Music Library: M. Ward, M.I.A., M83

M. Ward - Transfiguration of Vincent (2003), Post-War (2006), "When I Get To The Border," and "Green River." Some people might be unaware that the guy in She&Him who isn't Zooey Deschanel has not just a whole career of his own, but a name, too!  Unfortunately, that name is just as much an enigma as the sobriquet "Him" (presuming that I'm correctly aligning gender roles in She&Him, and they aren't trying to confuse us by switching them), seeing as how this particular artist prefers to go by an initial to mask his true identity and show his solidarity with the mysterious sponsors of Sesame Street productions.  Nonetheless, the artist who prefers we call him either "M." or "Him" has made albums of his own and fairly decent albums they are.  Some, like my good pal L. Pierce (or "Hizzee," as his friends always call him every day of his life), might consider Him to be "Dad Rock," which designates it as an unlistenably bland NPR-approved form of toothpaste fit only for boring procreators like myself, but in fact, he's pretty good for a man without a name.  I mean, I'm not staking my life to his music, but it's definitely North of All Right.

M.I.A. - Arular (2005) and Kala (2007).  It's been scientifically proven that listening to M.I.A.'s third-world pop makes you a better person.  I think NPR conducted that experiment.  It's all, like, re-appropriation of bourgeois sounds into something hip and new, and, like, chickens squawking.  It's also awesome.  I'm sure that no one has ever mentioned this before.

M83 - Dead Cities, Red Seas and Lost Ghosts (2003), Before The Dawn Heals Us (2005), and Saturdays=Youth (2008).  I really love the first of these, a krautrock-ish, Daft Punkish, electro-pop soundscape.  I really like the second two, which are increasingly retro electro-pop songs with vocals and everything.  Lots of fun!