Of course the most important news of the moment is last week's release of Tales From the Turnpike House by Saint Etienne. It's been a couple of years since the last album, Finisterre, and the wait has been excruciating.

I worship Saint Etienne like no other band. Since the day I first heard a vinyl 12 inch single of Only Love Can Break Your Heart, I've been theirs completely and utterly. They're THE BAND for me.

The new album is, IMO, absolutely gorgeous (with one song proving the exception). It's their first concept album. The songs all revolve around the occupants of a rooming house. They've gotten a bit of criticism for this, but I think they pulled it off wonderfully. It's mostly downtempo, except for Stars Above Us and A Good Thing, which have a bit more of a dance beat. There is one song, Relocate, however that I hate so much I reburnt the CD without it and took it out of my iTunes playlist. I can't even go into what it makes it so awful... it just is... *shudder*... ok... it's the guest vocalist and the cutesy setup of the song... *shudder*