blog about them. So consider this a special effort to spread the word.

I got sent a review copy of Jupiter One’s latest studio album, Sunshower, last week. Since putting it onto my iPod, the album’s been playing constantly for the whole family. Sunshower is one of those rare delights - an album full of beautiful tunes that rarely hits a weak spot.

The songs range from upbeat, bounce-along indie-pop numbers to mellow acoustic tunes that exude more romance than any chart ballad you may have heard in the last ten years. Find Me A Place sees the band taking on a bluesy feel with the same understated delivery from lead vocalist K Ishibashi, and album closer People In The Mountain is a gorgeous masterpiece of acoustic fingerpicking.

Swedish New-Wavers, The Sounds are currently streaming their new album, Crossing The Rubicon on MySpace as a teaser for fans.

Crossing The Rubicon is the third studio album by the band and the release ties in nicely with the fact that the five-piece are currently on the No Doubt summer tour. And having listened to this amazing band for the first time, I can only hope that the No Doubt tour can bring The Sounds to a much larger audience. It's fair to say that No Doubt fans will see a synergy between the two bands - The Sounds have a great energy in their music, and seeing both bands on the same bill would be a great night of music.