Albums out tomorrow

Two albums that I've been excited about for quite a while are coming out tomorrow: Swedish group Marching Band is releasing Pop Cycle and the fabulous freaky Janelle Monae is release The ArchAndroid.

Janelle Monae's The ArchAndoid is an epic 18 tracks featuring all kinds of genres from R&B to classical to hair metal to old timey show tunes and much much more. I don't really understand why Janelle Monae has been labeled "pop" by some people (though she is what most pop artists should aspire to be), beyond the fact that she seems to be gaining notoriety rather rapidly. She's freaking weird (and I love it)! Definitely nothing mainstream about most of her songs, though some of them will definitely be big dance floor hits this summer, I suspect. The whole album is available to stream on her MySpace NOW. So go check it out. I'll let the music speak for itself.

Pre-order the album on iTunes / Amazon

Marching Band's album couldn't be much more different than Janelle Monae's so it's probably rather strange that I'm writing about them in the same post but oh well - time is of the essence. We featured Marching Band on our Artists to Watch for 2010 list. Pop Cycle is the perfect album to ring in summer. The peppy percussion and pleasant vocals will have you bopping your head as you drive with your windows down and the wind in your hair or as you walk the streets and feel the sun shining down on you. There really is a warm feeling about the album and it has me even more excited for summer to truly arrive than I already am. You can buy the mp3s now, or buy a hard copy of the album tomorrow.

iTunes / Amazon