Vienna Teng "Dreaming Through The Noise"

Vienna Teng's new album titled "Dreaming Through The Noise" has made it onto my iPOD yesterday. I absolutely am in love with her music and think that she has an incredible sense of how to craft a perfect piece. She combines elements of classical music, singer-songwriter excellence, and a bit of contemporary Tori-esque style into a wonderful package. My favorite track off of this new album is City Hall about the legalization of gay marriage in San Francisco (even though it was short lived and killed by the state government). This album is, in a sense, a departure from her previoius recordings and is much more mature in its execution than prior releases. That being said, it lacks some of the magic that made her prior two albums indie favorites.

I met Vienna in Philadelphia after she gave an in store performance of songs off of her 2004 album titled "Warm Strangers". She performed Harbor live and it was absolutely perfect. Dreaming marks her first album for the Rounder music group, who is home to great performers such as Duncan Shiek, Sarah Harmer (in the US), and Madeline Peyroux. Grade: B+

Charlotte Martin "On Your Shore"

Originally released in 2004, Charlotte Martin's On Your Shore proved to be one of the most stunning examples of Kate Bush contemporary influence since the release of Tori Amos' Little Earthquakes. Rather than direct immitation of Bush or Amos, Charlotte Martin flatters to the utmost creating a stunning debut album. One listen to Limits of Our Love and you are immediately transformed to that place occupied solely by Bush's Running Up That Hill. Whlie not as lyrically convoluted as Amos or Bush, Martin remains more accessible to listeners, but like Amos and Bush, Martin can turn gorgeous into stunning darkness on a dime. Other highlights include tracks such as Haunted, Steel and Every Time it Rains. Grade: A-

Hem "Funnel Cloud"

I started listening to Hem about three years ago after hearing them on LIVE365.com on their Into the Mystic online music station. They are a great group of musicians that advertised in the Village Voice for a vocalist. They got a response from the amazing Sally Ellyson in the form of home-made recordings of Sally singing lullabies. Three formal releases later and Hem has put out probably their most accessible album to date with really memorable tracks such as Not California and Reservoir. Tracks such as He Came to Meet Me and Curtains are instant Hem classics that are references to their older material . Welcome to autumn of 2006. Here is your soundtrack. Grade: A