i bought 3 new cds today and that's the biggest record shopping for me inawhile, to buy 3 new cds. i bought cds from 3 artists which have something in common: i wasn't thrilled with the last record. (marilyn manson, the white stripes, bjork) i don't listen to the radio so i haven't really heard any spoilers. the most i know about any of these 3 albums is i watched bjork's performance on "saturday night live".

"eat me, drink me" - marilyn manson. so i've not really been a fan of manson since "mechanical animals" but i continued to buy albums and go to concerts. (i've been listening since 1994.) i thought i was done with the last album but there was curiousity to see if manson could return. listening to this, i just don't know. it's not as bad as it could be but there's nothing great here. i don't know if there's even anything good. it's really time for brian to drop the manson crap and approach music from a whole new direction, a whole new persona.

"icky thump" - the white stripes. i never acquired the previous album because i didn't get into it at a record store listening station. otherwise, i like these guys. this album is weird. it starts off weird. it's not a bad record. it's just different from my usual taste. i wouldn't know how to describe it if i didn't go read some reviews after listening to it. someone said 70s rock. 70s keyboards. i guess that's what it is. i don't listen to 70s rock so i wouldn't know that's what is the element i find weird. i guess it's also slightly weird for me to hear music where someone mentions mexico, even if just on vacation, and they don't live in a border state. it'd make more sense for jack white to sing about canada, being that he's from michigan. however, if you read up on him he grew up in mexicantown, detroit. the more i listen to this record, the more i like it, but the 70s keyboards aspect is still weird.

"volta" by bjork. this is different but good. i'm glad bjork made an album i like again. i didn't like "medulla" at all. i understand as a vocalist she needed to make an album like that but i don't like bjork when it's pure vocals. in fact, i got into bjork rather late. i've known about the sugarcubes since 1990 or so but i never really got into that or her solo work until "homogenic". after listening, i read a review and again the person hit the nail on the head. bjork's music is more like stockhausen, especially this album is like that sort of music and i don't think the average pop music listener is going to get that or is into that kind of music so i doubt they will appreciate this album. but who knows. bjork may be the person to bring it mainstream.