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Uh oh! There are electric guitars on the new City and Colour album, Little Hell. That, combined with a richer and deeper production will certainly have some people crying foul and tossing out phrases like “I liked City and Colour when they were low-fi” or “I don’t like the new album. It’s too ‘radio.” I, personally, do not have any of those feelings. But at the same time, this album, while good, isn’t as good as the last two City and Colour albums.

Dallas Green, the main man behind City and Colour, is really stretching his wings here and embracing his songwriting on a much more grand scale. And I don’t blame him. Simple songs on acoustic guitar are great and all but why not mix it up some friends and a couple new sounds? That’s what I would think if I were him and I’m sure he thought some similar things.

The bottom line here is that this is a good album of mellow(ish) pop-songs with the same City and Colour emotional depth that we’ve come to enjoy. The ballads are great and this time out Green has incorporated some electric guitars to broaden his sound. The best songs here are still the acoustic ones (“O’ Sister,” “Grand Optimist” and “Northern Wind”) but the more energetic and electric songs really help to make this album a more entertaining and varied listen.

It no longer makes any difference what any thinks about Radiohead – the have transcended above all that nonsense.

Anyone who grew up in the 80s – and were old enough to understand what was happening in the 80s – probably has a soft spot in their heart for the synth-pop that dominated the early part of the decade. Those that do have that soft spot in their hearts will certainly find something familiar in the new Cut Copy album Zonoscope.

Zonoscope sounds like it was lifted straight out of 1983 and listening to it conjures up images of skiing montages and bad dancing.

But, like most of the synth-pop albums of the early 80s there are only a few songs on here worth checking out. The album’s hits are great but the rest (and most) of the album is forgettable.

The lead single and first track off the album, “Need You Now,” is the best. That song is almost good enough to justify the purchase of the full album – but only almost. A couple other standouts include “Pharaohs and Pyramids” and “Where I’m Going.” The rest of the album doesn’t do anything for me.

If you are younger than 30 (or if you are not a hipster) then you might not find as much to like here as those of us that are.

John Vanderslice is someone I’ve tried to really get into, primarily because many of my friends are really into him. While I enjoy his earlier stuff the last couple albums have just not done it for me. I am by no means an expert but it seems to me that over the last couple albums he lost a softness and subtly that existed in his earlier albums. Again, that is said without a full appreciation for his entire catalog and just a feeling I get when his stuff comes on friend’s stereos.

When asked to review the new album, I was hesitant but eventually accepted the challenge thinking I could do a fairly decent job of being unbiased. After only a couple listens I quickly realized that Vanderslice’s newest album, White Wilderness, is great. This album encompasses, in a lot of ways, the things that I do like about the songs that I like from Vanderslice. Softness and subtly reign supreme here and the result is fantastic.

Each of these songs was crafted from the beginning with orchestral accompaniment in mind. Most albums these days that include “orchestration” do so more often than not as an afterthought – as if the producer suddenly thinks “hey, we should put some strings on this shit!” This album is written almost as if Vanderslice’s own voice and guitar are the afterthought.

The songs are sparse at times, billowing at others but more often than not the songs are perfectly balanced between the pop-rock of Vanderslice’s writing and the Magik*Magik Orchestra’s composition. Vanderslice is a gifted lyricist and his lyrics drive a narrative that is often told in first person.

This is a great album if you can appreciate it. The wonderful Magik*Magik Orchestra will not translate for those who listen to Black Eyed Peas but most “indie” and “alternative” music fans will find more than enough to interest them in this album. While I wasn’t able to say it with confidence before, I can say now that I am a fan of John Vanderslice.

If I wanted to listen to some chick make a bunch of funny voices I’d listen to Maria Bamford – at least she’s funny on purpose.